USCIS Forms Update Notice
USCIS recently updated the following USCIS form(s):
USCIS recently updated the following USCIS form(s):
Discussion Topics, Thursday, Sept 16, 2021
FAQ: Consequences of extending parents’ B-1/B-2 (visitors/tourist) status more than once||Consequences of green card holders staying outside the USA for an extended time. Reentry permit protection ||Applied for EB-3 downgrade and change of employer after 180 days while I-140 is pending
USCIS recently updated the lockbox filing location information for th
I am on an L-1 visa, and I am working in the U.S.. My wife is outside the U.S. Her L-2 visa has expired. We want to get an appointment somewhere to get visa stamping together. I cannot travel without an appointment, or else I will be stuck and will not return to the U.S. without visa stamping. The embassy has not opened for more than a year now, and she is stuck, so how can we get appointments? Can this be an emergency appointment case?
We do not have enough information about your case, but generically, it appears that your wife may have the option to go through the dropbox process. Please look into that. Also, emergency appointments are just that: reserved for an emergency. Most consulates are not likely to entertain such a request unless there is a real emergency.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
I have an approved H-1B petition. Right now, I am in India. However, my spouse also holds an H-1B. Can I apply for an H-4 visa and travel to the USA with my spouse and apply for a change of status in the USA from consular processing and use my H-1B there. Will it affect my H-1B in any way?
Technically, the USCIS can object to applying for a change of status within 90 days after entry, if the change results in activities that are inconsistent with the original visa used for entry, the H-4 visa. The key question is whether applying for H-1B soon after entry into the USA is inconsistent with H-4, a visa that allows work authorization.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
We are the parents of a minor (5 months) old U.S.Citizen daughter who is currently in India. We need to take our daughter to the U.S. for her 6-month vaccination doses. My H-1B visa and my spouse's H-4 visa need to be renewed, but unfortunately, there are no dropbox appointments available in any city. Is there a way an exemption can be made for our travel? I am a civil engineer who has built commercial facilities and will be building more commercial facilities in California, USA.
You can try seeking an emergency visa appointment based on medical reasons applicable to your daughter.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
I am presently in the U.S. and will be visiting India to get my H-1B Visa stamped. As there are travel restrictions for passengers from India to the US, will I be allowed to enter the U.S. on an H-1B visa? Presently I am staying in the U.S. on OPT.
Unless you are covered by an exemption, you will have to apply for a national interest exception. Also, getting appointments for visa stamping is not particularly easy at the moment.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
We are currently in India, and one of my daughters is a U.S. citizen by birth. However, our H-1B visa expired a few years ago. So now we do not have any valid U.S. visas. Can we travel to the U.S. now based on my daughter's U.S. passport? Please advise as we heard many such parents are traveling like this, Are there any options for us?
You cannot reenter the USA without a visa. Having a US citizen child exempts you from the travel ban, but not from the visa requirements.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
I recently transferred from the U.S. to the UAE office since I was not selected in the H-1B lottery in March. I was then selected in the second lottery and my company has started the H-1B process. Can I do short-term 1-2 week visits on H-1B every few months instead of B-1? Do I need to be employed to enter the U.S. using H-1b?
While intermittent H-1B employment is permitted, it is only for the job for which you have an H-1B approval. You cannot use an H-1B visa to travel to the US intermittently without that job.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
I am on F1 OPT and in the U.S. My OPT started in Jan 2021. My wife is in India and just got her F-2 visa. We both are Indian and haven't been able to meet. Would you please tell us if she can travel to the U.S.? Most places say that the program needs to start on or after August 1st, but I am very confused, given that my OPT began in January.
OPT is considered an ongoing program. She can travel now, subject only to the Covid-19 related health directives.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
I am on my OPT period (June 1st, 2021 - May 31st, 2022) and am working for a company in the USA. I plan to travel to India for my sister's wedding from December 18th, 2021, to December 28th, 2021. The following are my questions for travel in these COVID situations:
1. I wanted to know the details for entering the USA. What documents should I have while entering the USA?
2. Does the USA allow OPT holders to enter?
A1: You will need to contact your DSO for endorsement on your I-20 to travel, evidence that you have been working (like pay stubs), and a letter from your employer confirming that you will be returning to your ongoing employment.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
I am a Slovenian citizen, and I plan to do a 3-month student internship in the USA in December. I have everything arranged with my employer. The only question I have is, can I travel from the Schengen area on my J-1 visa? And if not, how can I come to the USA for my internship?
J-1 exchange visitors will be able to travel only if the visa is approved and they qualify for a national interest exception (NIE).
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
My parents are both U.K. citizens and don't have any visas apart from just an ESTA; they are in the U.K. However, my wife is American, and I am now a U.S. citizen, and we both live in the U.S. permanently. We just had a baby a few days ago, and we want my parents to travel from the U.K. to the U.S. to help with the baby. Is this possible for them to travel on the ESTA they have? If not, can we apply for a different visa, so they can come to the U.S.?
It appears they will be able to travel only if they travel to and stay for two weeks in a third country from which travel to the USA is allowed.
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
What are the consequences if we extend parents visitor's visa's stay for more than 1 time? Will it be a problem when they come back to US again? Is the minimum time to come back again still 6 months?
The first consequence is coming too frequently. So, then stay away for one year. The second is you have to keep daisy-chaining your extensions. Three if you leave without an extension result, it's okay as long as you're leaving within the time that you asked for and lastly, if the extension is denied you may have to apply for a new tourist visa. More...
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
My spouse has her green card from 2014 and she has been travelling regularly to India to take care of her ailing Father.
She had been coming back to USA within Less than 6 months and staying in the US for a few months
and travelling back again. This has has been going on for the past 6 years. In between she got a reentry permit for 2 years which has expired.
recently she travelled back to the US after 8 months and had a tough time with the immigration officer who questioned regarding the
extended stay in india and finally she was allowed in with the regular stamp in the passport. No comments/special notes were made in the passport.She has now applied for a new re entry permit and waiting for its approval.
she co owns the house and a partner in the LLC and has been filing US resident taxes and I have
been working and staying in the US during the entire period .
1) Based on the above details is it safe for her to travel once her re entry permit is approved?
2) Should she wait for a specific period of time before she can travel ?
3) Would carrying a copy of the House title,LLC partnership details and copy of the Tax filing help
in case she is questioned at the Port of entry.
In a situation like this you should really talk to a lawyer. The key indicators of a situation like this are does she permanently live in the United States. Doing it repeatedly year after year for six years that does not bode well, but with special circumstances, you could make an argument that she never intended to abandon her permanent residence. More...
Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, 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.
Release Date
In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is extending the flexibilities it announced on March 30, 2020, to assist applicants, petitioners and requestors who are responding to certain:
USCIS reminds employers of Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Transitional Workers (CW-1) that, if you have a currently-approved CW-1 petition with a validity period of six months or more, you must file Form I-129CWR, Semiannual Report for CW-1 Employers, with USCIS every six months after the petition validity start date.
My pleasant experience in summary and in little detail.
Summary:
People at Law Offices of Rajiv S. Khanna are highly professional, very much detail oriented, easy to work with, very prompt and very nice people. They are always available and will stand up for you when required. This will be a very rare combination to find. They always prepare very convincing case and review the case in detail. I always believed that if my case is accepted by Mr. Rajiv, Mr. Mathew and Co, it will be very hard for anyone to reject the case.
Little in detail:
It all started in October 2005. My company asked me to find a lawyer to represent me for my GC process. I have a good friend/family that got GC thru immigration.com (Mr. Rajiv Khanna handled his case. My friend assured me that Mr. Rajiv would go above and beyond to meet client's needs.). He referred us to immigration.com. I sent a mail to immigration.com. Mr. Suman has contacted me. When my HR wanted to talk to a lawyer, he referred us to Mr. Mathew Chacko. Mr. Mathew explained the process in detail. He was very descriptive and communicated everything very well to us. He is always patience even during his busy days such as 2007 July-Aug crazy time when everything became current. I am fortunate enough to get quick e-mail replies every time. When I had thoughts about Consular Processing, he explained to me all about consular processing and why one should opt for it or should not opt for it. His review on my I-485 are very much helpful.
One of the most memorable moments is this: my wife attended an interview in a company and they had hesitation about hiring her without Green Card. They always thought that the company has to sponsor her GC at some point in time and they were not ready for it. I told them it is not the case since she is a derivative applicant in my GC. They were not ready to buy it. They wanted to talk to my lawyer. When I requested Mr. Mathew, he was ready to talk and convince them. I am not sure if all the lawyers would do this kind of stuff. Thank you very much Mr. Mathew.
Another important player during my GC process is Ms. Richa Narang. She has done an incredible job of completing my PERM application on time that once I thought would nearly be impossible. Considering that we started our process very late in my 5th year, it is highly remarkable. We completed 6 days before my 5th year expired. She went thru the documents over and over, and helped preparing a very convincing case. I am highly impressed with her patience and prompt replies. She is easy to work with. She always let me know what she was doing for my case and why it is done this way. That gives me an idea about what is really going on with my case.
This is in contast with my previous attorney in my previous company. Thank you Ms. Richa.
I have not worked directly with Mr. Rajiv Khanna. But my case manager Ms. Richa was working with him for my PERM. He is a REAL expert in what he does. Mr. Rajiv really built a very strong case for my PERM. His inputs are priceless. I attended his conference call during July/August 2007 when USCIS opened and closed the door briefly. It provided lot of valuable information to me and to lot of immigrants that were eagerly waiting to apply for I-485. It is really a great gesture towards the people that were waiting to apply for I-485 during that time.
Thank you Mr. Rajiv
Others that helped me are Ms. Mohana, Ms. Prena etc. They are all very nice and easy to work with. They made sure my case was built in a convincing manner.
I will definitely comeback to Law Offices of Rajiv S. Khanna for my future immigration needs.
I have referred two of my friends to Immigration.Com so far. They all like the service. Please feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer any questions about my experience.
My wife received her Permanent Resident card today and mine was approved (and received GC card on August 5, 200 on July 28, 2008. I would like to thank Mathew , Prerna and Bharathi for all the timely answers and advices through the process. Mathew and Prerna were always accessible . I always felt that I am getting best service and I would recommend Mr. Khanna’s team to my friends who need help with GC / immigration.
Thank you
I and my wife received our green card in August 2008. We started the process in November 2005 with Rajiv Khanna as our attorney. He and his team have helped us at every point in the whole process and they were always there for us to help out. I must mention here that the paperwork done was been perfect and I had no RFE and this has substantially reduced the total time of the lengthy process. I found the team in his office in general very co-operative and prompt. Our special thanks and best regards to Heather Crump, Yvonne, Mark, Art and Leslie for making this happen.
Once again thanks to Rajiv and his team.
Got my LCA approved within a few months thanks to the untiring efforts of Mr. Vijay Durgam, my case manager and Mr. Rajiv Khanna. Thank you.
My husband and I got our green card approved this month. It was a long and tedious journey but I always felt confident about having Rajiv Khanna on my side. They are a very professional and efficient Law Firm. I always got replies to my million concerns. The paper work was filed perfectly and we never got any RFE'S. I have used Rajiv and his team for all my immigration work (H1B) and there is nothing but praise for them.
I would like to thank Mathew, Bharathi, Heather, Shubha, & Kumuda for all the help. I will always recommend them to anyone in the immigration process.
Best wishes for continued success.
Hi Rajeev, Vijay, Aruna , Prerna, Bharathi ,
Got Green Card last week(08/200. Although it was a long journey , all of you have made it a pleasant one. I always got a good support , help and information from you .It was flawless service. I highly recommend your services to all.
My GC process was a good experience.
I got prompt service and people were caring. Suman Bhasin and team members did a good job answering all my questions throught the GC process. Mr. Rajiv Khanna too made himself available in his busy schedule once over the phone. Thank you everybody at Law Offices of Rajiv S. Khanna. I appreciate your help!