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

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

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

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.

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

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."

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.