Archive for June, 2010
VISA FEES TO INCREASE JULY 13, 2010
This is an update to a previous post on June 3, 2010, regarding passport and visa fee increases. The Department of State (DOS) is in the process of developing a final rule regarding its current passport and visa fee structure. The first proposed rule in March 2010 received over 1700 comments from individuals, businesses, advocates and attorneys. As a result, the DOS has developed an interim rule effective July 13, 2010, that will increase various passport and visa fees while they figure out the final rule’s parameters.
The interim rule changes the fees as follows:
1. The application fee for a U.S. passport book for an adult (age 16 and older) is increased from $55 to $70. The application fee for a passport book for a minor (under age 16) will remain at $40.
2. The passport book security surcharge is increased from $20 to $40
3. There will be an $82 fee for adding extra pages to an existing passport (this used to be a free service)
4. The adult passport card application fee is increased from $20 to $30 and the minor passport card application fee from $10 to $15
5. The fee for verifying U.S. citizenship when no evidence is presented is increased from $60 to $150
6. The fee for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (U.S. citizen birth in foreign country) is increased from $65 to $100
7. The application fee for a family-based visa (processed on the basis of an I-130, I-600 or I-800 petition) will be $330
8. The application fee for an employment-based visa (processed on the basis of an I-140 petition) will be $720
9. Other immigrant visa applications (including for diversity visa applicants, I-360 self- petitioners, special immigrant visa applicants, and all others) will have a processing fee of $305
10. The immigrant visa security surcharge will increase from $45 to $74
Please refer to our June 3, 2010 post for the nonimmigrant fee changes currently in effect. Please also stay-tuned for an update on the final rule to be implemented. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to contact our immigration law firm with any questions.
Tags: consulate, Department of State, embassy, immigrant, nonimmigrant, passport, visa fees
Posted in Alerts, Immigrant Visas, Nonimmigrant Visas | Read More »
How do I prove sufficient ties to my home country when applying for a nonimmigrant visa?
One of the many requirements of a nonimmigrant (temporary) visa to the U.S. is for the applicant to prove that he/she has sufficient ties to his/her home country. The U.S. Consulate and the USCIS want to see that the applicant has reasons to return home after the expiration of the temporary stay in the U.S. Under U.S. immigration laws, there is a presumption, although rebuttable, that all applicants for temporary visas intend to immigrate permanently to the U.S. It is because of this presumption that sufficient ties must be shown.
There are various ways to document ties, including through property ownership (deeds, escrow documents, etc.), employment records (paystubs, letter from employer, tax returns, etc.), and family obligations (affidavits providing information about important relationships the applicant maintains abroad that require the applicant’s physical presence). It is also helpful to submit current bills and statements showing maintenance of a foreign address, along with a lease or rental agreement with an expiration after the applicant’s U.S. stay to show he/she intends to return to that address (this is not always feasible if the nonimmigrant visa is for several years).
There are two nonimmigrant categories where sufficient ties need not be shown: H-1B and L-1. In these categories, an individual is allowed to have dual intent (nonimmigrant and immigrant). The U.S. Consulate and the USCIS permit an individual to seek permanent residence from these categories, so they are not concerned with the individual’s ties abroad and intent to return home.
Please contact our immigration law office if you have any questions regarding the above or would like to discuss your eligibility for a nonimmigrant visa.
Tags: immigrant intent, Nonimmigrant visa, ties to home country
Posted in Nonimmigrant Visas | Read More »
Do I qualify for the EB-5 category?
The EB-5 category is used by foreign investors who desire to live in the U.S. permanently (in “green card” status). In general, the applicant must invest a minimum $1 million into a new commercial enterprise that will or does employ 10 full-time U.S. citizens or green card holders. The applicant must engage in the new enterprise through day-to-day management or policy formation.
There are two alternatives to the $1 million requirement. The first is if the applicant is investing in a targeted rural area plagued by unemployment. In that case, the investment must be a minimum of $500,000. The second alternative is to invest in an already-established Regional Center for a minimum of $500,000.
The EB-5 category has grown increasingly popular over the recent years perhaps due to the struggling U.S. economy and the ensuing opportunities for investment. The USCIS recently held a stakeholders meeting to discuss the EB-5 category and reported that 955 applications out of 1100 have been approved in FY2010 (i.e. since October 1, 2009 to the present). Some applications remaining pending and only a small percentage have been denied. This means that the USCIS is seeing value in these investments and this category.
If you or someone you know would like to discuss the possibility of obtaining EB-5 status, please don’t hesitate to contact our immigration law firm.
Tags: $1 million, EB-5, green card, investment, investor, Regional Center
Posted in FAQ - EB-5, Immigrant Visas | Read More »
Living a Borrowed Life
A guest post by Vannie Nguyen, law student and Vietnamese immigrant.
While most immigrants come to the United States voluntarily, there are those who come involuntarily as children and infants, cradled by their hopeful parents. These children cross the border without any awareness that they’re breaking the law and trekking onto unwelcome territory. As they grow older and assimilate to the new way of life, they become “real” Americans. They attend American schools, listen to American music and be-friend American children. America is the only home they know.
Unfortunately, immigration law doesn’t see them as Americans. The law treats them as if they were adults who had willfully crossed the border.
Once caught, what are their options? Undocumented immigrants face a lengthy removal proceedings that requires frequent court appearances. They fight to delay the removal process and hope that immigration reforms, such as the DREAM Act, will be realized soon.
The other option is to return to their distant land of birth. Asking immigrants who came to the United States at a young age to return to their country of birth, a place they barely know, is crazy. They are often strangers to the people, culture, language and way of life of their country of origin. The process may be called “deportation” but, in reality, it’s an expatriation, a journey in which they are relinquishing the only life they’ve ever known.
While America stands for hope and freedom, it’s creating uncertainty for this group of immigrants who are as American as any naturalized or natural born citizens. With immense hope, we look forward to the day when the Obama Administration will create reforms that will bring justice and fairness, principles that laid the foundation of this country, to all people rightfully living within our borders.
Tags: deportation, DREAM Act, immigration, removal, undocumented immigrants
Posted in Uncategorized | Read More »
Many H-1B Visas Still Available
As of June 11, 2010, the USCIS has received 22,200 regular-cap H-1B petitions for 65,000 slots. For the U.S. Master’s cap, they have received 9,400 for 20,000 slots.
The H-1B temporary worker category is used by employers seeking to employ foreign nationals in positions that require a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree or the equivalent experience (e.g. computer programmers, scientists, etc.). The foreign national must possess the requisite degree or equivalent experience to qualify for the H-1B category.
Each USCIS fiscal year, there is a limited number of H-1B slots available (i.e. 65,000 for Bachelor’s degree or foreign Master’s or higher degree holders and 20,000 for U.S. Master’s or higher degree holders). In prior years, over 100,000 applicants would apply on the first day of the filing period (April 1) and the slots were used very quickly. In recent years, due to the poor U.S. economy, far fewer companies are sponsoring H-1B employees and the quota remains open for many months (e.g. last year, the quota was open from April 1, 2009 – December 21, 2009) . So far, this year is no different. There are many H-1B slots still available.
Please contact our immigration law office if you need assistance for one or more H-1B petitions or have questions about the above.
Tags: fiscal year 2011, H-1B cap; H-1B quota, Master's cap
Posted in Uncategorized | Read More »
Harvard Student At Risk of Deportation
Eric Balderas is an immigrant success story. Originally from Mexico, Eric grew up in the U.S., graduated as valedictorian from his high school in San Antonio, and now attends Harvard as an undergraduate on a full scholarship studying molecular biology. He aspires to be a cancer researcher one day.
And yet, under our immigration laws, Eric Balderas is deportable.
Eric is undocumented. He came here as a young child with his parents from Mexico, a country which he does not even remember. Recently caught by ICE, he is now in danger of being removed from the U.S.
See: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jnk7spK92rmzC439rdIValXaBvxQD9G9CJJ00 for the full story.
Eric is the poster child for the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, or the DREAM Act, as it is known. The bi-partisan DREAM Act, if enacted, would grant permanent resident status to undocumented immigrants who were brought to this country as minors if they enroll either in school or in the military.
Why the DREAM Act has not yet passed continues to defy logic. What possible good can come from deporting someone brought here as a child, who, by virtue of having been raised here, is essentially American? I have yet to hear opponents of the DREAM Act articulate anything other than mean-spirited and nonsensical rhetoric in response to this question.
Tags: deporation, DREAM Act, eric balderas, immigrant, immigration reform, undocumented
Posted in immigration reform | Read More »
Dominican Republic Now a Separate Category on Visa Bulletin
The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has added an individual category to the visa bulletin for the Dominican Republic (formerly, in the category titled “all chargeability areas except those listed”). The visa bulletin is published every month to summarize the availability of family-based and employment-based immigrant visas (“green cards”) as allotted by Congress.
When a country is separated out, it means that the country has become “oversubscribed” (i.e. the demand for visas (the number of applications on file) exceeds the number of visas available). By separating it out, the DOS informs viewers that the Dominican Republic is oversubscribed at this time and lets viewers know whether visa applicants from the Dominican Republic are facing delays and backlogs in the processing time of their applications.
With the Dominican Republic as an individual category, the categories now are:
1. All chargeability areas except those listed
2. China – mainland born
3. Dominican Republic
4. India
5. Mexico
6. Philippines
To view the current visa bulletin and previous visa bulletins, please see http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5019.html. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact our immigration law firm for assistance.
Tags: country of chargeability, Department of State, Dominican Republic, employment-based, family-based, visa bulletin
Posted in Immigrant Visas | Read More »
USCIS Proposes Fee Increases
USCIS announced a proposed fee increase today, designed to address a $200 million budget shortfall for the agency in the coming fiscal year. The proposed increase of approximately 10 percent would affect most petitions, and would leave applications for naturalization unaffected. A 45-day public comment period will follow.
As an attorney in the trenches, I regularly see the incredibly poor level of service that USCIS delivers to its “customers”. For instance, a company petitioning for an H-1B employee must already pay anywhere from $1570 to $2320 in filing fees, and it receives very little value for it.
Increasingly, what we see in the adjudication are burdensome and unnecessary requests for evidence; evidence that is irrelevant and/or already provided in the initial petition. For instance, recently, I received a request asking that I “prove” why a position for a staff scientist at a DNA sequencing start-up company qualifies as a professional occupation worthy of an H-1B. In that case, the scientist in question has a degree in molecular cell biology from a U.S. university and is spending 100% of their time on scientific research.
It’s bad enough that in this era of declining applications, USCIS feels that it must make busy work for its under-employed contractors by encouraging those contractors to waste the petitioners’ time and money with unnecessary requests for more evidence. Now they expect petitioners to have to pay ten percent more for this “service”? Where I come from, they call that serious chutzpah.
Tags: fee increase, filing fee, H-1B, immigration, USCIS
Posted in Alerts | Read More »
Visa Fees to Increase on June 4, 2010
On June 4th, the fees for nonimmigrant visa processing at U.S. consulates around the world will increase. The fee increase was necessary, according to the Department of State, to help cover the rising cost of processing visas.
The new fee schedule is as follows:
Applicants for all visas that are not petition-based will pay a fee of $140. These are visa categories that don’t require an approved petition from a USCIS service center, and include B1/B2 tourist and business visitor visas and all student and exchange visitor (F, M and J) visas.
Applicants for petition-based visas will pay an application fee of $150. These are visas that require an approval of a petition from a USCIS service center before the applicant can apply for a visa at the U.S. consulate. These visa categories include:
· H visa (for temporary workers and trainees)
· L visa (for intra-company transferees)
· O visa (for persons of extraordinary ability)
· P visa (for athletes, artists and entertainers)
· Q visa (for cultural exchange visitors)
· R visa (for religious workers)
The application fee for a K visa for a fiancé(e)s of a U.S. citizen will increase to $350.
The application fee for E visas for treaty traders (E-1) and treaty-investors (E-2) will increase to $390.
Proposed fee increases for U.S. passports and immigrant visas are currently under review.
Posted in Alerts | Read More »
