I got my passsport stamped at the local INS office today. Rajiv and his team have done a wonderful job ! They answer any questions you might have even after your case is approved ! The entire Green Card process took only 19 months with no RFE issued at any stage as far as paperwork is concerned. I most definitely would recommend Mr.Khanna's office for GC and H1-B cases.
My wife and I received I-485 approval notice and our passports stamped in Charleston, SC on March 6th, 2002. I started the process in Nov 1998 with Rajiv Khanna. I should say that the whole process took a while, but Mr. Khanna helped me to clear every hurdle. One of the good things I liked about Mr. Khanna and staff is that they can be reached very easily through email, and all of them are very prompt in replying too. I found the staff in his office, especially Suman Bhasin, Diane Lombardo and Leila Lehman, very cooperative and knowledgeable. Mr. Khanna and his staff always kept me well informed about the status of the green card process. Rajiv is well abreast of immigration rules and regulations. I highly recommend Rajiv Khanna's service for any immigration matter. I am thankful to Rajiv and his wonderful team.
My GC case was handled very cautiously with keeping my interest on top of everything. I think Law offices of Rajiv Khanna take well proven approach that makes it lowest risk solution.
Hi, I am a 3 + year old Client of Rajiv's law firm all the way from H1 to GC approval. I would like to highly recommend the quality of work all of them do.Initially, when I consulted them for H1, Rajiv told me that "50 - 50 chances" , "you may get it", etc.. etc.. (Since I came as a Student and didn't finish my course work.) Guess what ? Approval was waiting in the mail box. Same thing for G.C. He told me that the processing is taking longer and I may get G.C. and within 2 1/2 years, my GC got approved. I want to appreciate all the great work done by Dorothy, Suman, Leila Lehman and especially, Diane Lombardo for the high quality work. I got 2 RFEs and I doubted whether I would ever get G.C. and to my surprise, I received the G.C. approval. This is not boasting about Rajiv's Law Firm but I felt that I got every Penny out of the Dollar spent. They are a great team. Their Service is fast, prompt, reliable and result oriented. Thanks Rajiv,Suman,Dorothy, Leila and Diane and all of those who are hidden behind the scene.
Rajiv and his team - One of the most dedicated, sincere, helpful teams I have ever seen. They are very co-operative. Whenever I needed any information I could get it from them right away.I would not hesitate even a bit to say if you need any help, you have Rajiv's team. Rajiv, Dianne, Leila, Suman,Lakshmi,etc...ev'one was very good in their service. Thankyou Raji & Team...for the help I received from you all. And Good luck!!
Rajiv and his team are just wonderful. My very special thanks to the team member who worked with me for being courteous and highly professional. It is a pleasure to talk to Rajiv and his team of dedicated staff with my questions and comments. They are ever willing to answer my queries. Thanks also to Charu, Sirisha and others who have helped me to get through this H1-B approval. I have no hesitation to recommend this outstanding team of professionals to anyone who need good immigration attorney.
thank you i appreciate your work!
Thanks to Rajiv and his team for their excellent work. The team is very experienced and knowledgeable. They are prompt in filing all documents with INS in all the stages of processing.Rajiv and his team is very prompt in replying to all my email queries. I strongly recommend Rajiv for your visa processing.
I am reporting here comments from and my responses to a member of our community, "Julissa," regarding whether or how she could apply for a green card herself if she has a Master's degree. Do note, if a set of new immigration laws gets passed, all this could change.
WASHINGTON—Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Treasury Jacob J. Lew, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas will help USCIS celebrate our nation’s 237th birthday as the agency welcomes more than 7,800 new citizens during more than 100 naturalization ceremonies across the country and overseas from July 1 to July 5.
Statement from Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano:
Immigration Reform 2013 Status
I wanted to give you quick overview of where we are as of today in the immigration reform effort. As you know the comprehensive immigration bill labeled S.744 was passed by Senate, and the voting in the Senate reflected what kind of support there is generally amongst the two parties (Senate and House of Republicans (House)) for this reform effort.
The composition of the Senate is currently 54 Democrats, one Independent and 45 Republicans. A total of 100 Senators. When the bill was voted upon, it was passed 68 to32. All Democrats voted for it, one Independent voted for it, but only 13 Republicans in the Senate voted for the bill. So less than one third (of Republicans voted for passage). This means that Democrats overwhelmingly support the reform, the immigration bill S. 744. But Republicans are not by any means, or in any way shape or form overwhelmingly or even in a majority in favor of the reform as it was proposed.
So, now bill has been passed the Senate. 68 to 32. It’s a good margin, but the problem situation in the House is totally different. The politics of the situation is that the Latino, Hispanic vote is becoming in proportion much larger. It is exponentially expanding. The Republicans leaders rightly believe that they must curry favor or must be considered a friend to the Hispanic industry of immigration. A lot of Republicans also believe that they have no incentive to pass an amnesty bill. One thing I would say that as far as reform of the legal immigration is concerned I don't think we have too much controversy about that. Both parties agreed that certain things need to be done, like we need skilled immigration professional. Special provisions for PhDs, physicians, people who have Master’s degrees, people with STEM degrees. We need all that and some way to remove the backlog, which is horrendous for many countries. For instance, India has nine to ten years of backlog waiting for a Green Card. So there is consensus among both parties on legal immigration. It is the amnesty part, the enforcement and border protection, which are the key areas of disagreement.
If you look on the Republicans composition, only 24 out of 234 House Republicans represent districts that have any appreciable numbers of Hispanic voters, more than 25 percent. So, only 24 out of 234. Where is the incentive for them to pass an immigration bill with amnesty? In fact, many of the Republicans come from districts that actually oppose amnesty. Republican Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) was speaking in Lynchburg, Virginia yesterday and passions were really running high against the amnesty.
So in the House even if Democrats all get together, the problem is how do we move the reform forward. House is controlled by Republicans, 234 to 201. House Speaker, John Boehner (R-OH) has said that he won't bring the Senate bill up for a vote if he does not have the support of a majority of the House Republicans (known as Hastert Rule). He says, I will not even allow this Senate bill to be voted on in the House unless a majority of House Republicans support the bill. And if we look at the cross-section of the voting that occurred in Senate, less than one third of Republicans support. It’s not good sign to get that kind of support.
So, it appears at least at this stage that the Senate bill will have very tough time going through the House as today’s politics stand.
What are the options?
Four obvious options, the fourth option is very unlikely, which is House leadership brings up the the Senate bill up for vote.
There are four options, but again it’s important to understand what happens if there are two separate bills addressing some of the same areas or all of the same areas, and there are controversies among those bills, then it goes into something called “conference”. When we get into conference, the idea is representatives from Senate and the representative from House will meet together and they will iron out their differences. A lot of times if you want to effect the Senate bill, all you have to do is pass something in the House and then it goes into the conference where you can work on one bill or the other, agree, negotiate and then take the negotiated version back to both chambers for voting Senate and House. So, option number one is House passes its own bill or bills. Actually, here we are talking about comprehensive, some kind of comprehensive set of bills, then it goes for conference. Option two, the House passes any bill, it does not have to be comprehensive bill, something that effects or contradicts the Senate version again we go into conference.
Another interesting option and normally this would not be a really good option but here may be worth considering. I doubt it, but I am not a political pundit just a lawyer. House can actually vote on the Senate bill without the House Speaker’s support. If 218 house members vote for a discharge petition, which means we don’t care what the Speaker says, we are going to vote on this bill anyway. That means House Democrats need 17 votes from Republicans to get a discharge petition and vote on the Senate bill.
So, what are the four options again:
1. Comprehensive bill by House;
2. Any bill by House;
3. Discharge petition; and
4. House leadership brings up the Senate bill to vote which is unlikely.
Let us talk about a comprehensive bill. House had its own “Gang of Eight” people working on a comprehensive immigration bill. Their focus was a lot more on enforcement, on border security, etc. But then one of the Congressman, Raul Labrador (R-ID), quit. The now “Gang of Seven” still might produce a comprehensive House bill. If such a bill is produced, we will get into conference, negotiate and then finally vote on the negotiated bill. So number one is Comprehensive bill.
Number two is any bill. As I mentioned Rep. Goodlatte from Virginia, the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has produced a series of immigration related bills. House Democrats do not like it because it’s a piecemeal approach and there are all kinds of very extreme positions taken by Bob Goodlatte that House Democrats feel are inimical or enemies of immigration reform. But one of the ways, this series of bills, could be just a device to force matters into conference. If any of these bills pass in the Republican controlled House, then we will all get into conference anyway, where we can negotiate based upon the Senate version of the bill and make changes to it and then go back with the compromise. So the passage of a series of extreme bills could be a way to force matter into conference.
Option three is a discharge petition. Discharge petition normally its considered to be very bad form. If a Republican votes for a discharge petition it’s disloyal, it’s considered to be bad form. But here, Speaker Boehner himself and many other leaders, who are perhaps more in tune with the needs of the time, have said that they want immigration reform. But it looks like there is very strong opposition from certain elements within the Republican Party, which is basically muting some of these more moderate or more aware. I would not call them moderate but more aware members of the Republican Party. So normally a Republican will not vote for a discharge petition, but here who knows. Maybe this is the choice.
The key date to watch is 10th July. On 10th July there will be conference, the House Republican conference, and they meet in the basement of the Capitol to decide how they want to move forward. So that's when we will hear about the final strategy. Once again, right now we don’t know which way House is going to go, but on 10th July we should have better idea of the direction.
I live in Bulgaria and I have a Master's Degree in Veterinary Medicine. My question is can I get a EB-2 visa if I work as a veterinary assistant in the USA ?
You can qualify for EB2 only if two conditions are met:
1. Your degree is equivalent to a U.S. advanced degree (a credentials evaluation service needs to assess that under proper standards); and
2. The job requires an advanced degree or equivalent experience.
1. Certification of Decisions to the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO)
Purpose
This policy memorandum (PM) and accompanying revisions to the Adjudicator’s Field Manual (AFM) guide officers on the proper use of the decision
certification mechanism described in 8CFR 103.4. This PM revises Subchapters 3.5, 10.7, 10.8, 10.14 and 10.18 of the AFM ;AFM Update AD13 -08.
Scope
Unless specifically exempted herein, this PM applies to and binds all U.S.Citizenship and Immigration Services(USCIS)employees
Rajiv was great to work with, he analyzed my case in detail and gave relevant advice on the next steps and possibilities regarding my green card. I would recommend him to my friends. Ravi
Under Phase II, DHS and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) will expand the exchange of biographic entry data collected on third-country nationals (those who are neither citizens of Canada nor of the United States), permanent residents of Canada who are not U.S. citizens, and lawful permanent residents of the United States who are not Canadian citizens, to all automated land ports of entry at the common border, including all major land border crossings.
I have stamped visa from Company A and I entered into USA from that company itself. Now my visa has been transferred to Company B. I am going back to India to bring my family. Will I have to go for stamping again? Will it make any difference at POE if Company A revoked/cancelled my H1B?
If you came in and actually worked for company A for a while, and you have never been out of status, you should not require a new visa stamp.
Status of Immigration Reform, S. 744
Today is a very big day for immigration reform because today the House of Republicans are supposed to meet and decide which way they want to go. The Senate has done their job. Senate has sent out a passed bill. But as I pointed out last time, House Speaker John Boehner has said that he is not going to bring any bill for voting, until and unless a majority of Conservatives has agreed about the major outlines of the bill.
In other words, if Boehner does not want to bring the bill to the floor of the House for voting, it wont come. Today they are going to meet, and the options they have I pointed out last time. They can come with their own comprehensive bill , which is unlikely. They can vote on the Senate Bill, which is unlikely. The most likely outcome of today’s meeting is that the House will start passing small bits of legislation one at a time. One of the conservatives noted that one hour of meeting is not enough because the issues are so complex. But I think that at least what they can do is come with a strategy that they want to follow. So today will be a very decisive day for all of us who are waiting to see what happens and as I pointed out last time there is a little disagreement about the fact that they want to reform legal immigration, which is very badly scattered all over the place. There are a lot of problems with legal immigration as you know. It takes about eight to ten years of waiting times even for people with Master’s degrees. There is no disagreement that it needs to be done. The disagreement is about amnesty. The Republicans are worried if there are 11 million people who are going to vote. First of all, most Republicans come from Conservative white districts where they are not going to gain any favor with their voters if they vote for amnesty. Second problem is that historically 75 percent, or maybe at least 66 percent, of the newly legalized Hispanics will probably vote for the Democrats so why should the Conservatives create more Democratic votes. This is the main thing that is swaying the Republican uncertainty.
So we’ll see how it goes. Today is a very important day. We will keep you informed on this.
Questions regarding H-1 remainder option and H-4 application
Question: I possess a U.S. Master’s Degree in Computer Science and worked for seven years in the U.S. I was on H-1 for five years and have been outside the U.S. after those five years. That is 12 months of physical presence outside the U.S. I do have an employer now willing to petition on my behalf. Will I be subject to the cap of 65,000 or 20,000?
Answer: There are two options. One option is to get all six years of your H-1 back and then be subject to the cap. I don’t know all the facts, but you can possibly exercise the remainder option. The remainder option works like this. A person in your situation can choose to just take back the one year left out of the six in the United States. You can get an H-1 for one year and that H-1 is not subject to the quota. So if you choose to take one year you are not going to be subject to the quota. One of the strategies you could follow is to start the Green Card as well as the H-1 and time it properly so that based upon the green card you can keep getting H-1 extensions beyond six years. In other words, take the reminder option, but have a sufficiently mature Green Card that they will have no interruption in your work.
Question: My Company is processing my H-1B application. Is there any information regarding dependents that will be accompanying the H-1B applicant to the U.S. at the time of filing the petition?
Answer: H-4’s are given on a walk in basis, based upon the approval of the H-1 if you are outside the USA. So If your family is outside U.S. the moment your H-1 gets approved, you can send the paper work to them and then they can go to the consulate for H-4 stamping. There is no processing necessary for H-4 at the USCIS level. On the other hand, if they are in the United States then all their details are needed to apply for H-4. So the answer depends on if they are inside or outside the U.S.
USCIS is announcing its latest customer service enhancement to E-Verify that will allow direct notification to employees. Currently, if there is a record mismatch that needs to be resolved before the employee can be confirmed as work authorized, a Tentative Nonconfirmation (TNC) is issued to the employer, who must then contact the affected employee. Now, with this new enhancement, if an employee voluntarily provides his or her email address on the Form I-9, E-Verify will notify the employee of a TNC at the same time it notifies the employer.
I recently had a phone call consultation with Mr. Khanna to evaluate my eligibility for GreenCard EB1/EB. Although unfortunately the conclusion was that I need to work more on my resume, but I really enjoyed his honesty. I had a call with another lawyer recently and without even evaluating my case, he was encouraging me to apply with a very high fee for his firm. So I guess being able to trust your lawyer is the most important thing.
It was very good experience working with Rajiv's office for green card processing. I got GC in less than 2 years. I rece ived professional guidance at every stage of the GC process. Following Rajiv's advise, I decided to go for consuler proc essing. Thanks to Liela, it took just 5 months between approval of I140 and interview and I had absolutely no problem at Mumbai consulate.