U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced the launch of our Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Immigration Records SysTem (FIRST), which will eventually allow users to submit, manage, and receive FOIA requests entirely online. Before this change, USCIS only accepted FOIA requests by mail, fax, and email, and requesters typically received their documents on a compact disc by mail.
Can I keep the notarized copy of my green card instead of original green card? Because I think it’s risky to carry GC all the time and have fear of it getting lost. cost and wait time for replacing GC is very high.
When I will travel out of town or government buildings I can take my GC with me. But for other day to day routine travel can I keep my GC safe at home ? What is the maximum penalty I have to pay if random checked by immigration officer (very unlikely) I provide my driving license and notarized copy of GC? Is it very serious offense ? Have you seen people getting into immigration(USCIS) trouble for not carrying original GC?
Do we have to do police complaint if GC is lost? If yes then can you please explain the procedure, and forms to fill.
Note: This is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced the start of a six-month testing period of Incident Driven Video Recording System (IDVRS) in operational environments.
On April 15, 2018, USCIS used a computer-generated random selection process to select enough petitions to meet the fiscal year (FY) 2019 cap of 4,999 for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI)-Only Transitional Worker (CW-1) program.
My spouse and I are staying in the USA since last 10 years on work visa H-1B. We have our second daughter born in 2016 who is facing neurological disability which requires long term care and constant therapies. The current scenario is my husband's H-1B has denied and couldn't get back to the USA. I am here in the USA with my both kids on B2 Visa. My both kids are US Citizens. Is there any legislation which can provide legal stay to the parent of a child with disability in the USA?
Video Transcript
The answer is "No". You can stay on a tourist visa. There are no special visas or green card for such situations. More...
Note: This is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.
Parents came to the USA on a B-2 Visa in March 2021. I have requested an I-539 extension in August 2021 due to COVID and they stayed till Jan 2022. Eventually the extension got denied. Is this a problem?
The government will say as one has overstayed their I-94, they will now be subject to section 222(g). If you overstay your I-94 the visa stamp on your passport is automatically canceled, so you have to apply for a new visa. For more details on this issue, visit my author page on The Economic Times.
How much time does the EB-2 green card process take for a Chinese born?
For the Chinese born, it is getting more difficult. It is definitely longer for people who are born in India and shorter for China born so far as of this month.
Can you work on H-4 Visa?
Not without an employment authorization which comes only at a certain level of maturity of your spouse's green card.
Question 1: The company has laid off the employee but have put them on payroll until March 2023. In this case, can the employee travel internationally and will he be able to re-enter the USA?
Question 2: Is it the right time to move to the USA from India on H-1B since one is beginning to hear a lot of layoffs took place in big MNCs?
Answer 1: Do not travel until you get a job as you could have problems when you come back.
Answer 2. : If you are working for a big MNC then you need to think about it. But if you are working for a smaller company or a company that is not affected by the layoffs (example the healthcare industry) then you do not need to worry.
Is it not recommended to travel outside USA when you are on H-1B and I-140 filed and approved ?
Absolutely no problem, you can travel.
I have Dropbox appointment in India and going alone. My husband has a valid I-797A but an expired visa. Will that affect my stamping?
I do not know. It depends upon which way they are feeling on the day you go. Earlier there was no problem but now in some cases they have insisted you must have an H-1 visa stamp.
A friend of mine went to the U.S. on F1 last year but due to some personal problems she came back home but she wants to go to the U.S again this year to a different university. Will there be a problem to get F1 again?
Depends upon individual cases. Difficult to say.
Is there a possibility of getting approval for H-4 visa work authorization act this year?
Nothing is going to happen on immigration this year.
My I-140 and I-485 is pending, my OPT has expired. Can I stay back in the U.S until I get my green card EAD ?
Sure, because you have your I-485 pending. Having a pending I-485 gives you the right to stay in the United States.
Can I visit Canada with a valid F-1 Visa or do I need to take another visa ?
If you are on F-1 status, you can definitely go to Canada.
If I were to file for F-1 but my H-4 was going to expire would I have to file for an H-4 extension?
No. So if within the life of your H-4 you apply for F-1 change of status and if the H-4 expires that's fine. By the way, H-4 allows you to go to school. As soon as you file for the F-1 you should be able to continue going to school. Also check with your DSO.
If someone is on L-1 and got laid off, what are the alternatives?
Pretty much the same as H-1. 60 days grace period and if you still cannot find a job, leave the country or convert to student status if you want to go to school or B-1/B-2 if you want to just wait it out and look for jobs.
The Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CIS Ombudsman) assists individuals and employers in resolving difficulties they are experiencing with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This page covers what CIS can and cannot help with and how you can submit a request for case assistance with the office.
Discussion Topics, Thursday, February 02, 2023:
FAQ: Criteria for national interest waiver || NIW for physical therapists || Multiple companies applying for H-1B Cap registration - H-1B lottery || Can H-4 visa (no EAD) holders take an unpaid internship? || Can H-4 EAD start a Business in any State? Can a relative's company file H-1B? || H-4 visa dependent children change of status to F-1 before 21 || Filing H-4 and H-1 simultaneously || Status of F-1 once H-4 is approved || Most efficient way to get EAD F-1 or H-4?
Have any rules changed regarding getting a spouse visa through H1, L1, or O1? Also is traveling on a tourist visa to the US after marriage not ok, with a pending GC application? Finally, does the US have any special agreements with the UK, EU, Singapore, Dubai or Australia for visas that may qualify in this scenario?
Regarding the rules for getting a spouse visa through H-1 L-1 or O-1 nothing has changed.
It is certainly fine traveling with a tourist visa to the US after marriage, if you can convince the government that you are not going to break the laws which means staying in violation of your visa.
Regarding the US having any special agreements, there are only two kinds of visitor visas: regular ones and visa waiver or ESTA visa. There are special visas for example in Australia there is something called an E-3 visa which is very much like an H-1B and more or less a dual intent visa.
My concern is about the Applying for Citizenship for myself and spouse, and with our passport and GC expiring criteria.
My GC and my spouse’s GC have a expiration date of Sep-2023
My Indian Passport have expiration date of Jul-2024 and my spouse’s on Mar-2026
I am pretty much ready with all the documents (been working on it for some time) to start our citizenship application by myself, according to the U.S Naturalization website for my region (New Jersey) it shows the processing time as 16 months. And if I apply now, during the processing period my GC will expire.
Is it okay to apply for citizenship now and then around July start my renewal of GC? Are there a process to update GC info after a citizenship application is submitted and is in processing? Would any part of GC numbers change when I get renewed? Or would you suggest that I renew the GC first as soon as I can and then apply for citizenship? If I do this then I will have to renew my Indian Passport as well I think, if there is not enough time.
The situation has changed a couple of months back. Now the government says if you apply for naturalization even in the last month of your green card USCIS will send you a receipt that says your green card is extended for two years. With the receipt, you can work as well as travel.
Currently working with Employer B.
My PD - EB2 India, Aug 2013 with old employer A
Sep 2022 - Filed I485 with Employer A's I485J (which he provided that I will join his consultancy company)
1. It is not required by the law.
2. Probably a NOID and if USCIS wants to be nice to you they will send you an RFE giving you more time.
3. If USCIS issues an RFE you have to wait 180 days from the date of filing and after that you should be able to submit any employers I-485 Supplement J.
First of all I just want to thank you to Rajiv, Vijay and everyone else in the office that has been with me throughout the journey. They have been very professional, efficient and reliable. Rajiv has been so quick in replying emails to me every time I have any questions and I really appreciate it. Sometimes unexpected situations came up and the way Rajiv addressed and handled such issues made me feel extremely grateful that he was there. His calm spirit and the way he talks just make me feel like there are no existing problems, just situations, which can always be fixed. I remember when I asked my sister why she chose this law firm (she introduced Rajiv’s law firm to me), she said that when she first met with Rajiv, he just gave her this vibe that everything will be alright and that he seemed really kind (and he is), compared to other lawyers that she has met before.
I also would like to thank you Vijay from the bottom of my heart because Vijay has been extremely patient and nice to me. I have been working with Vijay since the beginning of my application and he has always been there for me whenever I need. Even though I bugged him a million times via phones/emails, he is still very patient and kind to me and helps guiding me with all the GC paperwork. So thank you Vijay for your complete support during this journey.
My timeline for the EB3 Green Card is as followed:
Jan 24 - Filing I-140 & I-485 concurrently (I-140 is premium processing)
Jan 26 – Application received
Feb 7 – I-140 approval notice
Feb 19 - Fingerprint notice
Feb 28 – Fingerprint Appointment
Mar 28 – EAD/AP card approved
April 20 – Interview notice
May 21 – Interview day
May 24 – Case was approved
Again, thank you so much to Rajiv, Vijay and everyone who has been handling my case from the start to finish. You guys are the best and I would highly recommend Rajiv and his team without any hesitation in regards to any immigration cases.