Green Card DV 2014 Lottery registration period to open on October 2, 2012.

DV 2014 Program: Online registration for the DV-2014 Program will begin on
Tuesday, October 2, 2012 at 12:00 noon (EDT) (GMT-4), and conclude on Saturday,
November 3, 2012 at 12:00 noon (EDT) (GMT-4).

See the Diversity Visa Program Instructions webpage for the DV 2014 Instructions
at:
http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1322.html

and

http://travel.state.gov/pdf/DV_2014_Instructions.pdf

For DV-2014, natives of the following countries are not eligible to apply
because the countries sent a total of more than
50,000 immigrants to the United States in the previous five years:

BANGLADESH, BRAZIL, CANADA, CHINA (mainland-born), COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC, ECUADOR, EL SALVADOR, HAITI, INDIA, JAMAICA, MEXICO, PAKISTAN,
PERU, PHILIPPINES, SOUTH KOREA, UNITED KINGDOM (except Northern Ireland) and its
dependent territories, and VIETNAM.

Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible.

** Changes in eligibility this year:
FOR DV-2014, NATIVES OF GUATEMALA ARE NOW ELIGIBLE FOR SELECTION.

If you require assistance with registering for DV Lottery, please email us at
Attorney@law-visa-usa.com .

Affidavit of Support, I-864, held enforceable even if an ex-wife is not looking for a job - a sponsored immigrant has no duty to mitigate.

An interesting case from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. It was held that an immigrant, who was sponsored under the federal poverty guidelines and the I-864 Affidavit of Support was submitted to the DHS/USCIS, does not have a duty to mitigate (seek employment, apply for jobs), and her american ex-husband has a duty to support her after divorce at 125% federal poverty guidelines.

Timothy Mund, an American, married Wenfang Liu, a Chinese woman 19 years his junior, in China. Two years later the couple decided
to move to the United States. For Liu to be admitted as
a permanent  resident on the basis of her marriage to
an American, her husband had to sign an “I-864 affidavit,”
agreeing to support  his  wife  at 125 percent of the
poverty level (approximately $13,500 a year).

After divorce, ex-husband refused to provide the  support  specified in the federal  affidavit,  on the ground that his ex-wife wasn’t looking for work.  So she filed the present suit, in federal district court  in Wisconsin, seeking that  support  and contending that failure to mitigate damages is not a defense to the support obligation created by the affidavit. ... The district judge held that Liu was not  entitled to support pursuant to the I-864 affidavit during the 160-day period after she had filed her motion for summary judgment, because she hadn’t actively sought work during that period. The finding that she hadn’t sought work is well supported; the only substantial issue presented by  her appeal, and the only one we discuss, is whether in a suit to enforce the obligation of support created by the federal affidavit the plaintiff has a legal duty to mitigate damages. ... In sum, we can’t see much benefit to imposing a duty to mitigate on a sponsored immigrant. ... The judgment of the district court is reversed so far as concerns the court’s imposition of a duty of mitigation, and otherwise is affirmed.

Read case decision at http://www.ca7.uscourts.gov/tmp/K315C23H.pdf

O-1 Extraordinary Abilities Visa as an option when H-1B visas are no longer available.

Interesting discussion about O-1 visa. You might be eligible for O-1 extraordinary abilities visa when you don't expect it and when H-1B quota has been filled. You don't necessarily need to be a Nobel Prize winner to obtain an O-1 visa.

http://news.yahoo.com/u-genius-visa-attracts-entrepreneurs-playmates-051239990--sector.html

To schedule a consultation with an attorney to see if you can qualify, please EMAIL us at Attorney@law-visa-usa.com and we will forward you a confidential immigration questionnaire.

Waiver I-601 Centralized Filing for Applicants Abroad Effective Date: June 4, 2012.

Form I-601 Centralized Filing.

Beginning June 4, 2012, individuals abroad who have applied for certain visas and have been found ineligible by a U.S. Consular Officer, will be able to mail requests to waive certain grounds of inadmissibility directly to a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Lockbox facility.

This change affects those individuals who are abroad, and have been found inadmissible for an immigrant visa or a nonimmigrant K or V visa, must send their waiver applications.

The change affects filings for:

(1) Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility
(2) Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission (3) into the United States After Deportation or Removal
Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion, (if filed after a denial of a Form I-601 or Form I-212).

Applicants who mail their waiver request forms should use the address provided in the revised form instructions on the USCIS website. Applicants who wish to receive an email or text message when USCIS has received their waiver request may attach Form G-1145, E-Notification of Application/Petition Acceptance, to their application.

During a limited six-month transition period, immigrant visa waiver applicants in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, will have the option to either mail their waiver applications to the USCIS Lockbox in the United States or file in-person at the USCIS office in Ciudad Juarez.

** This change is separate and distinct from the provisional waiver proposal published in the Federal Register on March 30, 2012.**

Read the News Update at http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=8e5b8976a0a77310VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=68439c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD .

Americans Overseas Domestic Violence Hotline Web 866uswomen.org

In 2001, Paula Lucas started Americans Overseas Domestic Violence Crisis Center
with help from a few small contributions from donors. In 2010, the Department of
Justice stepped up with substantial funding. With a toll-free hotline in 175
countries, now supports hundreds of American families in more than 67 countries
with counseling, travel assistance, legal services, and relocation costs. Today,
at least one family returns safely to the United States each month with Lucas's
help.

"We need to make women aware of the obstacles if they find themselves in an
abusive situation," says Lucas, now remarried. "I was one of the lucky ones."
http://www.rd.com/true-stories/inspiring/paula-lucas-international-angel/

To read more about AODVCC, visit www.866uswomen.org


Web: www.866uswomen.org
Email: crisis @ 866uswomen.org
To contact the toll-free crisis line from overseas, first dial your AT&T
USADirect access number and at the prompt, enter our phone number: 866-USWOMEN
(879-6636).
[To find your AT&T USADirect access number, please click here -
http://www.att.com/esupport/traveler.jsp?group=features ]