Texas Driver's License will be issued to DACA recipients

According to a  Department of Public Safety memo to its officers, the Texas DPS Public Relations Office says that the Deferred Action candidates will get the Texas Driver's License. Simply getting the I-821D and the work permit is not enough though. One will have to go through the whole process of getting a new license.  After getting the work permit, one has to get the Social Security number before applying for the Driver's license. 

"All first time applicants for a Texas driver license must:

1. Apply in person at a Texas driver license office.
2. Present documents that verify your identity.
3. Present documents that verify you are a U.S. citizen or have lawful presence. All information on each document must match. Additional documentation may be required to verify conflicting information, incomplete names, and date of birth.
4. Present proof of Social Security Number. If you do not have a Social Security Number, you must complete a Social Security Affidavit form available at the driver license office.
5. Present proof of your Texas residency.
6. Present proof of Texas vehicle registration and liability insurance on all vehicles you own.
7. Complete the application for driver license or identification card (PDF). You may type your information on the form, print it, and bring it with you to the office. If you don’t have a printer, the form is also available at the office.
8. Consent to be photographed, fingerprinted, and provide your signature at the time of application.
9. Pass the written, driving, and vision examinations. (Read more about foreign language examinations.)
10. Pay the required fee with a credit card, cash, money order, or a non-temporary check.
11. Provide a vehicle for the driving exam and present current liability insurance, Texas vehicle registration, and inspection for the vehicle."

The license will be horizontal, and look like a temporary license.  It will be issued for 2 years, or the validity of the work permit. 

Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, or Houston Immigration Attorney Annie Banerjee, for more information.

Dreamers' Hardships

Its hell to be poor.  Its even more hell to be poor and without papers.  As I am seeing the clients for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, (DACA) I am shocked to see how the police have treated them in Harris and Fort Bend Counties of Texas. These individuals are taken to jail at the drop of a hat.  Very often they don't have money to fight these charges.

One of my clients went to a local Jack in the Box to get breakfast for his family in a bright sunny Texas morning. When coming back,  in his neighborhood, a cop car followed him. He had his lights on, but my client did not see him, because it was a bright morning.  There was no  probable cause for following him.  My client pulled into his own home, 9 doors down from where he was followed by the police. The police handcuffed him, and took him to jail for evading arrest. There were no driving violations, why was the cop even following him? My client  got out the next day on bail. They found a lawyer and after spending $4000/-, their case was dismissed by the judge.

In several cases, the dreamers were jailed simply for speeding 10 miles over the speed limit.  A rich kid would never be booked for this.

These things are happening in Texas counties, I shudder to think what is happening in Maricopa County in Arizona. Even now Arizona and Nebraska (and maybe even Texas) are going to deny these dreamers the driver's license, even though the federal government is giving them work permits.  They will have to drive illegally and without insurance to get to work.

Governments are supposed to look after the welfare of their residents. But these Republican State Governors think its better to fight the Obama regime than to look after their citizen' welfare.

Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, or Houston Immigration Attorney Annie Banerjee, for more information

Immigration and Republicans

The republican campaign have on the whole catered to their socially conservative base and been either silent or hostile on the issue of immigration.  But today, two Republican proponents of Immigration, NYC mayor, Bloomberg, and Rupert Murdoch blasted Mitt Romney for the Republican stance on Immigration. In a panel discussion, Mr. Murdoch said that there is a huge shortage of  Technology and Science graduates and that he is amazed that we dont grant automatic visas to Master's Degree holders  instead of  making them go through the "restrictive H-1B visa process".

The Republicans have been friendly to business immigration.  However, Romney and Ryan dont seem to care about Immigration.  The Campaign's attitude is that Immigration is a Hispanic issue and they have given up on those votes.  The Deferred Action  of  Childhood Arrivals (DACA) has been wrongly criticized by the Republican party as back door amnesty.  All these dreamers are getting is a work permit, and they are young, educated, came  into this country through no fault of their own and have no criminal records.  We educated these people in our public schools, and yet we don't give them the right to drive or work. They live and fall sick, and we pay for their health care. Yet they are denied the basic right of survival. Why not give them the right to work and earn their own living?

20 years from now, the population of the United States will not be a majority of religious, conservative, anti gay, anti women's rights, gun toting, country music loving individuals. And the rest of the population will not forgive this Republican party. Unless of course the Republican party  does another 360 degrees turn and become the party of Abe Lincoln again.

Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, or Houston Immigration Attorney Annie Banerjee, for more information

The PERM form 9089 should completely match all advertisements

The DOL has complex rationale, where the filing of a PERM form, 9089 becomes a mechanical process, whereby one should suspend their thought process. In a recent case, Prosoft Associates Inc,  The employer put down "drug testing and background check in the job order for the State Workforce Agency, but forgot to add that to the 9089.  The employer later sought to amend it, but  the Board of Alien Labor certification (BALCA) cannot look at new evidence.  Neither does the Certifying Officer give any leeway to an employer to change anything. BALCA held that the requirement of drug testing and background check, not otherwise mentioned in 9089, would "deter otherwise well qualified individuals from applying."  Everyone with common sense realizes that the employer simply forgot to add this requirement in the 9089, and that such requirements are routine part of most employers.  But then, the Dept of Labor lacks that sense.  And of course people with common sense don't visit the DOL's website to look for jobs either. 

The simple thing to do is to craft a final job description, and then copy and paste it in the Prevailing Wage Request, every advertisement, and in the 9089. That way, employers wont make mistakes. Because whatever the employer does on the 9089 form is chiseled in stone like the ten commandments, never to be corrected. 

Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, or Houston Immigration Attorney Annie Banerjee, for more information.

American Dreamers

Who Can File?

1. Did you come to the US before your 15^th birthday?
2. Did you live in the US continuously (ie did not leave US) since August 15, 2007?
3. Are you currently under the age of 31?
4. Are you currently in school, have a high school diploma, A GED certificate, or honorably discharged by the military?
5. Do you have any criminal record—ie Felony or a significant Misdemeanor?
6. Were you present in the US on June 15, 2012?
7. Were you out of status on or before June 30, 2012?

When can you apply?

The Citizenship and Immigration Service has said they will release information on August 15, and you can apply from that day

What documents do you need?

1. Proof of present enrollment in school, or Diploma or certificate or military
2. Proof of being in the United States before 16^th birthday----- proof of school records from 9^th or 10^th grade or below.
3. Birth certificate—If in other language, translated in English
4. Proof of current residence (in June) in the United States----like bills, pay checks, school records, etc
5. Citizenship and Immigration Service fees of $380/-
6. 2 passport size photos
7. If minor criminal record, proof of it.

What will You get?

You will not get the Green Card (Permanent Resident Card).  But you will get the WORK PERMIT, can work legally, and won’t get deported

What is the procedure?

You will file on or after August 15^th.

You will have to go in for fingerprints

You can check your status on line

Then you will have the Work Permit mailed to you by Citizenship and Immigration Service.

Contact Houston Immigration Lawyer, or Houston Immigration Attorney Annie Banerjee, for more information