I wanted to recap all the immigration issues in 2008, but could not come up with anything uplifting. Maybe 2008 is ending with a whimper, but I'm not in the mood to write doom and gloom. There's plenty of that out there. So I'm just going to write an immigrant story.
Nivas came to this country to study engineering at Duke University from Kolkata, India. He was a PhD student. Although at first he missed home, this country embraced him. The Bengali ladies from his hometown invited him for home cooking sometimes and slowly, gradually he adjusted. He completed his research and found a good job as a researcher in a private firm. His mother had already "picked out" a good bride for him, a woman from a "good household" who would cook, and care for him in Kolkata. Like a dutiful son, Nivas went back to Kolkata and married Sima. It did not matter that Sima, had nothing in common with Nivas. Nivas liked Hollywood movies, western music and intellectual discussions. Sima liked her saris, her Bengali lifestyleand had a disdain with Western culture. So Sima found it hard to adjust and always cherished the thought that some day they would return to Kolkata.
They had children, they raised them well, and eventually the children went off to ivy leagues.
Nivas, like so many other immigrants had performed his duty. To his family, to both is birth country and to his adopted country. However, somewhere in that story, he sacrificed his own life, his own happiness. This is indeed a typical immigrant story from India.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Thursday, November 27, 2008
TOP TEN TURKEY DECISIONS BY DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Today on Thanksgiving I'd like to make a list of the top ten turkey decisions by the Bush created Department of Homeland Security:
10. The decision to raise CIS filing fees: The extra money just goes to waste, and does not create a dent in the economy. Just gets bad press
9. Making the Naturalization test harder: The Republicans are trying hard to become the Populist party, the party of W and Sarah Palin, a Joe the unlicensed Plumber, non thinking people party. A test which is based on concepts rather than rote memorization will only be passed by people who can think. Would those people really vote in populism?
8. Asking the illegal people to surrender themselves to the authorities and go back. Really? What were they thinking
7.Repealing the decision to make illegal people surrender themselves and go back. Now what do you do with the personnel you hired for the project? Not like anyone can loose a Government job. This is not as easy as a Constitutional amendment
6. Decision to raid the Tyson Chicken factory. Now we cant get good chicken, or butterball turkey. There is no one to skin and feather a turkey
5. The decision to make federal contractors sign on to e verify so that employers have to verify new recruits to see whether they have a legal SS number before they start jobs. In case the DHS have not noticed (since no one is loosing jobs at DHS) there is a recession going on and any restrictions placed on work will only further ail the economy. If there are legal people who can do a job, employers would not hire illegal people
4. The Decision to not have anyone bring in a phone that has a camera in any Citizenship and Immigration Office. I have been practicing for 12 years and have yet to see anyone there of whom I'd like to take the pictures. Its not like anyone wants a calendar of pictures of DHS workers
3. The color coded security alarms. Their main purpose is to alarm the population into voting Republican, and we know it did not work. No one understands which color is the most dangerous. Is it purple, or red or indigo?
2. The decision to not allow people to bring in fluids into airplanes. If I can make a bomb out of a bottle of water, a lip gloss and a toothpaste tube, I should be awarded the noble prize. All it does is put in more money in the hands of the airport vendors
1. The decision to have everyone take out their shoes in security check lines in airports. Not only is it humiliating, but dangerous. People can contract foot fungus, and who knows what else. And have they ever found anything dangerous in any shoe ever? The shoe bomber was just a crazy guy who failed.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
10. The decision to raise CIS filing fees: The extra money just goes to waste, and does not create a dent in the economy. Just gets bad press
9. Making the Naturalization test harder: The Republicans are trying hard to become the Populist party, the party of W and Sarah Palin, a Joe the unlicensed Plumber, non thinking people party. A test which is based on concepts rather than rote memorization will only be passed by people who can think. Would those people really vote in populism?
8. Asking the illegal people to surrender themselves to the authorities and go back. Really? What were they thinking
7.Repealing the decision to make illegal people surrender themselves and go back. Now what do you do with the personnel you hired for the project? Not like anyone can loose a Government job. This is not as easy as a Constitutional amendment
6. Decision to raid the Tyson Chicken factory. Now we cant get good chicken, or butterball turkey. There is no one to skin and feather a turkey
5. The decision to make federal contractors sign on to e verify so that employers have to verify new recruits to see whether they have a legal SS number before they start jobs. In case the DHS have not noticed (since no one is loosing jobs at DHS) there is a recession going on and any restrictions placed on work will only further ail the economy. If there are legal people who can do a job, employers would not hire illegal people
4. The Decision to not have anyone bring in a phone that has a camera in any Citizenship and Immigration Office. I have been practicing for 12 years and have yet to see anyone there of whom I'd like to take the pictures. Its not like anyone wants a calendar of pictures of DHS workers
3. The color coded security alarms. Their main purpose is to alarm the population into voting Republican, and we know it did not work. No one understands which color is the most dangerous. Is it purple, or red or indigo?
2. The decision to not allow people to bring in fluids into airplanes. If I can make a bomb out of a bottle of water, a lip gloss and a toothpaste tube, I should be awarded the noble prize. All it does is put in more money in the hands of the airport vendors
1. The decision to have everyone take out their shoes in security check lines in airports. Not only is it humiliating, but dangerous. People can contract foot fungus, and who knows what else. And have they ever found anything dangerous in any shoe ever? The shoe bomber was just a crazy guy who failed.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Friday, November 21, 2008
Is Work Criminal?
The Bush Government is solidly anti work when it comes to immigration. Yes, I admit that a worker must have the legal right to work. But employers know this too, and they would not take in immigrants if they found immigrants and United States Citizens ready to work. The anti Immigration forces make a huge deal about how immigrants are into crime, violence, etc. Yet Immigration and Custom Enforcement's major focus is work place raids to eradicate illegal workers, not illegal criminals. Unless of course working was criminal!
But the same is true for legal workers who are not from this country. Everyday I hear stories from clients about how long the work permits are taking, and how they simply cannot get the CIS to issue them quickly. These workers are forced to quit and in many cases force to go back to their home country. Many of them are in fields like research or IT where there simply is not enough qualified immigrants to do the job.
Even though the economy is bad, we still need skilled workers. Laid off auto workers in Detroit will not be able to perform bio tech research. And if we continue to have this same policy, US will continue to slip behind.
I know that the economy and not immigration is the major focus of the Obama Government. But America as a nation was built by immigrants and will continue to prosper as long as we get hardworking immigrants in.
Just like a plant that has to work harder to survive in unaccustomed earth, human being flourish better if they have to fight in a foreign land with scant help.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
But the same is true for legal workers who are not from this country. Everyday I hear stories from clients about how long the work permits are taking, and how they simply cannot get the CIS to issue them quickly. These workers are forced to quit and in many cases force to go back to their home country. Many of them are in fields like research or IT where there simply is not enough qualified immigrants to do the job.
Even though the economy is bad, we still need skilled workers. Laid off auto workers in Detroit will not be able to perform bio tech research. And if we continue to have this same policy, US will continue to slip behind.
I know that the economy and not immigration is the major focus of the Obama Government. But America as a nation was built by immigrants and will continue to prosper as long as we get hardworking immigrants in.
Just like a plant that has to work harder to survive in unaccustomed earth, human being flourish better if they have to fight in a foreign land with scant help.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Friday, November 14, 2008
When the Government Tries to fix things
There is only one fixed law of Governments: When Government tries to fix things it ALWAYS fails. It will therefore fail in the whole bail out mess, no matter who is the President.
So last Friday DOL tried to fix its computer system, which was working OK, it messed things up. Apparently DOL knows about this problem and is trying to fix things. Among the problems we noticed:
1. Sponsorship questions are taking longer to generate
2. The link which employer click on that E mail to verify sponsorship is NOT working
3. When printing the ETA 9089, the job experience data field is empty, although you can view the data. This problem seems to have been fixed
4. Filed cases are getting a C designation (for Chicago) even though all PERM cases are handled by Atlanta and should get a A designation.
Hopefully DOL will not deny cases for failure of employers to reply to the sponsorship e mails, because the glitch is in their computers.
But then, it is the Government at work, so who knows.
See why they need to certify more computer professionals.
On another note: If the Employer has has submitted the registration application and has not heard anything from the DOL for weeks, they should write to:
BE-RFI.Atlanta@dol.gov
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
So last Friday DOL tried to fix its computer system, which was working OK, it messed things up. Apparently DOL knows about this problem and is trying to fix things. Among the problems we noticed:
1. Sponsorship questions are taking longer to generate
2. The link which employer click on that E mail to verify sponsorship is NOT working
3. When printing the ETA 9089, the job experience data field is empty, although you can view the data. This problem seems to have been fixed
4. Filed cases are getting a C designation (for Chicago) even though all PERM cases are handled by Atlanta and should get a A designation.
Hopefully DOL will not deny cases for failure of employers to reply to the sponsorship e mails, because the glitch is in their computers.
But then, it is the Government at work, so who knows.
See why they need to certify more computer professionals.
On another note: If the Employer has has submitted the registration application and has not heard anything from the DOL for weeks, they should write to:
BE-RFI.Atlanta@dol.gov
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Thursday, November 6, 2008
My Last Sarah Palin Blog
Ok, this is my last Sarah Palin blog. I know, you are thinking not again, but you need to understand that Sarah Palin's exit from the National Life is a calamity for unseasoned comics.
Lets just pretend that Sarah Palin runs for President in 2016, campaigns in towels, (like she did for her campaign staff) and that all heterosexual males just gets mesmerized, and vote for her. Even the 7 year olds. And she becomes The President.
So Newsweek reported that Sarah Palin does not know the difference between Countries and Continents. She could not understand why Africa is a Continent, and that the NAFTA was signed by different countries. So why deal with confusing countries in the Visa Numbers? Just delete the country quota, make it one world. India and China just became current. Yay!
Then, no one in her administration understands the complicated ETA 9089. Lets KISS her and Keep It Simple Stupid.
This is my proposed ETA 9089 Form for 2016.
1. Do you have a job (any job) open?
2. Can you pay for a job, (any job)?
3. Is the alien qualified to do a job (any job)?
4. Is the Alien good looking?
5. Will the Alien have sex without contraception?
6. Do you believe in Guns, Christian God and will you exterminate the Gays?
If thew answer to all the above is yes, then the alien has an interview with the District Office.
There you have a point system.
Great Looking---5 points
Good Looking----3 points
Fair Looking----1 point
Clothes
Price range $ 1000/- and above---5 points
Price range $500/ and above------3 points
Price range $350------------------2 Points
Anything below------------------Points deducted from your total
Based on the number of points, preference systems will be allocated.
There she solved all the complexities of an employment based immigration.
Ok, no more on Sarah Palin, unless she becomes a senator from Alaska!
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Lets just pretend that Sarah Palin runs for President in 2016, campaigns in towels, (like she did for her campaign staff) and that all heterosexual males just gets mesmerized, and vote for her. Even the 7 year olds. And she becomes The President.
So Newsweek reported that Sarah Palin does not know the difference between Countries and Continents. She could not understand why Africa is a Continent, and that the NAFTA was signed by different countries. So why deal with confusing countries in the Visa Numbers? Just delete the country quota, make it one world. India and China just became current. Yay!
Then, no one in her administration understands the complicated ETA 9089. Lets KISS her and Keep It Simple Stupid.
This is my proposed ETA 9089 Form for 2016.
1. Do you have a job (any job) open?
2. Can you pay for a job, (any job)?
3. Is the alien qualified to do a job (any job)?
4. Is the Alien good looking?
5. Will the Alien have sex without contraception?
6. Do you believe in Guns, Christian God and will you exterminate the Gays?
If thew answer to all the above is yes, then the alien has an interview with the District Office.
There you have a point system.
Great Looking---5 points
Good Looking----3 points
Fair Looking----1 point
Clothes
Price range $ 1000/- and above---5 points
Price range $500/ and above------3 points
Price range $350------------------2 Points
Anything below------------------Points deducted from your total
Based on the number of points, preference systems will be allocated.
There she solved all the complexities of an employment based immigration.
Ok, no more on Sarah Palin, unless she becomes a senator from Alaska!
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Our First Black President
I have never been so proud to be an American as today.
During the 80s and 90s, raising kids in a predominantly white neighborhood of Tanglewood, and in River Oaks Baptist School in Houston, we had endured intense discrimination. Kids told my children that their parents told them not to be friends with them because they were not white. The teachers told them they would go to hell because they were not Christians. At River Oaks Baptist School, my daughter and son were placed in remedial classes, simply because they were not whites. The fact that they were Mensa members did not matter to the School. Our neighbors looked at us as though we did not belong there.
Slowly though (or fast if you consider it only 5-7 years) the neighborhood changed. There are more and more ethnic families there. I have an Iranian and Chinese neighbor. I see a lot of South American, Indian and different faces now. I placed my kids in Saint John's School, where they did not face any discrimination. They have moved on to Yale and Duke and did not let the River Oaks Baptist people brain wash them into thinking they cant.
That is why, I was in tears yesterday not only to see Barak win, but to see him get the votes from all segment of society and win by a huge majority. Only in America can you go from having separate bathroom and drinking fountains for black America to the President in 40 years. I am confident that finally having a President with a high IQ in the white house will improve our country. America has proved that we do not want Joe the unlicensed plumber simply because he was born in the US. We want the licensed experienced plumber, no matter what his race, religion, national origin, ethnicity or sexual orientation is.
As to McCain, we got the old McCain back yesterday during his concession speech. The McCain who could reach out to Ted Kennedy for the McCain-Kennedy Immigration bill, the McCain who would speak the truth no matter what. That McCain had disappeared during the Campaign. Ambition propelled him to appease the Conservative Right Wing base, got him to elect Sarah Palin with no forethought that she would be running the country if he should die, the McCain who unabashedly approved false and defamatory commercials against Barak. Had the republican party ran on issues rather than negative campaign, they would have had a much better fighting chance.
My daughter, a Literature major from Yale, likened McCain's power grab to that of Macbeth. A good man turned bad from the ambition to become King. Yes, the Republican campaign can be said to be a "tale told by an idiot---full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Hopefully the thunder, lighting and rain that has engulfed our country will dissipate as order returns.
And as for Sarah Palin, I do hope that she has menopause before she can pop out another Down Syndrome baby on this earth.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
During the 80s and 90s, raising kids in a predominantly white neighborhood of Tanglewood, and in River Oaks Baptist School in Houston, we had endured intense discrimination. Kids told my children that their parents told them not to be friends with them because they were not white. The teachers told them they would go to hell because they were not Christians. At River Oaks Baptist School, my daughter and son were placed in remedial classes, simply because they were not whites. The fact that they were Mensa members did not matter to the School. Our neighbors looked at us as though we did not belong there.
Slowly though (or fast if you consider it only 5-7 years) the neighborhood changed. There are more and more ethnic families there. I have an Iranian and Chinese neighbor. I see a lot of South American, Indian and different faces now. I placed my kids in Saint John's School, where they did not face any discrimination. They have moved on to Yale and Duke and did not let the River Oaks Baptist people brain wash them into thinking they cant.
That is why, I was in tears yesterday not only to see Barak win, but to see him get the votes from all segment of society and win by a huge majority. Only in America can you go from having separate bathroom and drinking fountains for black America to the President in 40 years. I am confident that finally having a President with a high IQ in the white house will improve our country. America has proved that we do not want Joe the unlicensed plumber simply because he was born in the US. We want the licensed experienced plumber, no matter what his race, religion, national origin, ethnicity or sexual orientation is.
As to McCain, we got the old McCain back yesterday during his concession speech. The McCain who could reach out to Ted Kennedy for the McCain-Kennedy Immigration bill, the McCain who would speak the truth no matter what. That McCain had disappeared during the Campaign. Ambition propelled him to appease the Conservative Right Wing base, got him to elect Sarah Palin with no forethought that she would be running the country if he should die, the McCain who unabashedly approved false and defamatory commercials against Barak. Had the republican party ran on issues rather than negative campaign, they would have had a much better fighting chance.
My daughter, a Literature major from Yale, likened McCain's power grab to that of Macbeth. A good man turned bad from the ambition to become King. Yes, the Republican campaign can be said to be a "tale told by an idiot---full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Hopefully the thunder, lighting and rain that has engulfed our country will dissipate as order returns.
And as for Sarah Palin, I do hope that she has menopause before she can pop out another Down Syndrome baby on this earth.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
EAD Card Delays
You had filed your Adjustment of Status Application (I-485) during the July-August 2007 rush. Now you need to renew your EAD card. It has been 90 days since you filed the I-765. (You can file this form 90 days before it expires). But you have heard nothing from the CIS. What can you do?
By Law the USCIS is supposed to give you the EAD card by 90 days. If 90 days has passed since the receipt of your I-765 notice, the CIS ombudsman advises you do the following:
1. CALL CIS at 1-800-375-5283 and talk to an officer. (Dont leave a message). Tell them its been 90 days and you need an interim card. Please keep records of the date and time of your call and officer number.
2. If you don't want to call, you can make an infopass appointment and go to your local CIS office. However they do NOT issue interim cards any more. They will inform the Service Center.
If its been a week after you do the above, and you have not heard from the CIS, you can write to the CIS ombudsman with all the details at:
cisombudsman.publicaffairs@dhs.gov
Please use this E mail for only this issue.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
By Law the USCIS is supposed to give you the EAD card by 90 days. If 90 days has passed since the receipt of your I-765 notice, the CIS ombudsman advises you do the following:
1. CALL CIS at 1-800-375-5283 and talk to an officer. (Dont leave a message). Tell them its been 90 days and you need an interim card. Please keep records of the date and time of your call and officer number.
2. If you don't want to call, you can make an infopass appointment and go to your local CIS office. However they do NOT issue interim cards any more. They will inform the Service Center.
If its been a week after you do the above, and you have not heard from the CIS, you can write to the CIS ombudsman with all the details at:
cisombudsman.publicaffairs@dhs.gov
Please use this E mail for only this issue.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Monday, October 27, 2008
USD going up with the Indian Rs
NEW DELHI -- Effective Friday, October 24, 2008, all United States Consular Sections in India will adjust the consular exchange rate from Rs. 50 to the dollar to Rs. 54 to the dollar.
This rate change is effective for all rupee-denominated costs of applying for visas and passports, including the nonimmigrant visa application fee paid at HDFC bank branches prior to the scheduling of visa appointments. The new application fee for nonimmigrant visas is Rs. 7074 (equivalent to USD $131). Receipts issued by HDFC Bank prior to October 24, 2008 that reflect a payment of Rs. 6,550 will be honored and there will be no need for a supplemental payment.
For a full listing of specific fee changes and more information on all U.S. visa and consular services, please visit the Embassy website at http://newdelhi.usembassy.gov.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
This rate change is effective for all rupee-denominated costs of applying for visas and passports, including the nonimmigrant visa application fee paid at HDFC bank branches prior to the scheduling of visa appointments. The new application fee for nonimmigrant visas is Rs. 7074 (equivalent to USD $131). Receipts issued by HDFC Bank prior to October 24, 2008 that reflect a payment of Rs. 6,550 will be honored and there will be no need for a supplemental payment.
For a full listing of specific fee changes and more information on all U.S. visa and consular services, please visit the Embassy website at http://newdelhi.usembassy.gov.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Friday, October 24, 2008
VOTING and IMMIGRANTS
Record number of new naturalized citizens will vote this year. The democratic congress made sure that as many people as possible got through the immigration process as possible before the voter registration deadline. Since IKE struck Houston the scheduled Naturalized ceremony was postponed. The Houston District Office rescheduled the oath ceremony just before the registration deadline, and called every applicant personally to make sure they came to the ceremony.
Generally Naturalized Citizens are more interested in American politics and vote in record numbers. These are people who chose to become American and was not simply born in America. Thus they are more interested and more aware. Most of them will probably vote democrat. The republican party seemed to do better in rural white conservative areas.
Realizing that though the Republican run USCIS promulgated a new test that makes it harder for citizens to pass. I think they hope that people who pass the test are more educated, and therefore richer and vote Republican.
I doubt whether candidates like Sarah Palin would pass this hard test. Please check it out at:
www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/100q.pdf
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Generally Naturalized Citizens are more interested in American politics and vote in record numbers. These are people who chose to become American and was not simply born in America. Thus they are more interested and more aware. Most of them will probably vote democrat. The republican party seemed to do better in rural white conservative areas.
Realizing that though the Republican run USCIS promulgated a new test that makes it harder for citizens to pass. I think they hope that people who pass the test are more educated, and therefore richer and vote Republican.
I doubt whether candidates like Sarah Palin would pass this hard test. Please check it out at:
www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/100q.pdf
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Thursday, October 16, 2008
The word 'Immigration" in the debate
In all the three debates, the word Immigration was just mentioned once. Last night, Mr. McCain accused of Mr. Obama of misrepresenting McCain's stance on immigration in the ads. What is McCain's stand on immigration? I don't know. Yes, he proposed the McCain Kennedy bill, which was an excellent and fair solution to the problem. But then he went back and said he would be very harsh on illegal immigrants to appease his conservative constituents.
The same is probably true of his views on stem cell research or abortion.
But does the issues that a President holds really matter? If it did, wouldn't a comprehensive immigration reform plan be already passed? Would the bailout bill take so long to pass? Our legislature is more interested in their own agendas than what is good for the country. In order for a President to sign a bill there has to be a bill, which passes both houses. I don't think any bill regarding Health Care, Social Security or Immigration is going to pass in any case.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details.
The same is probably true of his views on stem cell research or abortion.
But does the issues that a President holds really matter? If it did, wouldn't a comprehensive immigration reform plan be already passed? Would the bailout bill take so long to pass? Our legislature is more interested in their own agendas than what is good for the country. In order for a President to sign a bill there has to be a bill, which passes both houses. I don't think any bill regarding Health Care, Social Security or Immigration is going to pass in any case.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Texas Driver's License for Non Immigrants
Beginning October 01, the State of Texas will issue driver's license or ID cards to non immigrants whose status is valid for more than 6 months. The cards will be marked as temporary visitor. Persons not legally present will not be given driver's license or ID cards.
A new US citizen must present the Naturalization Certificate
A Permanent Resident must produce their "green card."
Other temporary persons have to provide Immigration Documents. If such documents do not have an expiry date, like a I-485 receipt notice, Driver's License will be given at one year increments.
Please check out the DPS web site:
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/administration/driver_licensing_control/LawfulStatusDLID.htm
All this is supposed to enhance the security of the State of Texas. But people will still need to drive.
Without driver's license, I'm sure people will not get insurance as well.
Now if your car gets hit by a car without a driver's license or insurance, what are your remedies?
Also, police forces may target people "looking like they don't have driver's license" and issue tickets, many of which are unwarranted.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
A new US citizen must present the Naturalization Certificate
A Permanent Resident must produce their "green card."
Other temporary persons have to provide Immigration Documents. If such documents do not have an expiry date, like a I-485 receipt notice, Driver's License will be given at one year increments.
Please check out the DPS web site:
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/administration/driver_licensing_control/LawfulStatusDLID.htm
All this is supposed to enhance the security of the State of Texas. But people will still need to drive.
Without driver's license, I'm sure people will not get insurance as well.
Now if your car gets hit by a car without a driver's license or insurance, what are your remedies?
Also, police forces may target people "looking like they don't have driver's license" and issue tickets, many of which are unwarranted.
Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, Annie Banerjee for more details
Friday, October 3, 2008
Sarah Palin and the Nod Nod Wink Wink Diplomacy
For the past few weeks Gov. Sarah Palin was grounded in one of McCain's numerous McMansions, and given a crash course in Maverickism for 14 hours a day. And the result showed in last night's debate. Gov Palin knew who the President of Iran was, and could pronounce "Ahmadinejad" perfectly. She knew the names of all the dictators in the world. And she knew that "nucular weapons" were bad.
But most importantly though, she looked great. Her very pretty legs, and face must have stuck a chord in men's hearts. And most world leaders are men. I can see President Sarkozy wanting to be her "friend." That would mean much better relations with France. Gov Palin, if she becomes Pres. Palin or VP Palin, will usher in a new kind of diplomacy. I will call it the "nod nod wink wink" style of diplomacy. And maybe people like Osama Bin Laden will forget bomb making and instead salivate in front of American news. Not a chance of that with Barak.
And as for immigrants----they just have to find the bridge to nowhere and come in through that. And as long as they don't carry white flags, they will be allowed in.
And as soon as they come in, they will be told to "drill baby drill."
But most importantly though, she looked great. Her very pretty legs, and face must have stuck a chord in men's hearts. And most world leaders are men. I can see President Sarkozy wanting to be her "friend." That would mean much better relations with France. Gov Palin, if she becomes Pres. Palin or VP Palin, will usher in a new kind of diplomacy. I will call it the "nod nod wink wink" style of diplomacy. And maybe people like Osama Bin Laden will forget bomb making and instead salivate in front of American news. Not a chance of that with Barak.
And as for immigrants----they just have to find the bridge to nowhere and come in through that. And as long as they don't carry white flags, they will be allowed in.
And as soon as they come in, they will be told to "drill baby drill."
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Houston District Office-Hurricane IKE
Houston is such a well built city, that Hurricane IKE did not do much damage to it. Almost all the traffic lights are back up and the power came back, even for me. Of course many residences and businesses had water logging, etc, but all private businesses had to work. But not so with Houston District Offices of CIS.
The Offices at Greens Road and North Point resumed this Monday, September 29th. The Asylum Office is still closed.
All canceled Naturalization Interviews for Friday Sept 12 (the day before IKE) and September 13 will be held on Tuesday October 21
All Adjustment of Status (green card) interviews canceled for September 12 will be on Friday October 24th.
Naturalization ceremony for September was canceled as well. So the scheduled individuals will not be able to vote in November.
Interviews for the two week period which were canceled will be reschedule in October and November. This will mean of course that all other interviews will be delayed.
The Offices at Greens Road and North Point resumed this Monday, September 29th. The Asylum Office is still closed.
All canceled Naturalization Interviews for Friday Sept 12 (the day before IKE) and September 13 will be held on Tuesday October 21
All Adjustment of Status (green card) interviews canceled for September 12 will be on Friday October 24th.
Naturalization ceremony for September was canceled as well. So the scheduled individuals will not be able to vote in November.
Interviews for the two week period which were canceled will be reschedule in October and November. This will mean of course that all other interviews will be delayed.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
HURRICANE IKE
Due to Hurricane Ike, the Houston District Office will remain closed indefinitely due to water damage from Hurricane IKE.
This includes the site for Naturalization and Info Pass Appointments-126 North Point Drive
and the place for Permanent Residency Interviews: 16504 Central Green Boulevard
Only two fingerprinting sites: the one on 290 and the one on Bissonnet
The one on I-45 South remains closed.
All Natz and Permanent Residency interviews will be rescheduled. Individuals having infopass appointments need to reschedule on the internet.
The tentative date for opening the office is Monday, September 29.
Below is my experience with IKE:
This includes the site for Naturalization and Info Pass Appointments-126 North Point Drive
and the place for Permanent Residency Interviews: 16504 Central Green Boulevard
Only two fingerprinting sites: the one on 290 and the one on Bissonnet
The one on I-45 South remains closed.
All Natz and Permanent Residency interviews will be rescheduled. Individuals having infopass appointments need to reschedule on the internet.
The tentative date for opening the office is Monday, September 29.
Below is my experience with IKE:
Everybody worked half day on Thursday Sept 11, 2008. We were told on Wednesday that the hurricane was coming at us. I filled up my gas, and went to Sam’s Club to buy canned tuna, peaches, and water. Not a whole lot of people were hurricane shopping.
Thursday everybody was frantic. Should they leave town, should they board up? Although it was sunny and about 92 degrees outside, the human emotional pressure was very strong. I closed down at 2 p.m., simply because I could not concentrate, and took some work home. I stopped at our local grocery store on the way back. It was lucky that I did. I got one of the last loafs of bread. Everything was gone. At least 5-6 people were buying water and beer, the essentials of survival in Texas.
Friday was a great day, but Houston looked like deserted town. Everything was closed, including Wal-Mart. I swam for what probably would be the last time for this season. We made hurricane preparations, laundry, dishwasher, cleared the outside for anything that could become a flying missile. We filled out the bathtubs for water if necessary.
At about 9:30 p.m. the winds started kicking up. I went outside, but aside from the strong wind, everything was in order. By 10 p.m. the cable went out, and by 10:30 the electricity. I went off to sleep.
I got up at what was probably 1;30 am or thereafter. The wind was howling outside. I opened the back door. There was a strange light outside. It was pea green, a mixture of green and yellow. It looked like dusk, I could see everything. It was strange. It was quiet, but intense, it felt like being inside a pea soup. There was fierce wind, but hardly any rain. There was a thin mist. It was probably the eye. I went back to sleep.
When I got up next, probably about 3 or 4 am, (I cannot be exact about the times, my electric clock was not working, and my watch was on my dresser), it was pitch black. It was raining horizontal, and there was thunder and lightning.
I got up to the sound of my cell phone ringing at 8:30 or 9 am. The back yard was flooded. Our street, which never floods, had water up to the curb. No electricity. Our pool lining was down. Some shingles from our roof were down. One medium branch from the oak tree in the back was down. The whole yard was littered with leaves and twigs. Some water came in through a water socket in one master bathroom sink.
The house in front of us had their whole big oak tree on the ground, obstructing half the road.
I went to the freezer and took out the fish and scallops. Our stove, with gas worked. I cooked the fish for lunch and scallops for supper. We really had good food that day.
In the evening we went for a walk on Tanglewood Boulevard. It looked like a hurricane had blown thorough. OK, I really cannot find another simile, because it is not like a war. There was no damage to any structure, no broken windows. But the trees took the hit. They were down everywhere. Some of the traffic lights were bent. It was kind of cool to look at the underside of the big oak trees.
On Saturday night it started raining again. The streets were flooded, but not much at least in out locale.
We got back electricity at my office in Sugar land on Sunday. We got our cable and hence internet and phone connection on July 20th. But our house was another matter.
At first we had fun kind of camping. We went to a friend's block party in West U. The devastation there seemed more. Big trees littered their narrower streets. We came back to a dark house in the evening. In the morning we cleaned trees, worked in our yard, and walked around. In the evening, we sat in the dark, listened to the radio and went to bed early. George Bush's neighborhood, two blocks from mine, had electricity on that same Saturday night, even though they had at least one bent electric pole. That was Sept 13. We would not get our electricity until Sept 24.
The novelty soon wore away as the weather grew hotter, and the mosquitoes invaded from the open window. Additionally the street lights were a mess. The lights in all the big intersection were out, though the small ones were up and running. Traffic jams in Houston shamed those in LA, for the first time. It took me more than an hour to reach my home from work, when it normally takes 20 minutes.
Centerpoint Energy first inspected my neighborhood on Tuesday Sept 23, 11 days after IKE hit. There were only minor fuses out. They finished the work in hours. But we had to wait all this time, in the heat, in the dark. People are still waiting, while Centerpoint gets to play God.
Monday, September 22, 2008
New Naturalization Test
The New Naturalization test is here. If you have your interview before October 01, 2008, you will be administered the OLD test.
If you file your case before October 01, 2008, you can choose between the old test and the new test. (That is if your interview is before October 01, 2009)
If you file after October 01, 2008, you will take the new test.
There is a rumor that the new test is harder. What I like about the new test is that it is organized into sections, and is therefore easier to remember. The old test was a jumble of questions with no logic or organization.
What I don’t like is that many of the questions are fuzzy. Remember this is the government that gave us “fuzzy math.” It has open ended questions like “what does the constitution do?” The constitution does so much, and there are only three right answers. (Of course this government does not even understand that the Constitution protects rights).
In general the new questions are more detailed and require a more thorough understanding of US Civics and History.
Why don’t you decide for yourself.
Take a look at the new test here:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/100q.pdf
Take a look at the old test: http://www.visatous.com, go to links, and click on naturalization Questions (fourth from the bottom)
If you find the new test harder, apply BEFORE October 01, 2008. (ie ASAP). If you want us to file, call us at 281-242-9139 or e mail me annie@visatous.com
For more general information on the New Test go to:
Friday, September 12, 2008
Marriage Based Interview
How to ACE a marriage based Interview at CIS
DO-Dress professionally. As in any interview, the interviewer forms an initial impression, which if negative is hard to shake. The clothes do not have to be expensive But have proper respect by wearing clothes that cover. This is a serious interview, not a dance club
DO- Tell the truth. There are no right or wrong thing in a marriage and making up lies really complicate matter. Apart from the fact that the officer places you under oath to "tell the truth" and lying to a federal officer is a felony, it does actually hurts your case. The officers are supposed to judge whether you are married or not under state law. Most state law defines marriage as:
1. Intent to be married
2. Having a ceremony of some sort for the marriage
3. Holdingout to others as man and wife
Marriage is ultimately a social declaraion of the intent of one man and one woman to be together and no other societal rules govern marriage.
In a separate interview once, for my clients, the husband was asked where he took his wife on the last date. The wife had already answered Mc Donalds. The husband did not want to say that he was that "cheap." So he hesitated, and ultimately said "a nice restaurant." We had trouble with that case, although the couple was happily married.
In another case, the male client had gone back to his village in Tanzania, while his pregnant wife stayed in the US. The question was whether when he was in Tanzania, did he call his wife. The man answered no. His village had no phones. His wife thought it would "look bad" that he never called his pregnant wife, so she answered yes. The nest question was how many time, and she answered three ties a day. One lie leads to another. We had to wait for the birth of the child for the officer to actually believe that the couple was in fact living together.
Do -Take all the documents with you. For instance:
Proof of Cohabitation - As many of these as you can get:
DON'T -Prepare for the interview other than collecting the documents. Very often clients ask me what type of questions are asked, with the intent of starting to memorize the answers. When one of my clients asked me that, I had told him that they may ask him questions about his wife, like her birth date, etc. At the interview, he told me he had memorized everything about his wife. I dont know whether that endeared him more to his wife, but for the interview purpose it was a complete waste of time. Again, since there are no rules in a marriage there is no rule as to what you should now. If you dont know, say "I dont know." Dont make up an answer. A client was once asked what perume the other spouse wears. This couple knew the answer. But dear readers, I have been married for 22 years, and have raised two kids with my husband aged 21 and 20. And frankly I dont think my husband wears a perfume. My husband certainly does not know what perfume I wear. I dont know what perfume I wear, since they come from little bottles on my dresser that I get as presents. So, if you dont know, say "I dont know."
DON'T-Act overly amorous or lovey-dovey. The officers are trained to recognize frauds and being overly amorous raises the suspicion as to whether you are really married. Act normal. You are always liked best when you are your natural self.
And above all DON'T file false petitions! That is a crime and will get you deported. If you are actually not living together as man and wife, immigration officers do find out. These officers are trained and do nothing but marriage cases about 7-8 a day for years!
DO-Dress professionally. As in any interview, the interviewer forms an initial impression, which if negative is hard to shake. The clothes do not have to be expensive But have proper respect by wearing clothes that cover. This is a serious interview, not a dance club
DO- Tell the truth. There are no right or wrong thing in a marriage and making up lies really complicate matter. Apart from the fact that the officer places you under oath to "tell the truth" and lying to a federal officer is a felony, it does actually hurts your case. The officers are supposed to judge whether you are married or not under state law. Most state law defines marriage as:
1. Intent to be married
2. Having a ceremony of some sort for the marriage
3. Holdingout to others as man and wife
Marriage is ultimately a social declaraion of the intent of one man and one woman to be together and no other societal rules govern marriage.
In a separate interview once, for my clients, the husband was asked where he took his wife on the last date. The wife had already answered Mc Donalds. The husband did not want to say that he was that "cheap." So he hesitated, and ultimately said "a nice restaurant." We had trouble with that case, although the couple was happily married.
In another case, the male client had gone back to his village in Tanzania, while his pregnant wife stayed in the US. The question was whether when he was in Tanzania, did he call his wife. The man answered no. His village had no phones. His wife thought it would "look bad" that he never called his pregnant wife, so she answered yes. The nest question was how many time, and she answered three ties a day. One lie leads to another. We had to wait for the birth of the child for the officer to actually believe that the couple was in fact living together.
Do -Take all the documents with you. For instance:
Proof of Cohabitation - As many of these as you can get:
A. Copy of birth certificate of child together
B. Copy of joint mortgage documents
C. Copy of joint rental agreement
D. Copy of life insutrance where the spouse is the beneficiary
E. Copy of joint health insurance
F. Copy of joint car insurance
G. Copy of joint bank account
H. Copy of joint stock certificate
I. Copy of joint credit card bills
J. Copy of joint purchases, example car or furniture or appliances
K. Marriage album and pictures
ORIGINALS OF
a. Marriage certificate
b. Birth certificates of both spouses
c. Naturalization certificate for petitioner
d. Divorce decrees for both spouses, if applicable
e. All other documents submitted to the INS, like EAD card, or travel document like advance parole
f. Passport, driver’s license and SS Card for both spouses
Do- Be short and sweet. Just answer the specific question asked, nothing more. The officer has many interviews to do a day, and does not have time to hear your life story. Besides going off on tangents derails the officer, and make their job harder. If they forget something, they can ask you to come back later, delaying the time you have to get your green card.
a. Marriage certificate
b. Birth certificates of both spouses
c. Naturalization certificate for petitioner
d. Divorce decrees for both spouses, if applicable
e. All other documents submitted to the INS, like EAD card, or travel document like advance parole
f. Passport, driver’s license and SS Card for both spouses
Do- Be short and sweet. Just answer the specific question asked, nothing more. The officer has many interviews to do a day, and does not have time to hear your life story. Besides going off on tangents derails the officer, and make their job harder. If they forget something, they can ask you to come back later, delaying the time you have to get your green card.
DON'T -Prepare for the interview other than collecting the documents. Very often clients ask me what type of questions are asked, with the intent of starting to memorize the answers. When one of my clients asked me that, I had told him that they may ask him questions about his wife, like her birth date, etc. At the interview, he told me he had memorized everything about his wife. I dont know whether that endeared him more to his wife, but for the interview purpose it was a complete waste of time. Again, since there are no rules in a marriage there is no rule as to what you should now. If you dont know, say "I dont know." Dont make up an answer. A client was once asked what perume the other spouse wears. This couple knew the answer. But dear readers, I have been married for 22 years, and have raised two kids with my husband aged 21 and 20. And frankly I dont think my husband wears a perfume. My husband certainly does not know what perfume I wear. I dont know what perfume I wear, since they come from little bottles on my dresser that I get as presents. So, if you dont know, say "I dont know."
DON'T-Act overly amorous or lovey-dovey. The officers are trained to recognize frauds and being overly amorous raises the suspicion as to whether you are really married. Act normal. You are always liked best when you are your natural self.
And above all DON'T file false petitions! That is a crime and will get you deported. If you are actually not living together as man and wife, immigration officers do find out. These officers are trained and do nothing but marriage cases about 7-8 a day for years!
Friday, September 5, 2008
Immigration and Sarah Palin
The legal stuff first: This blog is not true. Actually I dont think Governor Palin even knows what immigration means. This is just what I think, hopefully a blog whose value is only in its humor.
So, lets say, John McCain gets to be President, and then just dies of whatever carcinoma he has. We will then have President Palin. She is an ex Beauty Queen---- for Wasilla and second in Alaska! She majored in journalism from the University of Idaho. There are no immigrants in Alaska or Idaho. What does immigration actually mean? Oh and where is Iraq? In the middle east, just on the other side of the mid west.
She might think that EB (Employment Based) should be Excellence in Beauty. Yes, the categories will remain the same, except the judging criteria will be the same as the beauty contests. Indians and Chinese will never get on 2nd pref, (they will all be 3rd or less), so EB-2 for India and China will always be current. And probably most beneficiaries will be females, with husbands being derivative beneficiaries. (Nothing against guys, but there just isn't any male beauty contests, and therefore no rules. And Congress of course will not pass anything).
Ok, so we will have only one type of employment based categories. OK, maybe 2. Oil Drillers and Fishermen. So if you are either, you come in. If not, leave NOW!
Maybe we will have a category for dogs. Palin is a self described "pitbull with lipstick". I'm sure she likes huskies. So we should have unrestricted immigration for dogs. Family based categories for dogs.
Now do you see why it was a bad idea to buy Alaska from Russia? The Putin/Palin ticket has a great ring to it.
So, lets say, John McCain gets to be President, and then just dies of whatever carcinoma he has. We will then have President Palin. She is an ex Beauty Queen---- for Wasilla and second in Alaska! She majored in journalism from the University of Idaho. There are no immigrants in Alaska or Idaho. What does immigration actually mean? Oh and where is Iraq? In the middle east, just on the other side of the mid west.
She might think that EB (Employment Based) should be Excellence in Beauty. Yes, the categories will remain the same, except the judging criteria will be the same as the beauty contests. Indians and Chinese will never get on 2nd pref, (they will all be 3rd or less), so EB-2 for India and China will always be current. And probably most beneficiaries will be females, with husbands being derivative beneficiaries. (Nothing against guys, but there just isn't any male beauty contests, and therefore no rules. And Congress of course will not pass anything).
Ok, so we will have only one type of employment based categories. OK, maybe 2. Oil Drillers and Fishermen. So if you are either, you come in. If not, leave NOW!
Maybe we will have a category for dogs. Palin is a self described "pitbull with lipstick". I'm sure she likes huskies. So we should have unrestricted immigration for dogs. Family based categories for dogs.
Now do you see why it was a bad idea to buy Alaska from Russia? The Putin/Palin ticket has a great ring to it.
Friday, August 29, 2008
H-1B Denials in Consulates
The Consulates in several posts just does not understand Immigration Law., especially the H-1B law. As it is, only 65,000 slots are opened every year, and over 100,000 applications are filed. So the lucky few who get in and get approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services has to go to the Consulates.
The consulates, especially in Chennai, India tend to believe that small consultation firms cannot get H-1B applicants. So they ask for a laundry list of documents, including the employer's tax records, showing net profit, quarterly taxes, number of employees , etc. This is presumably to prove that the employer is actually doing business. Recently in an H-1B case, the Company was showing a net profit of over 200K. The consultants was to be paid $50k. At the time of filing the H-1B petition with the CIS, the employer had 45 employees. At the time of the consulate interview, the employer had 40 employee. The Chennai consulate denied the case and send it back to the CIS for "fraud investigation." This can take years!!!!
In another case in Sydney Australia, the Consulate officer asked whether the perspective employee knew the employer, and asked whether he knew if the employer is married. The employee knew the employer, but was not related. This case also got denied and sent to fraud investigation. Where does the H-1B regs say that the employee cannot know the employer? Would people like Michael Chertoff, Alberto Gonzales etc get a job if they did not know Pres Bush?
In this huge H-1B crisis, if the visas get denied, employers will simply outsource all work. If the H-1B workers were allowed to come in, the US would get the taxes, spending, etc. Now that will go to India or China. And yes, our debt to those countries will continue to increase.
In this labor day week end, if you know of a tiotally unfair consulate denial, please write. We can submit these stories to the Department of State.
The consulates, especially in Chennai, India tend to believe that small consultation firms cannot get H-1B applicants. So they ask for a laundry list of documents, including the employer's tax records, showing net profit, quarterly taxes, number of employees , etc. This is presumably to prove that the employer is actually doing business. Recently in an H-1B case, the Company was showing a net profit of over 200K. The consultants was to be paid $50k. At the time of filing the H-1B petition with the CIS, the employer had 45 employees. At the time of the consulate interview, the employer had 40 employee. The Chennai consulate denied the case and send it back to the CIS for "fraud investigation." This can take years!!!!
In another case in Sydney Australia, the Consulate officer asked whether the perspective employee knew the employer, and asked whether he knew if the employer is married. The employee knew the employer, but was not related. This case also got denied and sent to fraud investigation. Where does the H-1B regs say that the employee cannot know the employer? Would people like Michael Chertoff, Alberto Gonzales etc get a job if they did not know Pres Bush?
In this huge H-1B crisis, if the visas get denied, employers will simply outsource all work. If the H-1B workers were allowed to come in, the US would get the taxes, spending, etc. Now that will go to India or China. And yes, our debt to those countries will continue to increase.
In this labor day week end, if you know of a tiotally unfair consulate denial, please write. We can submit these stories to the Department of State.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Please leave this country, Please?
The Department of Homeland Security is really out of touch with reality. In a Program called Operations Scheduled Departure, they are asking illegal immigrants who already have their final order of deportation to surrender and depart the United States. It has been started as a pilot program in California, Chicago and Phoenix on August 5. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is advertising in local media in those places. However, only 6 of thousands of immigrants have departed so far.
Of course ICE is calling this a success. Which means that it will continue to use your tax dollars for this program. Mr Hayes, the Acting Director of Detentions at ICE, said he is disappointed at the lack of support of community based organizations.
Mr Hayes, if illegal immigrants wanted to leave the US, why would they be here illegally in the first place? Like you and us, they have children to feed, many of those children are US Citizens. And unlike "welfare bums" they have to actually work to feed their children.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Terminating an H-1B Employee
With the declining US Economy, many employers are laying off employees, and some of them are H-1B employees. However, unlike ordinary employees, the Employer is supposed to take certain measures, while terminating an H-1B employee.
1. NOTIFY THE EMPLOYEE: The employer is supposed to pay the H-1B employee the amount promised under the LCA., when that employee is "benched", ie non performing employee due to lack of work. Rehiring a benched employee does NOT constitute a termination. The Employer is supposed to provide the Employee with a Notice that the Employment relationship is terminated. Oral termination may run into proof issues, so a written termination letter is advisable. Please note that if an employee takes time off voluntarily, (for instance to have a baby, or to care for a sick relative), the Employer is under no obligation to pay or to terminate during that period, if the employee joins him again.
2. NOTIFY USCIS and perhaps the DOL: The H-1B regulations state that the Employer shall notify the USCIS of terminations. The Employer should write to the Office that he filed the H-1B with and notify them of the termination. Although there is no regulations that the Employer should notify the DOL, it is advisable to do so. This is bacause under the LCA, the Employer's liability to the Employee continues for 1 year after the termination, if the LCA is not terminated as well. Although there are no Govermnment sanctions for failure to notify, the H-1B employee can file with the DOL, who has the authority to enforce the Employer to pay back wages to the Employee
Below are the addresses of the Government Organizations:
USCIS
California Service Center
P.O. Box 10129
Laguna Niguel, CA 92607-1012
USCIS
Vermont Service Center
ATTN: I-129
75 Lower Weldon Street
St. Albans, VT 05479-0001
Department of Labor
Look at your regional office:
http://www.doleta.gov/regions/regoffices/
3. Pay for Employee's transportation home: This only applies if the H-1B employee was to leave permanently for his home country. So if the H-1B employee decides to stay in the US and take up appointments any wharere else, the Employer does not need to pay for transportation home. The transportation has to be "reasonable." So first class plane fair is probably not reasonable. Also, the employer does not have to pay for the H-4 beneficiaries.
1. NOTIFY THE EMPLOYEE: The employer is supposed to pay the H-1B employee the amount promised under the LCA., when that employee is "benched", ie non performing employee due to lack of work. Rehiring a benched employee does NOT constitute a termination. The Employer is supposed to provide the Employee with a Notice that the Employment relationship is terminated. Oral termination may run into proof issues, so a written termination letter is advisable. Please note that if an employee takes time off voluntarily, (for instance to have a baby, or to care for a sick relative), the Employer is under no obligation to pay or to terminate during that period, if the employee joins him again.
2. NOTIFY USCIS and perhaps the DOL: The H-1B regulations state that the Employer shall notify the USCIS of terminations. The Employer should write to the Office that he filed the H-1B with and notify them of the termination. Although there is no regulations that the Employer should notify the DOL, it is advisable to do so. This is bacause under the LCA, the Employer's liability to the Employee continues for 1 year after the termination, if the LCA is not terminated as well. Although there are no Govermnment sanctions for failure to notify, the H-1B employee can file with the DOL, who has the authority to enforce the Employer to pay back wages to the Employee
Below are the addresses of the Government Organizations:
USCIS
California Service Center
P.O. Box 10129
Laguna Niguel, CA 92607-1012
USCIS
Vermont Service Center
ATTN: I-129
75 Lower Weldon Street
St. Albans, VT 05479-0001
Department of Labor
Look at your regional office:
http://www.doleta.gov/regions/regoffices/
3. Pay for Employee's transportation home: This only applies if the H-1B employee was to leave permanently for his home country. So if the H-1B employee decides to stay in the US and take up appointments any wharere else, the Employer does not need to pay for transportation home. The transportation has to be "reasonable." So first class plane fair is probably not reasonable. Also, the employer does not have to pay for the H-4 beneficiaries.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Whats wrong with US Immigration
If its not that we are probably the only country that do not have a workable immigration policy, that the nation is totally polarized about immigration topics, now we learn that the appointment of Immigration Judges were also polarized during the Bush Government.
Under Alberto Gonzales' reign, the Justice Dept hired Immigration Judges (IJ) whose only qualifications are being a "good republican" and a "longtime donor to the party." One of those judges, when asked what his weaknesses were, actually said "blondes."
The Constitutional debate as to what can be done to unseat federal judges, appointed for life is important. But so also are people denied cases simply because maybe these "right leaning" judges felt that the defendants would not make "good republican" US Citizens. Can every case during that period of time, adjudicated by those judges be reopened?
Under Alberto Gonzales' reign, the Justice Dept hired Immigration Judges (IJ) whose only qualifications are being a "good republican" and a "longtime donor to the party." One of those judges, when asked what his weaknesses were, actually said "blondes."
The Constitutional debate as to what can be done to unseat federal judges, appointed for life is important. But so also are people denied cases simply because maybe these "right leaning" judges felt that the defendants would not make "good republican" US Citizens. Can every case during that period of time, adjudicated by those judges be reopened?
Friday, July 25, 2008
LCA, DOL and H-1B
A precondition to filing an H-1B petition is that the Employer files a Labor Condition Application (LCA) to the Department of Labor (DOL) attesting that
they will pay the alien the prevailing wage during the period of the employment and
that they are not adversely affecting other workers by hiring,
or not replacing striking or laid off US workers with the H-1B non immigrant
The Employer is supposed to:
Display a copy of the LCA for 10 days in the business premises
Keep the LCA in a file for public access for 3 years
Provide a copy of the LCA to the H-1B employee
This condition has to be met during the entire term of the employees work until the termination of employment. Benching an employee and later rehiring that employee is not a termination and the employer has to pay the employee the full amount promised in the LCA.
If however the employee takes a leave due to a voluntary request (for example going back to the home country for some time) or for the employee's convenience, then the employer is not required to pay the employee.
The Employer must notify the Citizenship and Immigration Services upon termination of the H-1B employee.
The DOL can and does enforce that employers abide by the terms and conditions of the LCA. Employees stiffed by their employers can complain to the DOL, who then upon determining the truth, orders the Employers to pay the back wages due to the Employee and also assess fines for non compliance.
However the DOL's authority to enforce terms of employment only extends to the LCA. Any subsequently held contracts between employers and employees cannot be subjected to DOL enforcement. In a recent case, In the Matter of Mahmoud Ashraf Galal (2008-LCA-00010) the employee asserted that the employer's agreement to increase the employees wage to 90K per year (when the LCA promised $65K) and the employer's promise to pay employee work related travel expenses were contractual and the DOL did not have the authority to enforce them. The Employees should file under State Law for contractual remedies. The determination will be done under individual state law.
they will pay the alien the prevailing wage during the period of the employment and
that they are not adversely affecting other workers by hiring,
or not replacing striking or laid off US workers with the H-1B non immigrant
The Employer is supposed to:
Display a copy of the LCA for 10 days in the business premises
Keep the LCA in a file for public access for 3 years
Provide a copy of the LCA to the H-1B employee
This condition has to be met during the entire term of the employees work until the termination of employment. Benching an employee and later rehiring that employee is not a termination and the employer has to pay the employee the full amount promised in the LCA.
If however the employee takes a leave due to a voluntary request (for example going back to the home country for some time) or for the employee's convenience, then the employer is not required to pay the employee.
The Employer must notify the Citizenship and Immigration Services upon termination of the H-1B employee.
The DOL can and does enforce that employers abide by the terms and conditions of the LCA. Employees stiffed by their employers can complain to the DOL, who then upon determining the truth, orders the Employers to pay the back wages due to the Employee and also assess fines for non compliance.
However the DOL's authority to enforce terms of employment only extends to the LCA. Any subsequently held contracts between employers and employees cannot be subjected to DOL enforcement. In a recent case, In the Matter of Mahmoud Ashraf Galal (2008-LCA-00010) the employee asserted that the employer's agreement to increase the employees wage to 90K per year (when the LCA promised $65K) and the employer's promise to pay employee work related travel expenses were contractual and the DOL did not have the authority to enforce them. The Employees should file under State Law for contractual remedies. The determination will be done under individual state law.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Bills for Employment Based Immigration
The United States have a fixed quota as to how many immigrants they can let in from a particular country. Some countries like China and India has a large pool of qualified immigrants who can come to the US and fill professional positions, and thereby improve the US economy. However, with China and India prospering, and the green card process taking longer and longer, many of these highly qualified personnel are going back to their own countries. No one can deal with the uncertainty of an US green card taking in some cases 7 to 8 years. As a result, US businesses are loosing their competitive edge.
Not every country uses up their quota. Thus those visas are wasted. During Clinton's reign, these unused visas were collected and given to everyone at large. This is a bipartisan issue affecting both small and large businesses and American competitiveness. Currently there are 3 bills in the legislature to ameliorate the problem. They are:
1. H.R. 6039, by exempting highly educated, foreign-born students earning an advanced degree in science, technology, engineering or mathematics from a U.S. university from the annual EB green card limit, would help U.S. employers retain these talented individuals in the U.S. workforce. For example, foreign nationals comprise half of the master’s and 70 percent of the Ph.D.s in electrical engineering from U.S. universities.
2. H.R. 5921 will help put an end to multi-year wait times by eliminating unduly restrictive per
country limits on EB green cards.
3. H.R. 5882 will help to reduce visa backlogs by “recapturing” EB green cards from prior years
that went unused due to government processing delays and making them available immediately to those who meet the requirements.
A letter signed by 130 Corporations, like Microsoft, Google, Sun Systems, E Bay, Coca Cola Company, etc and educational institutions was sent to House of Representatives.
A comprehensive immigration reform may be hard to get a consensus on. But this bill is not for "illegal people" who the likes of Lou Dobbs chastise. These are highly qualified individuals, who if they go back, they will enrich their own countries, and US will fall behind on their Math and Science competitive edge.
Not every country uses up their quota. Thus those visas are wasted. During Clinton's reign, these unused visas were collected and given to everyone at large. This is a bipartisan issue affecting both small and large businesses and American competitiveness. Currently there are 3 bills in the legislature to ameliorate the problem. They are:
1. H.R. 6039, by exempting highly educated, foreign-born students earning an advanced degree in science, technology, engineering or mathematics from a U.S. university from the annual EB green card limit, would help U.S. employers retain these talented individuals in the U.S. workforce. For example, foreign nationals comprise half of the master’s and 70 percent of the Ph.D.s in electrical engineering from U.S. universities.
2. H.R. 5921 will help put an end to multi-year wait times by eliminating unduly restrictive per
country limits on EB green cards.
3. H.R. 5882 will help to reduce visa backlogs by “recapturing” EB green cards from prior years
that went unused due to government processing delays and making them available immediately to those who meet the requirements.
A letter signed by 130 Corporations, like Microsoft, Google, Sun Systems, E Bay, Coca Cola Company, etc and educational institutions was sent to House of Representatives.
A comprehensive immigration reform may be hard to get a consensus on. But this bill is not for "illegal people" who the likes of Lou Dobbs chastise. These are highly qualified individuals, who if they go back, they will enrich their own countries, and US will fall behind on their Math and Science competitive edge.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
The Reality of Immigration
According to a recent posting by the American Immigration Lawyer's Association, illegal immigrants comprise of about 5 % of the US workforce and contribute about $520 billion to the Social Security System, an amount that they wont ever get back. Even at the State level, these "undocumented immigrants still pay more in taxes than they use in public services." This money will go towards payment of social security benefits of US workers.
Most undocumented immigrants come to the United States to work. They come here because they can find work. If the work dries up, they will NOT remain in this country and be far away from their families. Thus sheer free market forces, and restrictive immigration laws control the whole phenomena of undocumented workers.
US was founded on the principle of Free Market System. Ben Bernanke espouses it. Yet the raids on businesses by Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) is actually hurting the already battered US economy further by shutting down businesses. Why is ICE going after people simply working for a better living and paying taxes in the US, instead of going after aliens who are criminals? Because unlike what Lou Dobbs preaches, there are very few illegal aliens who are actually criminals. The agency would not need to have that many officers if the only people they deport were criminals.
So, ICE, whose parent is the Department of Homeland Security, makes work a crime and a security issue, arrest and deport men and women who are working, and thereby hurt the US economy. We have a Government that has already hurt us by going into a costly war against Iraq. When will they stop?
Most undocumented immigrants come to the United States to work. They come here because they can find work. If the work dries up, they will NOT remain in this country and be far away from their families. Thus sheer free market forces, and restrictive immigration laws control the whole phenomena of undocumented workers.
US was founded on the principle of Free Market System. Ben Bernanke espouses it. Yet the raids on businesses by Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) is actually hurting the already battered US economy further by shutting down businesses. Why is ICE going after people simply working for a better living and paying taxes in the US, instead of going after aliens who are criminals? Because unlike what Lou Dobbs preaches, there are very few illegal aliens who are actually criminals. The agency would not need to have that many officers if the only people they deport were criminals.
So, ICE, whose parent is the Department of Homeland Security, makes work a crime and a security issue, arrest and deport men and women who are working, and thereby hurt the US economy. We have a Government that has already hurt us by going into a costly war against Iraq. When will they stop?
Friday, July 11, 2008
Fingerprinting for Reentry Permits
The USCIS recently introduced the procedure of a fingerprinting check for green card holders who wished to stay out of the US for more than 6 months. There is a presumption that individuals who wishes to stay out of the US for more than 6 months are abandoning their Permanent Residence status. So BEFORE they leave the US, they need to file the reentry permit (Form I-131) expressing their intent to come back to the US and they can stay outside the country for 2 years. Now they are going to be fingerprinted. Not only do they have to pay $80/- more to the US Government, but file the reentry permit sufficiently in advance of their departure to be able to have the fingerprinting done before they leave. Some (very few) Consular posts might do a fingerprinting, but the majority of posts wont.
Usually individuals leave because their job or family ties compel them. With multinational industries spread out among several countries, there is very often the need to quickly dispatch personnel from the US Companies to their subsidiaries abroad. Or sometimes, the Permanent Resident's relative back home may be sick wand have to one to take care of. Or they might want a degree from Oxford, and get the admission notice less than a month before class starts. They have to wait.
One has to wonder why this fingerprinting is necessary. OK, we all know the Government is justfully very concerned about National Security. (And that the GOP feeds off of this National Fear). But if a Permanent Resident commits a crime, there is already a procedure for Deportation. The fingerprints of the permanent resident has already been taken and should be stored in some Government computers somewhere. And citizens can go anywhere without any restrictions.
Also the Government can only check their database in the US for past crimes. So, conceivably a Permanent Resident can have no crimes, and still can go to a 1 year terrorist camp in Pakistan, and come back and perpetrate a crime. But so can a US Citizen.
Conversely a person wishing to flee the United States for a heinous crime will not apply for the reentry permit anyways.
So why make these permanent residents pay $80/- to get wait for months to get fingerprinted. What purpose does it serve?
Usually individuals leave because their job or family ties compel them. With multinational industries spread out among several countries, there is very often the need to quickly dispatch personnel from the US Companies to their subsidiaries abroad. Or sometimes, the Permanent Resident's relative back home may be sick wand have to one to take care of. Or they might want a degree from Oxford, and get the admission notice less than a month before class starts. They have to wait.
One has to wonder why this fingerprinting is necessary. OK, we all know the Government is justfully very concerned about National Security. (And that the GOP feeds off of this National Fear). But if a Permanent Resident commits a crime, there is already a procedure for Deportation. The fingerprints of the permanent resident has already been taken and should be stored in some Government computers somewhere. And citizens can go anywhere without any restrictions.
Also the Government can only check their database in the US for past crimes. So, conceivably a Permanent Resident can have no crimes, and still can go to a 1 year terrorist camp in Pakistan, and come back and perpetrate a crime. But so can a US Citizen.
Conversely a person wishing to flee the United States for a heinous crime will not apply for the reentry permit anyways.
So why make these permanent residents pay $80/- to get wait for months to get fingerprinted. What purpose does it serve?
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
TN to Green card
TN visa is given to Canadian and Mexican Nationals under the NAFTA treaty. These individuals qualify for and work in jobs specified under a specific Schedule enumerated in the NAFTA Treaty with Canada and Mexico.
Unlike H and L visas, TN visa holders could not apply for Permanent Residency, (green card) because this visa was temporary and did not allow for dual intent (ie intent to hold both temporary and permanent visas) in the US. However, unlike visitors visa, the TN visa holder did not have to maintain foreign residency abroad. Also, a June 1996 letter by Yvonne LaFleur, Chief of Business and Trade branch at INS, said that the TN worker could do consular processing of their permanent visas. Although this letter is not binding, it has been followed by most Consular Posts.
Logistically, this was not possible earlier, because TNs were given for 1 year and most green cards took more than 1 year. So the TN visas would not be extended after that year if one applied for the Permanent Residency. However now TN visas are being given for 3 years. So many TN nationals can now probably apply for their Permanent Residency and able to do consular processing of their green card during this time. With only 65,000 H-1B visas available, it worth a shot for many desperate employers and employees.
Monday, June 23, 2008
J-1 Student Internship
The USCIS released final regulations regarding J-1 Student Intern visa. This new visa will allow a student, enrolled in post secondary education, to intern with private or Government sector employers for training. This will provide much needed work experience to foreign students. Previously the students could only work on CPT or OPT, and the length of time was highly restrictive. In contract, USC students could enter into any number of internships. Thus US students could have a competitive advantage in graduate studies or the job market.
It is nice to note that ALL students (and not just STEM students) can avail of this situation. The OPT extension,l by contract is ONLY available to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) students. I still fail to realize how technology cannot include Engineering. Also I am appalled by the cold world era emphasis on Science in this day and age. If one looks at great works of literature, movie, music, it is primarily produced by hyphenated Americans, (like Chinese-American, Indian-Americans, etc.) Scan the Pulitzer or Oscar list. Same is true of any Management Degree holders, whose international experience is greatly necessary for global business. Yet the government only recognizes the need for STEM students. This is so reminiscent of the Cold War. But then, so is the War on Terror.
It is nice to note that ALL students (and not just STEM students) can avail of this situation. The OPT extension,l by contract is ONLY available to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) students. I still fail to realize how technology cannot include Engineering. Also I am appalled by the cold world era emphasis on Science in this day and age. If one looks at great works of literature, movie, music, it is primarily produced by hyphenated Americans, (like Chinese-American, Indian-Americans, etc.) Scan the Pulitzer or Oscar list. Same is true of any Management Degree holders, whose international experience is greatly necessary for global business. Yet the government only recognizes the need for STEM students. This is so reminiscent of the Cold War. But then, so is the War on Terror.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
VWP Nations Require to sign in before Departure
US has reciprocity with many nations, (Like Europe, Japan and Singapore), whose citizens can travel to the US without a visa. These people visit the US under the Visa Waiver Program. United States Citizens also can travel to these countries without a visa. The idea is that citizens of these countries will not remain illegally in the US, and it will facilitate travel, especially business travel.
From August 8, due to security reasons, US will be requiring all travelers under VWP to register online before leaving for the US. Once anyone registers and gets a travel authorization, it will be valid for 2 years. The questions will be the same required for an I-94 in the plane.
Europe is already contemplating similar actions for US travelers.
Hopefully this program will work and not result in fewer business and pleasure travelers to the US, resulting in fewer amount of money generated in the US.
From August 8, due to security reasons, US will be requiring all travelers under VWP to register online before leaving for the US. Once anyone registers and gets a travel authorization, it will be valid for 2 years. The questions will be the same required for an I-94 in the plane.
Europe is already contemplating similar actions for US travelers.
Hopefully this program will work and not result in fewer business and pleasure travelers to the US, resulting in fewer amount of money generated in the US.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
The Politics of Immigration
The issue of Immigration has broad bi partisan support. But at loggerheads are two issues, business immigration and granting status to illegal immigrants. Business immigration laws restrict the number of immigrants that can come in for instance on the H-1B visa (professional visa) and employment based green cards. Tech companies like google and Microsoft are severely affected. This year google received more than 1 million application for jobs . They filed only 300 H-1B visas. 90 of those visas did not get accepted. Google has the reputation of being one of the best employers and hire the very best. In fact one of google founders, Sergey Brin, is an immigrant.
Responding to complaints by Google and Microsoft, both the house and senate has bills to increase the H-1B quotas and exclude people in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) from the quota.
But such bills are often not passed, and tend to be rejected by those law makers who believe that there is more pressing need to legalize illegal immigrants rather than do something about business immigration. Comprehensive immigration is great, but almost impossible to pass in this divided congress. Yet the champions of legalizing illegal immigrants often do not want to pass immigration reform to grant businesses more professional immigrants. Ultimately, what those Senators and Congressmen and women fail to see is that Immigration benefits us, no matter what type it is. Restricting professional immigrants just results in those professional jobs being outsources to other countries, and the US loosing its foothold in the world.
Responding to complaints by Google and Microsoft, both the house and senate has bills to increase the H-1B quotas and exclude people in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) from the quota.
But such bills are often not passed, and tend to be rejected by those law makers who believe that there is more pressing need to legalize illegal immigrants rather than do something about business immigration. Comprehensive immigration is great, but almost impossible to pass in this divided congress. Yet the champions of legalizing illegal immigrants often do not want to pass immigration reform to grant businesses more professional immigrants. Ultimately, what those Senators and Congressmen and women fail to see is that Immigration benefits us, no matter what type it is. Restricting professional immigrants just results in those professional jobs being outsources to other countries, and the US loosing its foothold in the world.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
DOL audits all PERMS of Mega Immigration Law Firm
The Department of Labor announced yesterday that it will audit every PERM filing by Fragomen, which is the biggest immigration law firm in the US. The DOL charged that some of their lawyers engaged in questionable and illegal practices while advising employers. What it means for individual clients is that their cases will be delayed, in many cases denied, and in still many cases the employer has to do supervised recruitment all over again. All because they chose the wrong law firm.
The biggest law firms almost always charge more and tout their experience. Sometimes they even say that the CIS knows their firm personally and give them better service. This is all totally false. The only thing that big law firms care about is their profit margin. The clients pay for their shiny offices and become just a number in the firm. They are not individual cases, just a number. The paralegal does all the work and many times, the attorney does not even have the time to review the case over. Many times, the paralegal does not even possess the paralegal degree and just knows how to type.
When retaining a lawyer, the client should ask the question as to who will actually work on the case, and what the education and experience of that person is. It is also helpful to ask how many clients the firm has and how many lawyers there are. Divide the number to gauge if an individual lawyer will actually look at your case.
We specialize in giving individual attention to all our clients. ALL cases are individually handled by Annie Banerjee who graduated third highest in her law school class in Houston and has over 10 years of experience. Check us out at http://www.visatous.com
The biggest law firms almost always charge more and tout their experience. Sometimes they even say that the CIS knows their firm personally and give them better service. This is all totally false. The only thing that big law firms care about is their profit margin. The clients pay for their shiny offices and become just a number in the firm. They are not individual cases, just a number. The paralegal does all the work and many times, the attorney does not even have the time to review the case over. Many times, the paralegal does not even possess the paralegal degree and just knows how to type.
When retaining a lawyer, the client should ask the question as to who will actually work on the case, and what the education and experience of that person is. It is also helpful to ask how many clients the firm has and how many lawyers there are. Divide the number to gauge if an individual lawyer will actually look at your case.
We specialize in giving individual attention to all our clients. ALL cases are individually handled by Annie Banerjee who graduated third highest in her law school class in Houston and has over 10 years of experience. Check us out at http://www.visatous.com
Sunday, June 1, 2008
The Brighest and the Best
Anti Immigration groups like the Center for Immigration Studies charge that the foreign workers who come in to the United States are not the Brightest and the Best. Dr. Norman Matloff, a Professor of Computer Science, in UC Davis, recently wrote a paper full of fallacies, whose main theme is that Asian students are inferior than American and Western students in Math and Science.
Lets look at some facts here. The Dept of Labor has mandated that foreign workers have to be paid more than the prevailing wage. The CIS fees for Companies over 25 workers is $2340/- each H-1B employee. Add attorneys fees to that, and the figure can reach almost $5000/- per H-1B individual. Would it make market sense then, for a Company to hire a foreign worker if American workers are available? Surely Mr. Matloff does not think that American businesses, like Cisco, Google and Microsoft, who he quoted in his article are stupid in making business decisions.
What Mr. Matloff has done to prove that Asian students are lower than European students is taken averages from those countries. Yes, Europe will have a higher average any day than China or India. That is because European countries have a homogeneous and small population, with free public education. India and China have over a billion people and of course cannot afford to educate its entire population. The same is true of states in the US. The average PSAT score which is used to compute the average for National Merit Scholarship is much higher in North Dakota than it is in CA, NY or TX. ND has a much smaller and homogeneous population than the larger states. But if you look at the population of students in the ivy leagues from the bigger states, there are more students from these states than there is from North Dakota. So the brightest and the best does not necessarily coincide with the median.
If we are to look at averages, can Mr Matloff explain why Asians have, as a group scored higher in the Math portion of the SATs? Why compared to their population in the general US society, so many Asians get accepted into the ivys? Bear in mind that Asians get neither legacy nor affirmative action in terms of admission to these ivys. My daughter just graduated from Yale University with distinction in Literature, and yes, the top scoring Science and Math student at Yale in 2008 was a student from Vietnamese origin. This is not a statistics, just a fact.
There's got to be a lot of Asian students taking Computer Science at UC Davis. Do they enroll in Mr. Matloff's class. If so, I would dearly love to know how he grades these students. With his prejudicial views, I doubt that he is a fair and impartial grader.
Lets look at some facts here. The Dept of Labor has mandated that foreign workers have to be paid more than the prevailing wage. The CIS fees for Companies over 25 workers is $2340/- each H-1B employee. Add attorneys fees to that, and the figure can reach almost $5000/- per H-1B individual. Would it make market sense then, for a Company to hire a foreign worker if American workers are available? Surely Mr. Matloff does not think that American businesses, like Cisco, Google and Microsoft, who he quoted in his article are stupid in making business decisions.
What Mr. Matloff has done to prove that Asian students are lower than European students is taken averages from those countries. Yes, Europe will have a higher average any day than China or India. That is because European countries have a homogeneous and small population, with free public education. India and China have over a billion people and of course cannot afford to educate its entire population. The same is true of states in the US. The average PSAT score which is used to compute the average for National Merit Scholarship is much higher in North Dakota than it is in CA, NY or TX. ND has a much smaller and homogeneous population than the larger states. But if you look at the population of students in the ivy leagues from the bigger states, there are more students from these states than there is from North Dakota. So the brightest and the best does not necessarily coincide with the median.
If we are to look at averages, can Mr Matloff explain why Asians have, as a group scored higher in the Math portion of the SATs? Why compared to their population in the general US society, so many Asians get accepted into the ivys? Bear in mind that Asians get neither legacy nor affirmative action in terms of admission to these ivys. My daughter just graduated from Yale University with distinction in Literature, and yes, the top scoring Science and Math student at Yale in 2008 was a student from Vietnamese origin. This is not a statistics, just a fact.
There's got to be a lot of Asian students taking Computer Science at UC Davis. Do they enroll in Mr. Matloff's class. If so, I would dearly love to know how he grades these students. With his prejudicial views, I doubt that he is a fair and impartial grader.
Friday, May 30, 2008
I-140 Portability
You filed your I-485 under the July 2007 Visa Bulletin (VB No. 107). It has been more than 180 days. You cannot stand your employer, and have found a new employer who will continue the process. Can you Port your I-140 under AC21?
Below are some pointers to consider before you switch employers:
1. Is your I-140 approved?
If your I-140 is not approved yet, you need to decide if that case will be approvable. You have to decide if your first employer who sponsored you have the ability to pay, a valid job offer, etc.
If your first I-140 is approved already then porting becomes much easier
2. Is the new job same and similar?
The new ported job has to be same and similar. Both those jobs have to have the same DOT Code (for RIR and traditional cases) or SOC Code (for
- What if my first Employer withdraws the I-140?
It is not a problem if your first employer withdraws the I-140 after 180 days of the filing of the I-485.
- Can you port to a different Geographical location?
Yes, you can take a new job anywhere in the
5. Should the new employer have the ability to pay?
Although technically the only factor that counts is whether the two employments are same and similar, the question of whether the new employer has the ability to pay can be a factor in adjustment of status
- What’s the worst case scenario?
If the I-140 Portability is denied for some reason, you can always retain the Priority date of the old labor for the adjustment under 8 C.F.R 204.5(e). But you have to start with a fresh
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
E-Verify
E Verify is a computer based program designed to ensure that employers are hiring only legal workers. The Employer signs on to a Social Security Computer based program and when new employees are going to be hired, the employer inputs their name and SS # to see whether there is a "match", ie they are indeed legal to work in the US.
This Computer based wondercomputer takes 2 days to do the match. (We have only 300 million people in the US, how large is this database?) But then again, like the Govt Employees, the Govt computers run at probably 1 megabit per second.
The mismatch rate (according to a Journal written to "debunk the myths of E Verify" has a .5% mismatch rate) . Of course this rate the lowest we will ever get. For a population of 300 million, that is 1.5 million people. Many of them will not have white skin color. Does the Government have any idea how hard it is to find a job for people of certain education and skin color? Imagine then, if after finding a job, a legal person is kicked out!
And what just ices this cake is that no one can sue the Government for such mistakes.
This Computer based wondercomputer takes 2 days to do the match. (We have only 300 million people in the US, how large is this database?) But then again, like the Govt Employees, the Govt computers run at probably 1 megabit per second.
The mismatch rate (according to a Journal written to "debunk the myths of E Verify" has a .5% mismatch rate) . Of course this rate the lowest we will ever get. For a population of 300 million, that is 1.5 million people. Many of them will not have white skin color. Does the Government have any idea how hard it is to find a job for people of certain education and skin color? Imagine then, if after finding a job, a legal person is kicked out!
And what just ices this cake is that no one can sue the Government for such mistakes.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
The Immigrant Experience
All of us are born into a country which we did not choose. We are brought up in that country. However, when we choose to immigrate into another country, we do so out of our conscious desire. It may be due to economic stability, to be able to feed our families, provide a better life for our family, or to get the fundamental freedom that is not available in our birth country. But we have to love the country of our choosing. If we did not do so, we would not have immigrated.
Yet the perception for a lot of people is that immigrants come to the US, take our social services and give nothing in return. The first white settlers came for the very same reasons, ousted the Native Americans from their land and claimed it as their own. The undocumented aliens in this country are not doing that. They work, yes without authority, but nevertheless provide an important serivice.
Despite successive generations of immigrants/settlers, America has prospered. However, if we closed off our borders in this age of globalization, we would become insular and ultimately loose our prominent place in the world.
Yet the perception for a lot of people is that immigrants come to the US, take our social services and give nothing in return. The first white settlers came for the very same reasons, ousted the Native Americans from their land and claimed it as their own. The undocumented aliens in this country are not doing that. They work, yes without authority, but nevertheless provide an important serivice.
Despite successive generations of immigrants/settlers, America has prospered. However, if we closed off our borders in this age of globalization, we would become insular and ultimately loose our prominent place in the world.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Mississippi, the Deep South and Illegal Aliens
In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina struck Mississippi, the Gulf Coast was devastated. The State had to rebuilt. Illegal Immigrants came in droves, found construction jobs and worked to rebuild the State. Mississippi slowly started regaining its former self back on the backs of this cheap labor. Fast forward to 2008. Their state was rebuilt. The deep south began to start disliking these "illegal alien." Their only crime..... they already rebuild the State, there was not much left to be built. So the State passed one of the strictest laws against illegal aliens. All big businesses must submit to e verification Social Security Checks. Strict penalties are levied on businesses that employ people not authorized to work in the US.
The illegal immigrants are leaving. We can only hope that no other hurricanes/natural disasters strikes Mississippi again.
The illegal immigrants are leaving. We can only hope that no other hurricanes/natural disasters strikes Mississippi again.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Treaty Visas
Treaty Visas
The US Government signs treaties with various countries for nationals of those countries to come over temporarily.
These are strictly non immigrant visas and do not lead to Permanent Residency.
They can be filed either with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service in the
Note:
E-1 (Treaty Trader)
REQUIREMENTS:
- The applicant must be a National of the Treaty Country
- The Company in the
- Must be engaged in TRADE ie, international exchange of goods, services, and technology
- The Trade must be SUBSTANTIAL
- The Trade must be principally between the
- The Applicant must be employed managerial position or possess essential skills-similar to L-1 Requirements
E-2 (Treaty Investor)
REQUIREMENTS
1. The applicant must be a National of the Treaty Country
2. The Company in the
3. The Investment must be substantial---- We will need to trace the source of that investment from the foreign country
4. The Investment cannot be marginal- (a) must generate a net profit and (b) Create US Jobs
5. The investor must have control of the funds, and the investment must be at risk in the commercial sense. Loans secured with the assets of the investment enterprise are not allowed
6. Investor must be in a supervisory/managerial position
Caveats
- Both these visas continue until such time as the business continues
- The dependent wife and children can live in the
- Please see list of necessary documents at the end of this page
E-3- for Australians
Given to 10, 500 Australian Nationals. Very similar to H-1B visa, except that these are Temporary and cannot convert to the Green Card
The Procedure and Requirements are the same as the H-1B, ie Certified LCA, Educational Requirement, Professional Job, etc. Please read those requirements in the H-1B section of this web page.
VWP
Citizens of certain nations (Mostly European nations,
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
PERM Centralization
From June 01, 2008, all PERM Applications will be filed in Atlanta. Right now the PERMS from the Western part of the country was filed in Chicago, while the Eastern half had Atlanta.
The Centralization will ensure the same standard for all PERMS in the US. Also, hopefully the Perms can be adjudicated expeditiously. Time was when labor certificate was a totally regionally affair, with different regions having different rules. But we are fast becoming one nation, under technology. So this move to one center will hopefully be better and eliminate regional differences.
The Centralization will ensure the same standard for all PERMS in the US. Also, hopefully the Perms can be adjudicated expeditiously. Time was when labor certificate was a totally regionally affair, with different regions having different rules. But we are fast becoming one nation, under technology. So this move to one center will hopefully be better and eliminate regional differences.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
The Perm Game
The Perm process is like a game. The basic proof is that there are no qualified Americans to do the job, and hence we must give permanent residency to the alien so that she can complete the job. To do this, the employer has to "test the market" by advertising and trying to recruit Americans, and if that fails then it proves that there are no qualified applicants in that area to do the job. But this recruitment process is very unlike what a real life employer would do, despite what the DOL (that is the Department of Labor, not the Dummies on Life) would say.
First there are strict requirements of who can do the job. Under the DOL guidelines Bill Gates, Steve Jobs or Michael Dell would not be able to perform a "professional" software job, because they do not possess a degree.
There are series of hoops and you negotiate through, the job title, the job description, the requirements (the all important EB-2 or 3) the OES (Obviously Enormously Stupid Department which takes every job and categorizes them arbitrarily into 4 job zones) and the prevailing wage category. None of this is natural, none of it real world. Its just your ability to play the game right. Its a great game for us, English majors who could never shoot an actual hoop.
Then you advertise in the Sunday Newspaper, who reads those anymore? Maybe the dinosaurs at the DOL still do, but when was the last time a computer professional actually looked at a newspaper?
Oh yes, and the all important SWA ads sites, the Department of Labor's job search web site. I wonder what the google ranking for those web sites are for specific search terms. I typed in "tech jobs in Texas" and did not see workintexas web site in the first page. Did anyone ever get an actual job from that web site?
Of course if you play this game right, and jump through all the hoops, you can file your case. But then comes the certifying officer. I wonder under the trickle down brain theory, what the IQs are for federal officers. The chief executive was rejected by St John's School, Houston, got into Yale through legacy, and probably has an IQ of about 100. So what does my certifying Officer have?
First there are strict requirements of who can do the job. Under the DOL guidelines Bill Gates, Steve Jobs or Michael Dell would not be able to perform a "professional" software job, because they do not possess a degree.
There are series of hoops and you negotiate through, the job title, the job description, the requirements (the all important EB-2 or 3) the OES (Obviously Enormously Stupid Department which takes every job and categorizes them arbitrarily into 4 job zones) and the prevailing wage category. None of this is natural, none of it real world. Its just your ability to play the game right. Its a great game for us, English majors who could never shoot an actual hoop.
Then you advertise in the Sunday Newspaper, who reads those anymore? Maybe the dinosaurs at the DOL still do, but when was the last time a computer professional actually looked at a newspaper?
Oh yes, and the all important SWA ads sites, the Department of Labor's job search web site. I wonder what the google ranking for those web sites are for specific search terms. I typed in "tech jobs in Texas" and did not see workintexas web site in the first page. Did anyone ever get an actual job from that web site?
Of course if you play this game right, and jump through all the hoops, you can file your case. But then comes the certifying officer. I wonder under the trickle down brain theory, what the IQs are for federal officers. The chief executive was rejected by St John's School, Houston, got into Yale through legacy, and probably has an IQ of about 100. So what does my certifying Officer have?
Monday, April 28, 2008
How to choose a lawyer
I have been practicing Immigration Law in Houston for the last 11 years, having graduated third highest from South Texas College of Law. I have seen many clients been swindled, abandoned, and left out of status for inadequate representation. So here are my tips on HOW TO CHOOSE A LAWYER. These are general tips for choosing any lawyer in general, and immigration lawyer in particular. I am assuming that readers of this blog will NOT go to a notario, or a lawyer not qualified to practice law.
HOW BRAINY IS YOUR LAWYER-----Ultimately a Lawyer is selling his/her brain power to you. The lawyer has to assess your situation and give you a creative solution. Thus his/her law school standing, how well she did in her class matters. Many lawyers practicing Immigration Law are not graduates of American Law Schools. The degree that you should be looking for is the JD degree. These foreign lawyers come over here, and do an LLM in Law. No American student does an LLM. You do not need to sit the competitive LSAT exam to get into an LLM program. Any law school, including Harvard, will take in ANYONE able to apply and afford tuition to their LLM programs, because law schools do not fill up their LLM classes. Foriegn lawyers often come from countries like India, where you do not need a brain to get into law school. (The science education in India is excellent, not law) So ask your lawyer if she/he has a JD, (and not an LLM) if so from where, and what his/her class standing was. Choose based on your lawyer's brains, not his/her ability to be nice to you.
I am sure none of those foreign lawyers could get into any law school in the US in a JD program. Law unlike medicine is NOT universal. It is specific to a country, a region. Foreign lawyers often do not have a clear picture of our body of law, our principles and constitution.
EXPERIENCE-Your Lawyer should have substantial experience (at least 5 years) in doing your type of cases. For instance if you have a family immigration case, going to a lawyer who only does business immigration law or assylum, will not help you. If you have a knee problem you go to an orthopedic specialist, not a dermatologist. So ask your Lawyer how long she has experience and in what type of cases. Do your due diligence and google search and learn what you can before engaging them.
BIG FIRMS WHERE THEY WONT CARE ABOUT YOU: So you walk into this shiny office of a big law firm, to be interviewed by a partner. He promises you that they know the "immigration Officers and have all positive results." You pay big bucks as retainer. That's the last time you ever talk to a lawyer. Your case is being handled by a paralegal, who has no brains. You leave messeges and e mails, none of which are returned. Please bear in mind, that unlike most other countries, NO LAWYER in the US has any special relationship to the Government. The big bucks that you paid just went into the lawyers pocket and his expensive upkeep. In general, turn around time is much slower in big law firms. In Immigration Law the day you file your case is your priority date and that date MATTERS. Most big law firm will take upto a month to file your case, a valuable time loss for you. So ask your lawyer about who specifically will do your case (a lawyer or a paralegal), who will return your phone calls/e mails, and when will they actually file your case.
FEES: Last but not least is the money. I would choose the middle of the road fees. The lower end fees are generally charged by incompetent lawyers, who may take your money and may not even file your case. The higher end fees go towards a shiny office for your affluent lawyer. Generally the middle of the road fees are the best.
HOW BRAINY IS YOUR LAWYER-----Ultimately a Lawyer is selling his/her brain power to you. The lawyer has to assess your situation and give you a creative solution. Thus his/her law school standing, how well she did in her class matters. Many lawyers practicing Immigration Law are not graduates of American Law Schools. The degree that you should be looking for is the JD degree. These foreign lawyers come over here, and do an LLM in Law. No American student does an LLM. You do not need to sit the competitive LSAT exam to get into an LLM program. Any law school, including Harvard, will take in ANYONE able to apply and afford tuition to their LLM programs, because law schools do not fill up their LLM classes. Foriegn lawyers often come from countries like India, where you do not need a brain to get into law school. (The science education in India is excellent, not law) So ask your lawyer if she/he has a JD, (and not an LLM) if so from where, and what his/her class standing was. Choose based on your lawyer's brains, not his/her ability to be nice to you.
I am sure none of those foreign lawyers could get into any law school in the US in a JD program. Law unlike medicine is NOT universal. It is specific to a country, a region. Foreign lawyers often do not have a clear picture of our body of law, our principles and constitution.
EXPERIENCE-Your Lawyer should have substantial experience (at least 5 years) in doing your type of cases. For instance if you have a family immigration case, going to a lawyer who only does business immigration law or assylum, will not help you. If you have a knee problem you go to an orthopedic specialist, not a dermatologist. So ask your Lawyer how long she has experience and in what type of cases. Do your due diligence and google search and learn what you can before engaging them.
BIG FIRMS WHERE THEY WONT CARE ABOUT YOU: So you walk into this shiny office of a big law firm, to be interviewed by a partner. He promises you that they know the "immigration Officers and have all positive results." You pay big bucks as retainer. That's the last time you ever talk to a lawyer. Your case is being handled by a paralegal, who has no brains. You leave messeges and e mails, none of which are returned. Please bear in mind, that unlike most other countries, NO LAWYER in the US has any special relationship to the Government. The big bucks that you paid just went into the lawyers pocket and his expensive upkeep. In general, turn around time is much slower in big law firms. In Immigration Law the day you file your case is your priority date and that date MATTERS. Most big law firm will take upto a month to file your case, a valuable time loss for you. So ask your lawyer about who specifically will do your case (a lawyer or a paralegal), who will return your phone calls/e mails, and when will they actually file your case.
FEES: Last but not least is the money. I would choose the middle of the road fees. The lower end fees are generally charged by incompetent lawyers, who may take your money and may not even file your case. The higher end fees go towards a shiny office for your affluent lawyer. Generally the middle of the road fees are the best.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Naturalization in an Election Year
Naturalization (ie making permanent residents citizens, and thereby voters) is always a big issue with politicians in an election year. Last July USCIS received about 1.4 million applications for naturalization, because starting August 01, 2007 the fee went up from about $400/- to $695/- Obviously the processing of all these applications would take time, and Mr. Gonzales had to answer to the Congress (particularly the democrats, who somehow think that most naturalized citizens will vote for them) explaining the delay.
The CIS has provided an estimate of the time it takes for their district office to complete the process. For instance, it will take 7.2 months in Albany, NY, and 10.1 month in New York, NY. It takes anywhere between 14.5 months to 5 months. However the time listed for Houston is 14 months, but we are getting all ours (ones with no problems) in 8 months . In any case, it is well before the November general election deadline, which should make our politicians happy. If only they could use the same resources for other cases as well.
The CIS has provided an estimate of the time it takes for their district office to complete the process. For instance, it will take 7.2 months in Albany, NY, and 10.1 month in New York, NY. It takes anywhere between 14.5 months to 5 months. However the time listed for Houston is 14 months, but we are getting all ours (ones with no problems) in 8 months . In any case, it is well before the November general election deadline, which should make our politicians happy. If only they could use the same resources for other cases as well.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Visa Numbers
Every country has a set amount of immigrant visas (green cards) that they get per year. (The DHS year starts on Oct 01). Thus a visa number must be available at the time when you get your green card. Naturally countries with huge populations (like India and China for Employment based, and Mexico for Family based) use up their visa numbers quickly and thus the people born from those countries have to wait longer. The USCIS gives visa numbers based on "Priority dates." Priority dates is the on which the USCIS receipts your case, ie the I-140 for Employment based and I-130 for Family based applications. This ensures that the first come application gets served first.
Immigration Laws have also devised categories. The Employment based categories are as follows:
Employment Based (EB) 1: No labor certification required. File only I-140 and I-485
Available for
L-1A Managers
Outstanding Professor or Researcher
Extraordinary Ability Aliens
EB-2 Labor Certification required
Available for
Advanced Degree Holders (at least a Master’s Degree)
Exceptional Ability
EB-3 Labor Certification required
Members of a Profession (at least Bachelor’s Degree)
EB-4 Religious Workers
EB-5 Investor (No labor certification or I-140 petitions. Instead file I-526)
Must invest $1 million in cities Or
$500,000 in areas of “Targeted Employment” and
Employ 10 full-time U.S. workers
The Family Based numbers are as follows:
Thus the wait time depends on your priority date, Preference Category and of course your country of birth.
For Employment based visas you can use either your country of birth or your spouse's country of birth.
The visa bulletin, published by the Department of State every month gives the dates/Preference category/country. To see the visa bulletin, click here:
http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_1360.html
Immigration Laws have also devised categories. The Employment based categories are as follows:
Employment Based (EB) 1: No labor certification required. File only I-140 and I-485
Available for
L-1A Managers
Outstanding Professor or Researcher
Extraordinary Ability Aliens
EB-2 Labor Certification required
Available for
Advanced Degree Holders (at least a Master’s Degree)
Exceptional Ability
EB-3 Labor Certification required
Members of a Profession (at least Bachelor’s Degree)
EB-4 Religious Workers
EB-5 Investor (No labor certification or I-140 petitions. Instead file I-526)
Must invest $1 million in cities Or
$500,000 in areas of “Targeted Employment” and
Employ 10 full-time U.S. workers
The Family Based numbers are as follows:
NO WAIT: US Citizens’ spouse, parents and children under 21 have no wait time, and can come over or adjust status immediately
First Preference: Over 21 unmarried children of citizens
Second Preference-2A: Spouses, minor children (less than 21) of permanent residents (green card holders)
Second Preference 2B: Unmarried sons and daughters over 21 of permanent residents (green card holders)
Third Preference: Married sons and daughters of US Citizens
Thus the wait time depends on your priority date, Preference Category and of course your country of birth.
For Employment based visas you can use either your country of birth or your spouse's country of birth.
The visa bulletin, published by the Department of State every month gives the dates/Preference category/country. To see the visa bulletin, click here:
http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_1360.html
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
H-1B lottery done
The USCIS has finished conducting the H-1B lottery for both the 20,000 and the 65,000 cases.
They have also "wait listed" certain cases, ie if the any chosen case is withdrawn or denied, these wait listed cases will fill their place. These cases will be held at the CIS office for now.
The CIS will now begin fee receipting and sending out the receipt notices. The cases not chosen will be returned. Since this involves a huge volume, the CIS stated that this process can take upto June 2nd. So this process will take about 6-10 weeks.
We will inform our clients immediately upon receipt of the receipt notices or the petitions back. Keeping our fingers crossed....
They have also "wait listed" certain cases, ie if the any chosen case is withdrawn or denied, these wait listed cases will fill their place. These cases will be held at the CIS office for now.
The CIS will now begin fee receipting and sending out the receipt notices. The cases not chosen will be returned. Since this involves a huge volume, the CIS stated that this process can take upto June 2nd. So this process will take about 6-10 weeks.
We will inform our clients immediately upon receipt of the receipt notices or the petitions back. Keeping our fingers crossed....
Thursday, April 10, 2008
CAP and Name Check issues
H-1B cap
The CIS issued a preliminary report today that nearly 163000 H-1Bs have been filed for the ordinary cap, and 31200 for Master's Degree Candidates. The CIS will do the lottery of the Master's Degree Cap next week. The 11200 advanced Degree Holders not selected by that lottery will be put into the general lottery for the 65,000 people. For more on the OPT extensions, please see BLOG below
The CIS issued a preliminary report today that nearly 163000 H-1Bs have been filed for the ordinary cap, and 31200 for Master's Degree Candidates. The CIS will do the lottery of the Master's Degree Cap next week. The 11200 advanced Degree Holders not selected by that lottery will be put into the general lottery for the 65,000 people. For more on the OPT extensions, please see BLOG below
FBI-Name Checks
The CIS and FBI have reported that they have already eliminated all name checks pending for more than 4 years ago. Their goal is to eliminate:
For Name Checks pending more than 3 yrs------- May 2008
For Name Checks pending more than 2 yrs-------July 2008
For Name Checks pending more than 1 yr-------November 2008
98% of all Cases --------------------------------June 2009
The date for the name check is your receipt date for your 485 or N-400 petitions
The CIS and FBI have reported that they have already eliminated all name checks pending for more than 4 years ago. Their goal is to eliminate:
For Name Checks pending more than 3 yrs------- May 2008
For Name Checks pending more than 2 yrs-------July 2008
For Name Checks pending more than 1 yr-------November 2008
98% of all Cases --------------------------------June 2009
The date for the name check is your receipt date for your 485 or N-400 petitions
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