Immigration Reform bill (CIR) to be introduced in Congress in April 2013..

It was announced that a Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) bill will be introduced in April when Congress reconvenes.  In addition to establishing a “pathway to citizenship” for undocumented persons present in the United States, the bill is intended to reform our legal immigration system.

This is a brief outline:

1) Undocumented persons will need to learn English and pay fines and back taxes in order to legalize their status.  They may need to wait up to ten years, or until those waiting in line for green cards become permanent residents.  In the meantime, they can qualify for work permits, and with these permits, apply for social security cards and drivers licenses.

2) It's possible that some of the family-based preference categories will be eliminated, particularly the F3 category for married sons and daughters and the F4 category for brothers and sisters.  On a more positive note, spouses and children of permanent residents may be deemed “immediate relatives”.

3) The general cap on H-1B visas may be doubled from 65,000 to 130,000 per year with increased fees for outsourcing firms.  H-4 spouses, under certain circumstances, may be eligible for employment authorization documents.

4) There is expected an increase in the employment-based preference categories (EB categories).  For example, persons with STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) graduate degrees from universities in the U.S. may be able to qualify for green cards in unlimited numbers.  This may also be true for persons of extraordinary ability and for outstanding professors and researchers.

The bill will be introduced in the Senate in April 2013.

Note: This information is provided for legal information purposes only and should not be considered a legal advice; it doesn't create an attorney-client relationship. In some jurisdictions it might be considered an attorney advertising. For more information or to schedule a consultation please visit http://www.law-visa-usa.com/contact_us.html or email at Attorney @law-visa-usa.com.        

H-1B visas lottery for annual cap for FY 2014 & Premium Processing available after April 15, 2013.

USCIS anticipates that it may receive more work visa petitions than the annual H-1B cap or quota for FY 2014 during the first five days (!): April 1 to April 5, 2013.  USCIS will use a LOTTERY system & reject petitions that are not selected. Premium Processing will be available only after April 15, 2013.

Read at http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=f537eff29cb6d310VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=68439c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

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.