mrdelhiite
07-16 08:31 AM
They are entitled fro thier opinior and so are we as immigrants.
We are doing a great job so far, but have to do better.
Long live IV Core and its members!
I agree :)
-M
We are doing a great job so far, but have to do better.
Long live IV Core and its members!
I agree :)
-M
wallpaper mw m3 coupe 2009. 2009 BMW M3
globaldesi
05-14 10:25 AM
My HR notified me yesterday that they have received the receipt for my H1B. Thank God! Good luck to everyone awaiting a response.
Quota - General
Premium Processing - No
Notification Date - 04/28/08
Receipt Number - Yes
Notified via - email from HR
Employer - Company
Multiple Petitions - No
Quota - General
Premium Processing - No
Notification Date - 04/28/08
Receipt Number - Yes
Notified via - email from HR
Employer - Company
Multiple Petitions - No
raysaikat
09-13 03:56 PM
Hello,
I have a question about obtaining and O-1 visa (or possibly EB-1 Green Card). I did hire an attorney , but would like another look at the situation.
I am a musician, about 2 months after the end of OPT, presently in USA, with a PhD and many awards so I should qualify for O-1.
Unless you have won a grammy or a similar award, you do not necessarily qualify. Here are the requirement from USCIS:
1. Nomination for and/or recipient of significant national or international awards or prizes in his/her field (e.g. Academy, Emmy, Grammy, or Director’s Guild Award)
OR
• At least three of the following apply to him/her:
o Performed a lead, starring or critical role for organizations and establishments of distinguished reputation.
o A record of major commercial or critically acclaimed success.
o Received significant recognition for achievements from organizations, critics, government agencies, or other recognized experts in the alien’s field.
o Commands/ed high salary or other remuneration for services as compared to others in the alien’s field.
o Other comparable evidence
Aliens in the Motion Picture or TV Industry
The type of evidence that is required to establish “extraordinary achievement” in the motion picture or TV industry is in some ways similar to the type of evidence submitted to show “extraordinary ability” in the arts. The standard that must be met, however, is higher. To establish “extraordinary ability in the arts” it is enough to show a high level of achievement. For “extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or TV industry” a very high level of accomplishment is required.
When you file your petition, you must try to provide evidence of as many categories as possible. Usually the point is that what you have achieved is not *usual*. E.g., *winning* an assistantship in your graduate school does not count.
As advised, I needed an employer to sponsor the visa. My attorney suggested that Part-time is not recommendable at all. I researched and could not find if the position need to be necessarily Full-time? I have only a part time job currently and many freelancing opportunities.
Also, since the nature of my profession is freelancing (meaning I need to perform, teach...on many different places), can I be self-employed for O-1?
O-1 is the employer's petition, not yours. So you do need to have an employer. However, if you can prove that your field is traditionally self-employed, then you can have a US agent. I do not know what is a US agent; ask your lawyer.
We already filed the petition for O-1 (with the part-time employer as a sponsor) and the current status is: Additional Information/Proof Needed. We still don't have the letter stating what is needed, but I worry it's not a good sign. What do you think?
And lastly, IF it happens that O-1 is not approved, can I still apply for EB-1 Green Card?
Thank you for your answers!
EB-1 petition (assuming it is the EB-1A) standards are as follows. They are very similar to O-1 and stricter, however, legally EB1-A requirements are independent of O-1 requirement (i.e., you cannot argue that if your O-1 is approved, then EB1-A must also be approved with the same set of evidences):
Aliens with extraordinary ability are those with "extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation." You must be one of "that small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor," to be granted this classification. For example, if you receive a major internationally recognized award, such as a Nobel Prize, you will qualify for an EB-1 classification. Other awards may also qualify if you can document that the award is in the same class as a Nobel Prize. Since few workers receive this type of award, alternative evidence of EB-1 classification based on at least three of the types of evidence outlined below, is permitted. The worker may submit "other comparable evidence" if the following criteria do not apply:
Receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence;
Membership in associations in the field which demand outstanding achievement of their members; [It is not sufficient to be a member of an organization where you are member just by the virtue of your profession, or just because you cared to apply]
Published material about the alien in professional or major trade publications or other major media;
Evidence that the alien has judged the work of others, either individually or on a panel; [Grading your student's work does not count! If you are a judge in American Idol, Project Runway, etc., those would definitely count]
Evidence of the alien's original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance to the field;
Evidence of the alien's authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade publications or other major media;
Evidence that the alien's work has been displayed at artistic exhibitions or showcases;
Performance of a leading or critical role in distinguished organizations;
Evidence that the alien commands a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field;
Evidence of commercial successes in the performing arts.
I have a question about obtaining and O-1 visa (or possibly EB-1 Green Card). I did hire an attorney , but would like another look at the situation.
I am a musician, about 2 months after the end of OPT, presently in USA, with a PhD and many awards so I should qualify for O-1.
Unless you have won a grammy or a similar award, you do not necessarily qualify. Here are the requirement from USCIS:
1. Nomination for and/or recipient of significant national or international awards or prizes in his/her field (e.g. Academy, Emmy, Grammy, or Director’s Guild Award)
OR
• At least three of the following apply to him/her:
o Performed a lead, starring or critical role for organizations and establishments of distinguished reputation.
o A record of major commercial or critically acclaimed success.
o Received significant recognition for achievements from organizations, critics, government agencies, or other recognized experts in the alien’s field.
o Commands/ed high salary or other remuneration for services as compared to others in the alien’s field.
o Other comparable evidence
Aliens in the Motion Picture or TV Industry
The type of evidence that is required to establish “extraordinary achievement” in the motion picture or TV industry is in some ways similar to the type of evidence submitted to show “extraordinary ability” in the arts. The standard that must be met, however, is higher. To establish “extraordinary ability in the arts” it is enough to show a high level of achievement. For “extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or TV industry” a very high level of accomplishment is required.
When you file your petition, you must try to provide evidence of as many categories as possible. Usually the point is that what you have achieved is not *usual*. E.g., *winning* an assistantship in your graduate school does not count.
As advised, I needed an employer to sponsor the visa. My attorney suggested that Part-time is not recommendable at all. I researched and could not find if the position need to be necessarily Full-time? I have only a part time job currently and many freelancing opportunities.
Also, since the nature of my profession is freelancing (meaning I need to perform, teach...on many different places), can I be self-employed for O-1?
O-1 is the employer's petition, not yours. So you do need to have an employer. However, if you can prove that your field is traditionally self-employed, then you can have a US agent. I do not know what is a US agent; ask your lawyer.
We already filed the petition for O-1 (with the part-time employer as a sponsor) and the current status is: Additional Information/Proof Needed. We still don't have the letter stating what is needed, but I worry it's not a good sign. What do you think?
And lastly, IF it happens that O-1 is not approved, can I still apply for EB-1 Green Card?
Thank you for your answers!
EB-1 petition (assuming it is the EB-1A) standards are as follows. They are very similar to O-1 and stricter, however, legally EB1-A requirements are independent of O-1 requirement (i.e., you cannot argue that if your O-1 is approved, then EB1-A must also be approved with the same set of evidences):
Aliens with extraordinary ability are those with "extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation." You must be one of "that small percentage who have risen to the very top of the field of endeavor," to be granted this classification. For example, if you receive a major internationally recognized award, such as a Nobel Prize, you will qualify for an EB-1 classification. Other awards may also qualify if you can document that the award is in the same class as a Nobel Prize. Since few workers receive this type of award, alternative evidence of EB-1 classification based on at least three of the types of evidence outlined below, is permitted. The worker may submit "other comparable evidence" if the following criteria do not apply:
Receipt of lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards for excellence;
Membership in associations in the field which demand outstanding achievement of their members; [It is not sufficient to be a member of an organization where you are member just by the virtue of your profession, or just because you cared to apply]
Published material about the alien in professional or major trade publications or other major media;
Evidence that the alien has judged the work of others, either individually or on a panel; [Grading your student's work does not count! If you are a judge in American Idol, Project Runway, etc., those would definitely count]
Evidence of the alien's original scientific, scholarly, artistic, athletic, or business-related contributions of major significance to the field;
Evidence of the alien's authorship of scholarly articles in professional or major trade publications or other major media;
Evidence that the alien's work has been displayed at artistic exhibitions or showcases;
Performance of a leading or critical role in distinguished organizations;
Evidence that the alien commands a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field;
Evidence of commercial successes in the performing arts.
2011 White 2009 BMW M3 Coupe
roseball
10-08 04:30 PM
I got my green card from Company A. During my labor process i renewed my H1B from Company B which expired last month.
Right now who is my employer Company A or B or none of the above?.
If I understand you correctly, you were working for Employer A and he filed your Labor. You changed to employer B while labor was pending and started working for employer B on H1. Employer A continued to process your GC and you got it approved. If this is true, then you should immediately join employer A since your GC was approved through employer A.
Right now who is my employer Company A or B or none of the above?.
If I understand you correctly, you were working for Employer A and he filed your Labor. You changed to employer B while labor was pending and started working for employer B on H1. Employer A continued to process your GC and you got it approved. If this is true, then you should immediately join employer A since your GC was approved through employer A.
more...
rajuram
11-14 10:00 PM
It is 200% certain that the politicians will not touch the immigration topic in the next one year. Even after best efforts of the president the immigration bill failed in the senate few months ago.
One and only one thing that can be tried before Nov 2008 is the recapture of visa numbers from the last five years. I think IV should push for that.
Other than the above not much can happen, get ready for really long cold winter and then a looong hot summer. I wish things were better.
One and only one thing that can be tried before Nov 2008 is the recapture of visa numbers from the last five years. I think IV should push for that.
Other than the above not much can happen, get ready for really long cold winter and then a looong hot summer. I wish things were better.
chanduv23
08-03 11:58 PM
Please navigate to the following threads and do the action items
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?t=11694&page=2
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?t=11962
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?t=11694&page=2
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/showthread.php?t=11962
more...
rajuram
06-06 09:32 AM
I also got the interview letter today in Dallas. mine is also PD Jul 2003, EB3 India
Did you see any LUDs in the recent past?
Did you see any LUDs in the recent past?
2010 PSD08/47 – 1:18 BMW M3 Coupe
GCard_Dream
06-29 03:58 PM
It is a shady practice. The main reason an employer wouldn't give you a copy of a I-140 is that if you were to leave company A and company B sponsors you for GC, you can keep your old priority date. But that is only possible if you can furnish a copy of approved I-140 to INS. It is such a stupid practice on part of INS to request the petitioner to provide a copy of something (like I-140) that they themselves approved and should already have a record of. But I don't think anyone expects any better from INS anyway.
I agree that it is a employer driven petition but the employer purposely holds the information back so that they have more control over the employees decision making ( specially if the employee is thinking about leaving the company).
This is not a shady practice. The employer had petitioned for a labor certification earlier to sponsor GC for an employee who might have left the company. Now they filled the position with you, so its perfectly alright to use the same petition for you.
As far as the documents are concerned, they are employer centric and they have no reason to give them to you. You will have nothing to do with those even if you get them. If the only purpose you want to solve is to know whether or not your labor and I40 were infact approved as your employer says, you should request your employer to show you a copy.
The copies are wothless to you if you leave the company anyways, before you get an EAD.
Don't heed the advise of people who ask you to find a better employer. Such people are only trying to get their own GCs faster, since there will be one less person with an earlier priority date.
I agree that it is a employer driven petition but the employer purposely holds the information back so that they have more control over the employees decision making ( specially if the employee is thinking about leaving the company).
This is not a shady practice. The employer had petitioned for a labor certification earlier to sponsor GC for an employee who might have left the company. Now they filled the position with you, so its perfectly alright to use the same petition for you.
As far as the documents are concerned, they are employer centric and they have no reason to give them to you. You will have nothing to do with those even if you get them. If the only purpose you want to solve is to know whether or not your labor and I40 were infact approved as your employer says, you should request your employer to show you a copy.
The copies are wothless to you if you leave the company anyways, before you get an EAD.
Don't heed the advise of people who ask you to find a better employer. Such people are only trying to get their own GCs faster, since there will be one less person with an earlier priority date.
more...
chintu25
08-28 10:07 PM
could you please review this thread
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/forum16-iv-agenda-and-legislative-updates/184288-from-iv-access-to-donor-forum-issues.html
if you are a recurring subscriber please mail details to info at immigrationvoice.org. We verify each member before adding in the donor forum.
mail is bouncing back to that id
http://immigrationvoice.org/forum/forum16-iv-agenda-and-legislative-updates/184288-from-iv-access-to-donor-forum-issues.html
if you are a recurring subscriber please mail details to info at immigrationvoice.org. We verify each member before adding in the donor forum.
mail is bouncing back to that id
hair PSD08/47 – 1:18 BMW M3 Coupe
krishna.ahd
11-23 09:53 AM
if i check in the wesite or call the ins they say its approved bt my consultant states that the same had a query which i have also seen was sent to her , the query was sent in aug and we did reply the same instance . rite now im on student visa and abtto complete my mba and eligible for my internship . im veri much in the usa . please guide me as to wat shud i do tackle this situation and whts the next step . i want to wrk asap . i also that want to knw after its approval wat r the next step of docs tat i shud have and wat is it that i need to have to gain a upper hand and be out of this mess
Something is not right here .
If your are doing/Completing MBA , you may get all the information from your international /Student guidance office.
Again Just curious - your English (spellings) why is so - SMS format ??
Something is not right here .
If your are doing/Completing MBA , you may get all the information from your international /Student guidance office.
Again Just curious - your English (spellings) why is so - SMS format ??
more...
purgan
11-11 10:32 AM
Randell,
Congratulations on getting the attention of the Times, and your tireless efforts in spreading word of the broken legal immigration system.
===
New York Times
Immigration, a Love Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/fashion/12green.html
WHEN Kenneth Harrell Jr., an Assemblies of God minister in South Carolina, invited Gricelda Molina to join his Spanish ministry in 2000, it didn’t take him long to realize he had found the woman he had been waiting for. On the telephone and during romantic strolls they talked about their goals, their commitment to God and how many children each would like to have. Six months flew by, and he asked her to marry him.
“She’s a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit, very gentle, very sincere,” Mr. Harrell said. But Ms. Molina, a factory worker, was also an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who had crossed into the United States twice, having once been deported. Mr. Harrell, the pastor of Airport Assembly of God church in West Columbia, said he was not too concerned. “Whatever came, we would walk through this path together,” he said.
Mr. Harrell and Ms. Molina, both 35, married in 2001, in a large wedding attended by family from both sides and blessed by pastors in English and Spanish. But the Harrells no longer live together, not because of divorce, but because Mrs. Harrell, now the mother of two sons and four months pregnant with their third child, has been deported. She had applied for legal residency, or a green card, with her new husband as her sponsor, Mr. Harrell said, but she was sent back to Honduras 20 months ago because of her illegal entries and told she would have to wait 10 years to try again.
“Illegals are pouring over the border,” said Mr. Harrell, who has visited his family five times. “We meet them, we fall in love with them, we marry them. And then the government tears your family apart, and they take no responsibility for letting them in, in the first place.”
Falling in love and marching toward marriage is not always easy, but a particular brand of heartache and hardship can await when one of the partners is in this country illegally. The uncertainty of such a union has only been heightened by the national debate over illegal immigration. Whether the new Democratic leadership in Congress will help people like the Harrells remains to be seen.
It is hard to quantify how many people find themselves in Mr. Harrell’s situation, but with stepped-up enforcement in recent years, deportations have increased, and so have fears of losing a loved one in that way. (There were 168,310 removals in 2005, compared with 108,000 in 2000, immigration officials said.)
And that is only one byproduct of love between two people with such uneven places in society, immigration lawyers say. Many relationships strain under the financial burden of hiring lawyers for what can turn into years of visiting government offices, producing pictures, tax records and other evidence of a legitimate marriage in the quest for legalization. And while instances of immigrants faking love for a green card are in the minority, according to immigration officials, some couples feel pressure to marry before they are ready, hoping that marriage will prevent a loved one’s deportation.
Raul Godinez, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, said: “I ask people, ‘How much do you love this person? Because immigration is going to test your marriage.’ If you don’t feel it’s going to be a strong marriage, I wouldn’t do it.”
Many people may still believe that obtaining legal status through marriage is easy, because of periodic reports of marriage scams. In a three-year investigation called Operation Newlywed Game, immigration and customs enforcement agents caught more than 40 suspects in California for allegedly orchestrating sham marriages between hundreds of Chinese or Vietnamese nationals and United States citizens. But such fraud occurs in only a minority of cases, federal officials said.
In reality, immigration lawyers said, marrying a citizen does not automatically entitle the spouse to a green card and is only the first step in a long bureaucratic journey. The lawyers noted that changes in the law in the last five years have made this legalization path increasingly difficult, one worth choosing only if true love is at stake. (Other routes include sponsorship by immediate family members or an employer.)
The Harrells said they had no idea how difficult it could be and were shocked when Mrs. Harrell’s application for permanent residence was turned down, leaving them only 12 days to prepare for her departure. In that time, Mr. Harrell said, they decided that the children, now 4 and 3, would go with her. So Mr. Harrell obtained passports for them, and the church held a farewell service.
“It was very traumatic,” he said. “Our whole world was crashing around us.”
In Yoro, in north central Honduras, where Mrs. Harrell and the children live with her parents, she said the older boy constantly asks for his father, begging, “Let’s go to my papa’s house.” She has coped with her own dejection, too. “I know how much work he has over there,” she said by telephone. “He needs his wife.”
But even in the best of circumstances, when an immigrant enters the country legally, couples may have to rearrange their lives and defer their dreams.
Paola Emery, a jewelry designer, and her husband, Randall Emery, a computer consultant in Philadelphia, said they delayed having children and buying a house for the nearly four years it took the government to complete a background check for Mrs. Emery, who had entered the country from Colombia with a tourist visa and applied for permanent residency after they married in 2002.
Mrs. Emery, 27, said lawyers advised them it was not wise for her to risk trouble by visiting her close-knit family in Colombia and then trying to re-enter this country. She said she was absent through weddings, illnesses and even the kidnapping and rescue of an uncle.
“I felt like I was in jail,” Mrs. Emery said.
Officials with the Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Homeland Security Department say that delays lasting years are rare, but some immigration lawyers say they see clients who wait three to four years for security clearance. Mrs. Emery and her husband, 34, sued Homeland Security over the delays, and she was finally cleared last May. By then Mr. Emery had helped form American Families United, a group of citizens who have sponsored immediate family members for immigration, and which advocates immigration-law change to keep families together. Immigration Services officials say they are not out to impede love or immigration. Nearly 260,000 spouses of citizens received permanent residency through marriage last year, out of 1.1 million people who became permanent residents, according to the Immigration Services office. “The goal is to give people who are eligible the benefit,” said Marie T. Sebrechts, its spokeswoman in Southern California. She said the agency does not comment on individual cases.
When a legal immigrant is sponsored by an American spouse, she said, the green card can be obtained in as little as six months. But with complications like an illegal entry, laws are not that benevolent, Ms. Sebrechts said. In those cases, the immigrant usually must return to the home country and wait 3 to 10 years to apply for residency, though waivers are sometimes granted.
Such obstacles are far from the minds of couples when they meet. And for some, so is the idea to question whether the beloved feels equally in love with them.
Sharyn T. Sooho, a divorce lawyer and a founder of divorcenet.com, a Web site for divorcing couples, said she has represented American spouses who realized too late that the person they married was more interested in a green card than in living happily ever after. “They feel conflicted, used and abused,” she said. “It’s a quick marriage, and suddenly the person who was so sweet is turning into a nightmare.”
But more often, said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, couples marry before they are ready because “there’s fear that if you don’t do this, somebody is going to get deported.”
Krystal Rivera, 18, a college student in Los Angeles, and her boyfriend fall into this group. Ms. Rivera is set on marrying in April 2008, even as she worries that it may put too much pressure on the relationship.
“I never wanted to follow the Hispanic ritual of getting married early,” said Ms. Rivera, a native of Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Mexico.
She said she fell in love at 13 with a Mexican-born boy who sang in the church choir with her. “He started poking me, and I said ‘Stop it!’ ” she remembered.
Ms. Rivera is still in love with the boy, now 19, who was brought into the country illegally by his mother when he was 12. He goes to college and wants to become a teacher, while she hopes to become a doctor.
But for those plans to work, Ms. Rivera said, she needs to help him legalize his status. She said she has witnessed his frustration as he dealt with employers who didn’t pay what they owed him or struggled to find better jobs than his current one as a line cook. Because of his illegal status, he is unable to get a driver’s license or visit the brothers he left in Mexico. “We want to be normal,” Ms. Rivera said.
The Harrells, too, have decided to take charge. After months of exploring how to reunite the family and spending thousands of dollars on lawyers, Mr. Harrell has decided to leave his small congregation, sell his house and join his wife in Honduras. He will be a missionary for his church for a fraction of the $40,000 a year he makes as a minister.
Congratulations on getting the attention of the Times, and your tireless efforts in spreading word of the broken legal immigration system.
===
New York Times
Immigration, a Love Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/fashion/12green.html
WHEN Kenneth Harrell Jr., an Assemblies of God minister in South Carolina, invited Gricelda Molina to join his Spanish ministry in 2000, it didn’t take him long to realize he had found the woman he had been waiting for. On the telephone and during romantic strolls they talked about their goals, their commitment to God and how many children each would like to have. Six months flew by, and he asked her to marry him.
“She’s a beautiful woman with a beautiful spirit, very gentle, very sincere,” Mr. Harrell said. But Ms. Molina, a factory worker, was also an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who had crossed into the United States twice, having once been deported. Mr. Harrell, the pastor of Airport Assembly of God church in West Columbia, said he was not too concerned. “Whatever came, we would walk through this path together,” he said.
Mr. Harrell and Ms. Molina, both 35, married in 2001, in a large wedding attended by family from both sides and blessed by pastors in English and Spanish. But the Harrells no longer live together, not because of divorce, but because Mrs. Harrell, now the mother of two sons and four months pregnant with their third child, has been deported. She had applied for legal residency, or a green card, with her new husband as her sponsor, Mr. Harrell said, but she was sent back to Honduras 20 months ago because of her illegal entries and told she would have to wait 10 years to try again.
“Illegals are pouring over the border,” said Mr. Harrell, who has visited his family five times. “We meet them, we fall in love with them, we marry them. And then the government tears your family apart, and they take no responsibility for letting them in, in the first place.”
Falling in love and marching toward marriage is not always easy, but a particular brand of heartache and hardship can await when one of the partners is in this country illegally. The uncertainty of such a union has only been heightened by the national debate over illegal immigration. Whether the new Democratic leadership in Congress will help people like the Harrells remains to be seen.
It is hard to quantify how many people find themselves in Mr. Harrell’s situation, but with stepped-up enforcement in recent years, deportations have increased, and so have fears of losing a loved one in that way. (There were 168,310 removals in 2005, compared with 108,000 in 2000, immigration officials said.)
And that is only one byproduct of love between two people with such uneven places in society, immigration lawyers say. Many relationships strain under the financial burden of hiring lawyers for what can turn into years of visiting government offices, producing pictures, tax records and other evidence of a legitimate marriage in the quest for legalization. And while instances of immigrants faking love for a green card are in the minority, according to immigration officials, some couples feel pressure to marry before they are ready, hoping that marriage will prevent a loved one’s deportation.
Raul Godinez, an immigration lawyer in Los Angeles, said: “I ask people, ‘How much do you love this person? Because immigration is going to test your marriage.’ If you don’t feel it’s going to be a strong marriage, I wouldn’t do it.”
Many people may still believe that obtaining legal status through marriage is easy, because of periodic reports of marriage scams. In a three-year investigation called Operation Newlywed Game, immigration and customs enforcement agents caught more than 40 suspects in California for allegedly orchestrating sham marriages between hundreds of Chinese or Vietnamese nationals and United States citizens. But such fraud occurs in only a minority of cases, federal officials said.
In reality, immigration lawyers said, marrying a citizen does not automatically entitle the spouse to a green card and is only the first step in a long bureaucratic journey. The lawyers noted that changes in the law in the last five years have made this legalization path increasingly difficult, one worth choosing only if true love is at stake. (Other routes include sponsorship by immediate family members or an employer.)
The Harrells said they had no idea how difficult it could be and were shocked when Mrs. Harrell’s application for permanent residence was turned down, leaving them only 12 days to prepare for her departure. In that time, Mr. Harrell said, they decided that the children, now 4 and 3, would go with her. So Mr. Harrell obtained passports for them, and the church held a farewell service.
“It was very traumatic,” he said. “Our whole world was crashing around us.”
In Yoro, in north central Honduras, where Mrs. Harrell and the children live with her parents, she said the older boy constantly asks for his father, begging, “Let’s go to my papa’s house.” She has coped with her own dejection, too. “I know how much work he has over there,” she said by telephone. “He needs his wife.”
But even in the best of circumstances, when an immigrant enters the country legally, couples may have to rearrange their lives and defer their dreams.
Paola Emery, a jewelry designer, and her husband, Randall Emery, a computer consultant in Philadelphia, said they delayed having children and buying a house for the nearly four years it took the government to complete a background check for Mrs. Emery, who had entered the country from Colombia with a tourist visa and applied for permanent residency after they married in 2002.
Mrs. Emery, 27, said lawyers advised them it was not wise for her to risk trouble by visiting her close-knit family in Colombia and then trying to re-enter this country. She said she was absent through weddings, illnesses and even the kidnapping and rescue of an uncle.
“I felt like I was in jail,” Mrs. Emery said.
Officials with the Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Homeland Security Department say that delays lasting years are rare, but some immigration lawyers say they see clients who wait three to four years for security clearance. Mrs. Emery and her husband, 34, sued Homeland Security over the delays, and she was finally cleared last May. By then Mr. Emery had helped form American Families United, a group of citizens who have sponsored immediate family members for immigration, and which advocates immigration-law change to keep families together. Immigration Services officials say they are not out to impede love or immigration. Nearly 260,000 spouses of citizens received permanent residency through marriage last year, out of 1.1 million people who became permanent residents, according to the Immigration Services office. “The goal is to give people who are eligible the benefit,” said Marie T. Sebrechts, its spokeswoman in Southern California. She said the agency does not comment on individual cases.
When a legal immigrant is sponsored by an American spouse, she said, the green card can be obtained in as little as six months. But with complications like an illegal entry, laws are not that benevolent, Ms. Sebrechts said. In those cases, the immigrant usually must return to the home country and wait 3 to 10 years to apply for residency, though waivers are sometimes granted.
Such obstacles are far from the minds of couples when they meet. And for some, so is the idea to question whether the beloved feels equally in love with them.
Sharyn T. Sooho, a divorce lawyer and a founder of divorcenet.com, a Web site for divorcing couples, said she has represented American spouses who realized too late that the person they married was more interested in a green card than in living happily ever after. “They feel conflicted, used and abused,” she said. “It’s a quick marriage, and suddenly the person who was so sweet is turning into a nightmare.”
But more often, said Carlina Tapia-Ruano, the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, couples marry before they are ready because “there’s fear that if you don’t do this, somebody is going to get deported.”
Krystal Rivera, 18, a college student in Los Angeles, and her boyfriend fall into this group. Ms. Rivera is set on marrying in April 2008, even as she worries that it may put too much pressure on the relationship.
“I never wanted to follow the Hispanic ritual of getting married early,” said Ms. Rivera, a native of Los Angeles whose parents emigrated from Mexico.
She said she fell in love at 13 with a Mexican-born boy who sang in the church choir with her. “He started poking me, and I said ‘Stop it!’ ” she remembered.
Ms. Rivera is still in love with the boy, now 19, who was brought into the country illegally by his mother when he was 12. He goes to college and wants to become a teacher, while she hopes to become a doctor.
But for those plans to work, Ms. Rivera said, she needs to help him legalize his status. She said she has witnessed his frustration as he dealt with employers who didn’t pay what they owed him or struggled to find better jobs than his current one as a line cook. Because of his illegal status, he is unable to get a driver’s license or visit the brothers he left in Mexico. “We want to be normal,” Ms. Rivera said.
The Harrells, too, have decided to take charge. After months of exploring how to reunite the family and spending thousands of dollars on lawyers, Mr. Harrell has decided to leave his small congregation, sell his house and join his wife in Honduras. He will be a missionary for his church for a fraction of the $40,000 a year he makes as a minister.
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kalinga_sena
09-01 05:43 PM
Here you go:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection - Contacts (http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/toolbox/contacts/cmcs/)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection - Contacts (http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/toolbox/contacts/cmcs/)
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chapsi29
06-25 10:58 AM
Thanks for your quick response.
As much as I want the W2 ASAP, the issue is what is the amount that should be on the W2 as I did not get paid in 2007. The W2 legally should only contain the wages that you have received in that year.
As much as I want the W2 ASAP, the issue is what is the amount that should be on the W2 as I did not get paid in 2007. The W2 legally should only contain the wages that you have received in that year.
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needhelp!
02-12 10:59 AM
purgan,
This is a good idea. Can you create a thread with poll and we can see what percentage bought a house in US vs invested in property elsewhere. (or both)
I signed as well.
I also might point out another important angle to this mortgage issue. In the past 2 years since I was still waiting for my green card, I purchased 2 apartments in India. My dollar savings got diverted abroad since I saw no point purchasing in a country where my presence is uncerrtain.
I am sure there are many others who invested abroad instead of the USA. IV can perhaps institute a poll to see how many people bought abroad and how much they invested. This way there will be a quanfifiable impact of dollars diverted. I am sure it will be in the hundreds of millions atleast.
This is a good idea. Can you create a thread with poll and we can see what percentage bought a house in US vs invested in property elsewhere. (or both)
I signed as well.
I also might point out another important angle to this mortgage issue. In the past 2 years since I was still waiting for my green card, I purchased 2 apartments in India. My dollar savings got diverted abroad since I saw no point purchasing in a country where my presence is uncerrtain.
I am sure there are many others who invested abroad instead of the USA. IV can perhaps institute a poll to see how many people bought abroad and how much they invested. This way there will be a quanfifiable impact of dollars diverted. I am sure it will be in the hundreds of millions atleast.
more...
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chanlal
07-31 04:32 AM
Hi My name is Chamraj from India, obtained a h1b from a new jersy based company in Dec 2007. I have signed the agreement of Employment i.e part of my offer letter before appearing for my visa interview.
Infact they had given two offer letters. 1. offer letter with no agrrement of employment after shortlisting me for processing h1b.
2, Offer letter with agreement of employment just before going to us consulate for stamping.
I was asked to give a indian bank guarantee of 100 thousand INR, so i have given them a BG of 100 thousand INR. During last 30 months i was asked to renew my BG twice and i did the same and gave them the renewed copies. But they never bothered to send me to us on h1b.
BG got expired on last month and now they want me to travel to US immdly.
If i do not travel they were asking me to pay 4000 USD as the expenses incurred to process my h1b visa. They also want to take legal action against me.
I have waited for 2,5 years waiting for them to send me to us. they did not send me during last 2.5 years,
Extract from Agreement: If the employee terminates the agreement prior to the minimum period of 18 months, the employee will pay company liquidated charges of 4000 USD.
I am still in India and i was not paid single penny by the company so far. I waited for more than 18 months and now already 30 months over.
Pls advice how i can face his legal action. Can he take a legal against me when i am india where the offer is subject to laws of New Jersy state laws.
Thanks
Infact they had given two offer letters. 1. offer letter with no agrrement of employment after shortlisting me for processing h1b.
2, Offer letter with agreement of employment just before going to us consulate for stamping.
I was asked to give a indian bank guarantee of 100 thousand INR, so i have given them a BG of 100 thousand INR. During last 30 months i was asked to renew my BG twice and i did the same and gave them the renewed copies. But they never bothered to send me to us on h1b.
BG got expired on last month and now they want me to travel to US immdly.
If i do not travel they were asking me to pay 4000 USD as the expenses incurred to process my h1b visa. They also want to take legal action against me.
I have waited for 2,5 years waiting for them to send me to us. they did not send me during last 2.5 years,
Extract from Agreement: If the employee terminates the agreement prior to the minimum period of 18 months, the employee will pay company liquidated charges of 4000 USD.
I am still in India and i was not paid single penny by the company so far. I waited for more than 18 months and now already 30 months over.
Pls advice how i can face his legal action. Can he take a legal against me when i am india where the offer is subject to laws of New Jersy state laws.
Thanks
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shana04
02-01 10:44 AM
Thanks for each on every one of you!
some gave me red, its ok.
I had a problem which I though of sharing, may be some one could provide some insight.
It may be my bad that I have posted in wrong thread, but that does not have to mean to give red.
But any ways, for every one who gave red and for every who did leave a message, I thank each and every one of you and wish you good luck on getting your GC.
some gave me red, its ok.
I had a problem which I though of sharing, may be some one could provide some insight.
It may be my bad that I have posted in wrong thread, but that does not have to mean to give red.
But any ways, for every one who gave red and for every who did leave a message, I thank each and every one of you and wish you good luck on getting your GC.
more...
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helterskelter
06-23 08:33 AM
Regarding your status in the country, assuming that you acquired the green card before you married, a green card divorce does not change anything with your immigration status, but it may delay your application for full citizenship. I'm not sure if this is helpful since you've consulted about this topic but here's the link for more information about green card divorce Green Card Divorce - LoveToKnow Divorce (http://divorce.lovetoknow.com/Green_Card_Divorce)
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Domino
09-12 02:58 PM
Hello,
I have a question about obtaining and O-1 visa (or possibly EB-1 Green Card). I did hire an attorney , but would like another look at the situation.
I am a musician, about 2 months after the end of OPT, presently in USA, with a PhD and many awards so I should qualify for O-1.
As advised, I needed an employer to sponsor the visa. My attorney suggested that Part-time is not recommendable at all. I researched and could not find if the position need to be necessarily Full-time? I have only a part time job currently and many freelancing opportunities.
Also, since the nature of my profession is freelancing (meaning I need to perform, teach...on many different places), can I be self-employed for O-1?
We already filed the petition for O-1 (with the part-time employer as a sponsor) and the current status is: Additional Information/Proof Needed. We still don't have the letter stating what is needed, but I worry it's not a good sign. What do you think?
And lastly, IF it happens that O-1 is not approved, can I still apply for EB-1 Green Card?
Thank you for your answers!
I have a question about obtaining and O-1 visa (or possibly EB-1 Green Card). I did hire an attorney , but would like another look at the situation.
I am a musician, about 2 months after the end of OPT, presently in USA, with a PhD and many awards so I should qualify for O-1.
As advised, I needed an employer to sponsor the visa. My attorney suggested that Part-time is not recommendable at all. I researched and could not find if the position need to be necessarily Full-time? I have only a part time job currently and many freelancing opportunities.
Also, since the nature of my profession is freelancing (meaning I need to perform, teach...on many different places), can I be self-employed for O-1?
We already filed the petition for O-1 (with the part-time employer as a sponsor) and the current status is: Additional Information/Proof Needed. We still don't have the letter stating what is needed, but I worry it's not a good sign. What do you think?
And lastly, IF it happens that O-1 is not approved, can I still apply for EB-1 Green Card?
Thank you for your answers!
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karthkc
05-24 12:38 PM
You are right about that. However, the situation when you try to switch to H1B from EAD while remaining in the US is what I was referring to...
Under that situation, you only get the remaining years on H1 but I was told by my attorney that you do count against the cap though..
This is such a grey area, I bet even USCIS is not clear on what they would do...
Do you have a basis that it has to be started from scratch. Why it needs to be started from scratch when there is still time on H1 say about 1.5 years?
I think u need to start afresh a new one only if you are out of country for one year.
Folks, if any one has done this please corraborate
Under that situation, you only get the remaining years on H1 but I was told by my attorney that you do count against the cap though..
This is such a grey area, I bet even USCIS is not clear on what they would do...
Do you have a basis that it has to be started from scratch. Why it needs to be started from scratch when there is still time on H1 say about 1.5 years?
I think u need to start afresh a new one only if you are out of country for one year.
Folks, if any one has done this please corraborate
kumarc123
05-11 09:50 AM
I think the only language that US understands is lawsuit otherwise everything is unfair. You can see that is why there is a lawsuit culture here. Every agency govt and non govt tries to cheat you be it car rental agency, be it movers be it USCIS. By default everything is taken moral in US unless proven by lawsuit or dictated by law.
Even if we loose lawsuit, it will make impact in the sense that the issue will get a lot of publicity. I am willing to donate to IV but not for nothing, not for flowers, not protests not for this forum either, I am willing to donate if there is some rigid action to be taken like a lawsuit.
I agree with you 100% over there, I am up for a lawsuit and a rally. Problem is, so many of the members here are all talk and no walk (Not IV Core members, no disrespect to them). I have sent so many letters,made soo many calls, specially at the time when Lofgreen was talking about recapture of visa numbers. In the end I got frusturated.
Illegals are better than us, imagine if EAD had not happened? A lot of members would be united to fight the cause.
Unification is very important. Above all doing something big rather than just talking about it!
Even if we loose lawsuit, it will make impact in the sense that the issue will get a lot of publicity. I am willing to donate to IV but not for nothing, not for flowers, not protests not for this forum either, I am willing to donate if there is some rigid action to be taken like a lawsuit.
I agree with you 100% over there, I am up for a lawsuit and a rally. Problem is, so many of the members here are all talk and no walk (Not IV Core members, no disrespect to them). I have sent so many letters,made soo many calls, specially at the time when Lofgreen was talking about recapture of visa numbers. In the end I got frusturated.
Illegals are better than us, imagine if EAD had not happened? A lot of members would be united to fight the cause.
Unification is very important. Above all doing something big rather than just talking about it!
BEC_fog
04-23 10:55 AM
Yes, that means your I-140 is "filed" under EB2...But note that USCIS can always comeback & say it "can" or "can not" be approved under Eb2 based on the job description in Labor.
In rare scenarios, USCIS comes back with a "NO" to Eb2, especially if the JOB description in Labor does not suit an Eb2 requirement. But in 99% of the cases, its fine (because, attorneys normally don't file it under Eb2 if its not one).
All the best!!
I read this on immigration-law.com which says that USCIS lost a lawsuit about its ability to look into the employer's requirement for job.
04/17/2007: Jurisdictions for USCIS and DOL in the Labor Certification Employment-Based Immigration
* In the labor certification based immigration proceedings, there are two federal agencies involved: One is the Department of Labor and the other is Department of Homeland Security USCIS. The immigration statutes give the jurisdiction of the U.S. labor market test government function over to the U.S. Department of Labor and one of the key elements of the labor market test is the description and requirement of jobs and prevailing wage in the intended area of employment. Accordingly, when it comes to the issue of the employer's requirement for job, it has remained the jurisdiction of the USDOL. However, sometimes, the USCIS, in adjudicating I-140 immigrant petitions, tends to overstep into the issues which clearly fall under the jurisdiction of its sister agency, DOL.
* Well, this jurisdictional issue was brought to the U.S. Court of Appeals in the 7th Circuit in Hossier Cares, Inc. v. Chertoff , Case #06-3652 (7th Cir, April 11, 2007) [Click "Opinion" to Download], which ruled that when it comes to the employer's job requirement issues, it is clearly the jurisdiction of the DOL and the USCIS should have no business to mess up with the issue. Isn't it something?!? The court says to the USCIS that you mind your own business with the issue of whether alien beneficiary is qualified for the job and stay out of the business of the employer's needs. Hoorah!
In rare scenarios, USCIS comes back with a "NO" to Eb2, especially if the JOB description in Labor does not suit an Eb2 requirement. But in 99% of the cases, its fine (because, attorneys normally don't file it under Eb2 if its not one).
All the best!!
I read this on immigration-law.com which says that USCIS lost a lawsuit about its ability to look into the employer's requirement for job.
04/17/2007: Jurisdictions for USCIS and DOL in the Labor Certification Employment-Based Immigration
* In the labor certification based immigration proceedings, there are two federal agencies involved: One is the Department of Labor and the other is Department of Homeland Security USCIS. The immigration statutes give the jurisdiction of the U.S. labor market test government function over to the U.S. Department of Labor and one of the key elements of the labor market test is the description and requirement of jobs and prevailing wage in the intended area of employment. Accordingly, when it comes to the issue of the employer's requirement for job, it has remained the jurisdiction of the USDOL. However, sometimes, the USCIS, in adjudicating I-140 immigrant petitions, tends to overstep into the issues which clearly fall under the jurisdiction of its sister agency, DOL.
* Well, this jurisdictional issue was brought to the U.S. Court of Appeals in the 7th Circuit in Hossier Cares, Inc. v. Chertoff , Case #06-3652 (7th Cir, April 11, 2007) [Click "Opinion" to Download], which ruled that when it comes to the employer's job requirement issues, it is clearly the jurisdiction of the DOL and the USCIS should have no business to mess up with the issue. Isn't it something?!? The court says to the USCIS that you mind your own business with the issue of whether alien beneficiary is qualified for the job and stay out of the business of the employer's needs. Hoorah!
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