Visa-Bulletin for June 2009
The Visa Bulletin is a monthly publication of the Bureau of Consular Affairs within the U.S. Department of State. The Bulletin provides information on immigration, visas, and refugee admissions as well as other topics.
The Visa Bulletin is a monthly publication of the Bureau of Consular Affairs within the U.S. Department of State. The Bulletin provides information on immigration, visas, and refugee admissions as well as other topics.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has revised Form I-914, Application for T Nonimmigrant Status (edition date 3/30/09). Previous editions of Form I-914 will be accepted for 30 days. The final date USCIS will accept previous editions of Form I-914 is June 6, 2009.
Status, authorized period of stay and unlawful presence are three VERY important concepts in US immigration laws with far reaching implications. The nuances in these concepts are so intricate that they can trip up even my fellow-lawyers. I see issues in this all the time.
Here is a brief primier to enable you to understand the basics. This is by no means an exhaustive analysis.
Status
New LCA Online System Beginning May 15th, 2009
Beginning May 15th 2009, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification will be disabling the filing of existing LCA form 9035E on its website http://www.lca.doleta.gov/.
Our office will use the new iCERT Portal System (http://icert.doleta.gov/) to file LCAs online using the latest Form 9035.
My employer is in the process of extending my current L1 status for another 3 years. Current I94 is due to expire on June 20, 2009. My wife is on L2 and employed with an EAD valid till June 20, 2009. How can she extend her EAD at the same time as my L1 is being extended? My company lawyers will not handle extending her EAD. Please advice.
I believe you have three choices. Add her L-2 extension/EAD to your L-1 extension in the same package; apply for your extension, wait for the receipt then apply for her L-2 extension/EAD; or apply for your extension, wait for the APPROVAL then apply for her L-2 extension/EAD (note that she must be in status when you apply for her L-2/EAD). I have listed these choices in the order of my preference.
Quote: I just got a letter from USCIS that I need to appear for a I-485 interview. I had applied my green card under the EB-XX. To update you i had an arrest record in 2005 for a domestic violence battery case, which was later dismissed in court. Also you might be aware my wife is currently in india, and we are under separation. She will join me on (XXX date) if she agrees for marriage counseling. Under these circumstances I had some questions which I wanted answers for: Please let me know your response.
USCIS Updates Information on FY2010 H-1B Petition Filings
Receipts remain relatively unchanged
WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today announced information on the number of filings for H-1B petitions for the fiscal year 2010 program. USCIS has received approximately 45,000 H-1B petitions counting toward the Congressionally-mandated 65,000 cap. The agency continues to accept petitions subject to the general cap.
Quote: Hi Rajiv,
Its good to see the way you are providing appropriate answers to our questions. your responses are very helpful for us, specially in this tough time when USCIS is scrutinizing every Non-Immigration case.
Quote: 1. Hello Rajiv, my wife and I have been working on H1B for different employers. My employer applied for my GC in 07. I have my I-140 approved, my wife and I have our EAD cards and AP. Thanks to your team! Now my wife's H1B term (6 years) ends on Jan 2010. Does this mean that if she wishes to continue her employment with the same employer after Jan 2010, she "HAS" to use her EAD ?
Ans. Yes. Under the current USCIS policy, they will not extend her H-1, based upon your I-140. They used to do that a few years ago, but not any more, as far as I know.
Got our approvals for EB green cards on April 24, 2009.
Apart from having some trouble in porting my PD to an earlier approved I 140, our case was handled very well. A special "THANK YOU" to Heather for all your help and guidance. You were great and very prompt in responding to all my queries. Also my sincere thanks to Mark who did a great job in getting all my paper work together and responding to all my questions.
Based on our personal experience for the past 2 years+ I would highly recommend Rajiv and his team for any immigration needs.
We have recently been able to successfully reopen a labor certification and get the case approved after it had been closed because of what we feel were errors by two previous lawyers retained by employer. Our client had her case denied and closed over ONE YEAR ago. We were retained for a consultation and in-depth review. It appeared obvious that the employer and the employee were not at fault. It took some effort but the facts were compelling enough that USDOL reopened the case in the interest of justice. The case was approved last week. We truly appreciate the fairness shown by USDOL.
I have a tourist visa to the US which expires in 2009. However, back in 2004, i was able to obtain a F-1 visa for MBA studies. It expired in 2006 and my stay was extended through practical training. I have all necessary documents supporting that. My question is, will I still be able to use my tourist visa until the March 2009 expiration?
My assumption is that you are still on F-1 and in USA. If this is correct, you cannot use your B visa within USA.
While in USA, your stay and status is controlled exclusively by your I-94.
You can, however, try to reenter USA on B visa but after having stayed here for so long, a reentry is likely to be denied.
If, you are outside USA and have been out for a while (like a year or more), I think you can still use that B visa and try to enter USA.
I came to US on F2 visa. In April 2008, my employer filed for my H1B visa and it was approved. Due to some personal reasons I can't start work from October 1 and I will need to change my visa status back to F2.
Qo 1. My question is if I change my visa status back to F2, and if I find an employer who is ready to file my H1B in the future, Will I have to go through the quota again?
Qo 2. Hi, I have been inspired by the previous posts, I have a similar situation. I was on H1 till Mar 03. Then I transfered to F2. Now I'm about to get a job offer from a company. Is my H1b application subject to the Cap? My previous H1B was issued on Feb 2002 and I haven't been out of the states since.
Ans 1. In my opinion, you will not be subject to the quota again.
Ans 2. You should not be subject to the quota.
I have consulted the local lawyers here but they have failed to answer this question with conviction. Can two Labor applications be filed for me by two companies (current and future employers) at the same time ?
In my opinion, most definitely, yes. As long as both companies are acting in good faith (honestly) and you have the intention to take whichever green card happens to be more convenient or quicker for you, you can file 2 or more labor certs (PERM) through different employers.
After a long-term relationship, earlier this year I married a U.S. citizen. I do not want to change my immigration status and do not wish to immigrate nor reside permanently in the United States since we both have steady jobs outside the U.S. and I do not want to leave my country. All I want is to be able to travel temporarily into the U.S. for pleasure and leisure as most tourists do, once or twice a year for a couple of weeks each time.
I want to know if I can just apply for a new B-1/B-2 tourist visa to travel into the U.S. or if my husband needs to file an I-130 petition for alien relative and I-129 and K visa thereafter instead –which I understand would be the right process if I ever wanted to adjust status or become a U.S. permanent resident.
This is upto the discretion of the consulate and then again upto CBP when you land in USA. Consulates have the discretion to issue you a B visa - despite your presumed immigrant intent - if they are convinced that you will return. This is true for all cases where a B (or F or similar) visa is sought while GC is pending or could be pending.
Filed I-130 and I-485 oct 29/07,went for interview feb/08 and have not heard anything from immigration.Is this normal for USCIS.When I did infopass was told that case is under supervisory review,what does this mean.
Pretty much anything can be within the context of a case. Supervisory review means just that - a review by a senior level adjudicator. Usually, that means there is some unusual procedural or legal issue involved. The good news is that, means your case is being reviewed, the bad, we don't know for what. You can try to go through a Congressman's office to find out more if you like.
My brother got US Citizenship this month. I would like to apply Green Card using my brother's citizenship.Is it possible ? How long it will take . Now I am holding H1B.
This is usually not a feasible option. To see how long it would take, look at the Visa Bulletin:
http://www.immigration.com/newsletter/vbarchive.html
You will note that it will take more than a decade to get a green card through family-based category 4. You are not permitted to stay in the USA just because this application is pending.
Q1. Can a legal permanent resident(LPR) change career after say one year from his AOS approval to an entirely different field from the one for which his labor and his AOS was approved? Will this raise any red flags at the time of citizenship?
Q2. In other words, after receiving green card on the basis of say job in computer industry, when can one change his/her profession to an entirely different field (let say opening up a restaurant or go into real estate on full time basis) without jeopardizing the citizenship? Would waiting for one year(or some other amount of time?) after AOS approval be good enough to satisfy the "intent to work for in the field noted in labor application on a permanent basis"?
Q3. Is the person after receiving green card on the basis of employment in certain field stuck in that field for ever?
Q4. What are you thoughts in general about this scenario and how should one go about it?
A1. I see no problem with this nor do I see any red flags.
A2. Sure. Why not. Permanent does not mean forever.
A3. Not at all.
A4. Nothing else I can think of.
MILITARY ACCESSIONS VITAL TO NATIONAL INTEREST (MAVNI) RECRUITMENT PILOT
The Secretary of Defense authorized the military services to recruit certain legal aliens whose skills are considered to be vital to the national interest. Those holding critical skills - physicians, nurses, and certain experts in language with associated cultural backgrounds - would be eligible. To determine its value in enhancing military readiness, the limited pilot program will recruit up to 1,000 people, and will continue for a period of up to 12 months.
I want to know whether our federal bank (reserve bank of India) is allowing this US $500,000.00 for investment in U.S.A. Then I will ask some more questions like whether it is easiest way to get green card and whether our money is safe in investment (in the regional projects) and the total expenses upto green card release level (apart from us$500,000.00)
We practice US laws so I have no idea about RBI permissions. Safety of money is not guaranteed in any of the trusts that I know of. After all, this is an investment, not a fixed deposit or a CD in a bank. For businessmen with established businesses, L-1A and then EB1 is usually the better option.
DOL seems to have stopped progressing on the Audit cases. Can litigation alleviate this problem and force them to atleast respond?
All things considered, in my view, a Mandamus is possible. But the chances of success are remote at least in DC circuit. Typically, in delay cases, courts do not interfere with the executive branch of the govt. At the very least, lawsuits draw attention to difficult issues. I think a petition to the govt. should be the first step. May be the worthy President can help. Although, speedy processing in this environment is certainly not a politically popular issue, but we have all followed the laws and the promise of the laws.
I (a software consultant) have EAD from my current employer(consulting firm). My employer holds my salary abruptly without any notice or reason. When pressed why? after the salary date passes by without getting paid, the general excuse given is "The bill is not collected from the client" , though there is no such contract between us wherein my salary is dependent on the accounts receivable/ collection. I want to know
a- Can they do it legally?
b- What are my options including can i sue this employer despite being on EAD?
Your best bet is the local State Workforce Agency for the State where you are employed. If you are not on H-1, this is the way to go. They will recover your salary. And, it does not cost you anything.
Here is the link to the SWA's for non H-1B workers http://www.doleta.gov/regions/reg01b...ources-SWA.cfm
H-1B and E-3 workers, go here:
Can you give us some tips on legally what kind of companies should one look for to process H-1.
I think this is a timely question. I can give some pointers based upon my experience.
H-1 approvals are easier:
- for in-house projects and for companies who can obtain letters from end-clients verifying the work; the degree of control they have over the H-1 worker and the duration of the assignment; and
I AM A US CITIZEN AND I APPLIED FOR FAMILY BASED GREEN CARD FOR MY WIFE. THE WHOLE PROCESS STARTED IN FIRST WEEK OF JANUARY 2009. INITIALLY WE HAD APPLIED ON OUR OWN AND DID NOT CONSULT ANY ATTORNEY. THEN WE GOT AN RFE ON MY WIFE'S BIRTH CERTIFICATE, AND WE WERE HELPLESS AND DID NOT KNOW HOW TO PROCEED. THAT IS WHEN WE APPROACHED, RAJIV KHANNA. HIS ATTORNEY'S MATHEW CHACKO AND BHARATHI GUIDED US FOR SUBMITTING THE RFE DOCUMENTS AND GUIDED US IN EACH AND EVERY STEP AFTER THAT. THEIR GUIDANCE WAS OF GREAT HELP TO US. AND FINALLY MY WIFE GOT HER GC ON 24TH APRIL 2009.