I and my family received our GC stamping on June 25th,2001. I started the whole process in Oct 1998 with Rajiv Khanna as my attorney. He is a lawyer of great standing and has helped me at every point in the whole process. I must mention here that the paperwork done under his guidance has been perfect and I had no RFE's except at the last stage for an employment letter. This substantially reduces the total time of this lengthy process. I am specifically mentioning this because I have seen some of my friends stuck for years in the process because of careless paperwork. Also I had some problem regarding the evaluation of my education and Rajiv's correct strategy helped me and I could come out of the problem. I found the staff in his office in general and with a special mention of Suman Bhasin, Laila Lehman, Shivani Sharma and Diane Lombardo, very co-operative. Thanks to Rajiv and his staff.
Hi Folks, I am extremly happy to inform you that I got my Green Card process completed in a record time of one year. I am just back from India after finishing the CP Interview in Chennai successfully. Mr. Rajiv , Ms. Fidelina Baptista and all his staff Suman Bhasin, Amel Berhe, Leila Lehman, Nimia were very helpful in the entire process. Needless to mention that Mr. Rajive is very good in handling EB2 cases. They did a great job in getting my labour and I-140 approvals and also cooperated very well in my persuit through CP instead of the regular I-485. During my I-140 stage, when I called and asked Mr. Rajiv that I want to opt for CP, he immediately agreed and accepted the challenge though it was not very popular at that time. I am extremly thankful to the entire Law office of Mr. Khanna without which I would not have got my Green Card so fast. I definitely recommend the services of Mr. Khanna who are looking for a good and efficient lawyer. Good Luck to all, Chandra.
Hi Folks, I am extremly happy to inform you that I got my Green Card process completed in a record time of one year. I am just back from India after finishing the CP Interview in Chennai successfully. Mr. Rajiv , Ms. Fidelina Baptista and all his staff Suman Bhasin, Amel Berhe, Leila Lehman, Nimia were very helpful in the entire process. Needless to mention that Mr. Rajive is very good in handling EB2 cases. They did a great job in getting my labour and I-140 approvals and also cooperated very well in my persuit through CP instead of the regular I-485. During my I-140 stage, when I called and asked Mr. Rajiv that I want to opt for CP, he immediately agreed and accepted the challenge though it was not very popular at that time. I am extremly thankful to the entire Law office of Mr. Khanna without which I would not have got my Green Card so fast. I definitely recommend the services of Mr. Khanna who are looking for a good and efficient lawyer. Good Luck to all, Chandra.
I found Mr Khanna's office as very professional and prompt.
Mr. Khanna and staff were very prompt in responding to questions. Mr. Vijay & Ms. Nimia took special care in scrutinizing the papers and always went out of their way to get my papers processed in time.
I and my wife recently received our 485 approval notices in the mail. PD: August 21st, 1998 I-485 RD: August 5, 1999 FP: November 30, 1999 I-485 approval: February 28, 2000 Mr. Rajiv Khanna and his office helped us throughtout this process and provided expert guidance and timely advice whenever we needed such. Mr. Khanna was available at very short notice to answer any question and put us at ease many times throughtout this process. He is very much informed about the latest happenings in the field and uses this and his experience to perform the best possible service. I have been thoroughly satisfied with his office and commend their professionalism and honest approach of doing things. We would like to thank Suman Bhasin, Diane Lombardo, Leila Lehman, Fidelina Batista, Nimia Aranibar and Amel Barhe for their professionalism and hard work in getting us through this process. This would not have been possible without their help and support. Finally I would like to add that for anyone looking for a hard working, accessible, knowledgeable and trustworthy immigration lawyer, Rajiv Khanna and his office are a sure thing!
I just got the I-485 approval yesterday in the mail and Rajiv informed me about it through an email. I am writing this feedback to let people know of excellent and extremely professional job done by the law offices of Rajiv S. Khanna. (all dates given below.) Rajiv used the RIR process for my labor certification, getting the LCA in a very quick 3 months time period. I had to wait for my PD to become current to file the I-485. My dates. PD 7/97 RD 4/4/99 ND 4/22/99 FP 8/20/99 FBI processed it on 9/23/99 and approval 02/29/00 Thanks a lot to Rajiv and his associates. I am all praise for them. will gladly refer them to you anytime. Rahul Vyas.
One of our community members had asked a questing regarding the processing dates of 485.
In a pending AOS (I-485), unless your PD is current, USCIS will not touch your application. Only when the PD becomes current, they start processing applications ROUGHLY in the order received.
For recent updates on PERM processing please click here.
http://www.immigration.com/processing-times-and-status-checks
One of our clients (I think I have worked with these folks for over a decade) had these questions:
Quote: A member of our family was issued a Green Card in November 1980. The green card did not have any renewal date (see enclosed). I assume Green Cards at that time did not have a renewal date. Does this need to be renewed?
Ans: Replace the green card. See:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-90instr.pdf
Now that I received my GC through employment, does my employer need to change my position to the one filed in the Labor Certification?
Yes, now that the GC is approved, your employer should "permanently" give you the job described (including the title, salary and job duties) in the Labor Certification. This change should take place within a "reasonable time" after the GC approval.
Keep in mind, "permanent" does not mean forever. This term describes a job that has no pre-decided termination date. We see no violation of the law, If the employer, due to economic or other circumstances, can no longer support the job after having offered it to you in good faith.
Some of our employees' Green cards
have been filed. There projects have ended. They are working on H-1 but possess EAD and have 140 approved and 485 pending more than 180 days.
Quote: (1) If we revoke their H-1, are we still required to pay full wages if our clients say they do not currently have a project for our employees?
Ans. You are not required to pay "bench salaries" for employees whose H-1 are revoked (remember you must inform CIS and offer employee a one-way ticket home). But we then have exposure to the questions, "do you still have a "permanent" job for them?" If the answer is no, then their GC processing can be interrupted unless they use AC21 portability.
1. Hi Rajiv I have a few questions about starting business in partnership.
I am currently on H-1B , my I-140 is cleared and priority date is not current. My wife is on H-4 visa and she is interested in starting her own business with some one who has I-485 pending and has EAD.
I will be the one who will be investing in this business but I won't be employed with that business.
- Is this legal ?
2. Can you be a passive investor on H-1?
1. She can NOT do this on H-4. Once you folks file 485 and get EAD, things will be different.
You can then be a passive investor (performing no work type activity for the company) even while on H-1. You can also be an active investor if you wish to move to EAD as long as you maintain your intention to work full time for the GC sponsoring employer. Your wife can work for the company, own it, be partners, etc. as long as she has the EAD.
For past 7 years I work for company ‘A’ on their H1B visa (EB3). I had a I-140 cleared in 1998 from my previous company ‘B’ under EB2. Company ‘B’ filed for my I-485 in 2004 and I finally got my green card.
Quote: 1) Do I need to inform company ‘B’ and be in their payroll with immediate effect?
2) If company ‘B’ cannot provide me a job in my location and offer the salary I demand, is it a valid reason for me not to join ‘B’?
3) How should I inform company ‘A’ about my green card and what is the best reason to justify my case to continue work with company ‘A’?
or Should I inform company ‘A’ only when I fill the I-9 form next year Jan 2010.
The attached document explains the criteria.
1. Is it advisable or compulsory to get the prevailing wage determination from the states or Online Wage Library is enough at the time of taking LCA? Because most of the time we are taking the LCAs for the job titles like: Software Engineer, Programmer Analyst and System Analyst for which the wage determination available in the online wage library.
Ans. OES wages can be used as long as the correct job category and job level are used. Applying for prevailing wages from the govt. is time consuming, but does have the benefit of being almost beyond question in case of an audit.
1. I am contemplating switching from H-1B status (in Year 4) to an L2 status (wife holds L1B status) and then applying for EAD. After I receive the EAD (receipt of application sufficient for starting work?), (1) am I allowed to hold on to my current H-1B status or does it automatically lapse upon conversion to L2?
2. Can I hold a CAP-EXEMPT H-1B with an academic institution/ think-tank etc CONCURRENTLY with the L2, (3) work as an independent contractor (1099)?
3. Does EAD allow one to be do multiple things as a free-lance professional?
1. Ans. It lapses upon change of status from the date the status is changed.
2. Ans. You cannot have H-1 and L-2 status at the same time. But on the L-2 EAD you can do both jobs.
3. Ans. Yes.
1. Are we OK in keeping an H1B worker without work as long as we pay him during the project break too - at the LCA wage level.
Ans. You must pay your H-1 workers the legal wage. This is the higher of the prevailing wage or the actual wage. Actual wage is defined as that which you pay other similar employees in the same geographical location. So, as long as you pay the legal wage, there is no problem.
When filing for H-1, it often becomes an issue as to what is acceptable evidence that a foreign employee has completed their degree requirements.
USCIS has stated:
I have attained Canadian Citizenship but a born Indian citizen, when I am applying for 485 which priority dates do I need to consider, General or India. I do not have Indian passport.
Still, India. Your chargeability follows the place of birth, not your citizenship.
I am sharing with you a response to a frequently asked question about adopting a child from India. Our inquirer also wanted to know if she could adopt her niece. Here is the info:
The following pointers have emerged from recent cases and comments from USCIS:
1. Make sure you document the citation records (to show how many hits the journal gets), impact factor and circulation figures of the journals in which your publications appear.
2. (This we already knew) Recommendations from people who know you personally carry less weight than from those who know you by reputation.
3. Emphasize/document the "international" nature of your accomplishments.
What does the stimulus Bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) say about H-1 hiring and about green cards?
There is a lot of confusion out there as is obvious from a gazillion emails I have received. So, I braved the lion’s den and tried to figure out this thing. Here is how I see it.
1. If an employer receives TARP funding they can hire NEW H-1B workers only if they comply with certain requirements. Note that existing H-1 workers are not affected. Note also that there is no effect on existing or future green card applications of such employers.
The category of Engineers includes several different types of engineers.
My wife and I received our GC within 28 months for the whole process with Rajiv S. Khanna as our attorney. Rajiv is an expert on Immigration Laws and is straight up and abreast of rules & regulations and is strict about the law and stays strictly as defensive. He helped us at every point in the whole process. We never get any problem or incompletion about the paperwork done under his guidance, which has been perfect. Perfect paperwork reduces the total time of this lengthy process. We are greatly thankful to Diane Lombardo, who is always available and is happy to responds calmly and peacefully. Also many, many thanks to Leila, Suman, Lakshmi, Shivani and other staff members who are very co-operative and would return calls & e-mails promptly. In short Rajiv and his staff made the whole process very easy, simple and painless. We are really glad that we chose this Law firm. We are greatly pleased with Rajiv and his staff as far as their professionalism, courtesy and promptness regarding my GC. Many of my friends and employees of our company went through Rajiv and all of them are also happy like me. We are thankful to Rajiv and his staff.