After a 5-year dispute between USCIS and EB-5 Investors, a three-judge panel in D.C. Circuit court issued a decision on 10/27/2020, which allows use of unsecured loans to fund EB-5 investments. In the last five-years, USCIS had disputed validity of source of funds where all or part the investment included an unsecured loan, resulting in denial […]
On August 3, 2020 USCIS published a final rule “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Fee Schedule and Changes to Certain Other Immigration Benefit Request Requirements” implementing the changes to the fee schedule for certain immigration benefits, as well as new editions for certain immigration forms. Additionally, the rule removes certain fee exemptions, changes fee waiver […]
WASHINGTON D.C. –– Today, the U.S. District Court for the District Columbia issued a preliminary injunction to stop the Trump administration from denying immigrant visas to 2020 diversity visa winners. In its ruling, the court ordered the administration to process all 2020 diversity visa applications as quickly as possible before September 30. The court ruled […]
Few days ago Proclamation Suspending Entry of Aliens Who Present a Risk to the U.S. Labor Market Following the Coronavirus Outbreak extended the previous Proclamation 10014 which banned entry until June 22, 2020 for the rest of the year in 2020. More importantly, as anticipated by a number of US Immigration Lawyers, the ban expanded […]
After about a month delay the results are in! On Sunday, June 5, 2020, the U.S. Department of State posted the results of the Diversity Visa Lottery (DV Lottery), known as the Green Card lottery, one of the most popular visa programs. This year’s result was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. All the diversity […]
Last week USCIS announced plans to reopen services and offices on June 1, 2020. In furtherance of this agenda, USCIS released the blueprint for restarting Premium Processing Services for certain petitions. On Friday, May 29, 2020, USCIS gave the timeline for resuming premium processing for Form I-129 and Form I-140 petitions after their temporary suspension […]
EB-1C & the Pandemic: Is It Still A Great Option for Foreign Managers and Executives to Obtain U.S. Green Cards? With the current pandemic and the climbing unemployment rates, the U.S. Administration has already taken steps to limit employment-based visas such as H-1’s or EB-3’s where a foreign national would replace an otherwise qualified U.S. […]
Around the globe people have been able to travel using the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) often referred to as ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). However, due to the current COVID-19 pandemic many travelers are unable to return home. This has serious implications under the strict ESTA guidelines which limits travel time to 90 days. Luckily, there […]
The global Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered an array of unpredictable consequences especially for travelers who must worry about maintaining a legal status. With the current cancellation of flights and travel restrictions, many individuals have found themselves wondering how to legally extend their stay in order to remain “in status” of their Visa or ESTA. […]
USCIS has announced it will be adopting “Flexibility” measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This approach which extends certain response timelines has been adopted in order to mitigate health concerns associated with COVID-19. USCIS has closed the field offices and Immigrants no longer have the ability to have their interviews or to address their […]
