Last week, USCIS amended its Policy Manual to incorporate some very importance guidance on the exercise of discretion. While discretion has always implicitly factored into an officer's adjudication, the new amendments, announced by way of a Policy Alert, formalize and...
Experience, Accessibility And Excellence For Over 25 Years
Year: 2020
Not Carrying Your Green Card Is A Criminal Offense
A very disturbing article came out last Thursday that perhaps accounts for the interminable delay some individuals are experiencing in waiting for their green cards. According to the article which appeared in The Washington Post, USCIS has apparently cut back on the...
2020 DACA Program Update | Supreme Court Issues Ruling
On June 18, 2020, the Supreme Court issued its much-anticipated decision on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Fortunately, the ruling does not terminate DACA, as many had feared it would. While not delving into the politics behind the policy, the High...
President Trump New Order Restricts H-1 Visas and Family Visas Through December
On June 22, 2020, President Trump issued another important Presidential Proclamation on immigration. This iteration is particularly pernicious, as it affects not only family-related visas but now popular business visas. Under the order, which became effective June 24,...
USCIS Resumes Green Card Applications
Approximately two weeks ago, an article in Roll Call reported that USCIS had stopped processing green card applications. This domestic policy was putatively to align with the President's proclamation effectively barring immigrant visas from abroad, although no such...
Adjustment of Status Cases Being Denied Without RFE
According to the American Immigration Lawyers Association, a spate of anecdotal reports have come out that the National Benefits Center (or NBC) has been summarily denying adjustment of status cases without affording applicants any opportunity to rectify the alleged...
USCIS Has Resumed In-Person Appointments
In some good news, USCIS began resuming in-person operations last week. Individuals may soon begin receiving appointments for interviews and naturalization oath ceremonies. That being said, this is still an incremental roll-out, with limited face-to-face services. As...
Latest Presidential Proclamation on Visas Bars Chinese Foreign Students
Last Friday, President Trump issued another proclamation suspending entry of certain foreign nationals. This latest salvo is directed, in particular, at certain Chinese nationals attempting to enter the US on F-1 student visas or J-1 visas. At first blush, the order...
Is It Better To Apply For A Green Card Inside The US Or Through The Consulate?
When applying for permanent residence, it is critical to understand and distinguish between the two different agencies charged with processing green card applications. In general, after a petition is approved-whether though family or employment-an applicant must...
Will There Be Another Proclamation For Non-Immigrants?
This past April, President Trump issued his immigration proclamation suspending the entry of Immigrants into the US for sixty days. We covered the salient points in earlier posts. However, unless you have read the order in its entirety, you may not realize that the...