Family-Based Immigration Law Archives - Page 5 of 18

8 08, 2018

Trump Administration Looking Into Penalizing Immigrants Receiving Public Benefits

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T16:15:33-05:00August 8th, 2018|Categories: Citizenship / Naturalization and the N-400 Application, Conditional Permanent Residence Based on Marriage, DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), DHS / Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Family-Based Immigration Law, Green Cards, Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, immigration reform, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, Undocumented Immigrants and Workers in the U.S.|

Published August 8, 2018 “Public Charge” provisions have been a part of our nation’s immigration laws for more than a century, thus the reason all family based immigration applicants are required to have a financial sponsor who provide an “Affidavit of Support” to guarantee the new immigrant will not become dependent on certain government benefits. In sum, foreign nationals who are deemed likely to become a “public charge” are “inadmissible” under U.S. immigration law and ineligible for permanent residence (green card). The Trump Administration is now considering the implementation of new and expansive rules penalizing lawful immigrants who avail of […]

12 07, 2018

US CIS Now More Active in Placing Denied Applicants in Removal Proceedings

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T16:20:58-05:00July 12th, 2018|Categories: Citizenship / Naturalization and the N-400 Application, Conditional Permanent Residence Based on Marriage, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment-Based Immigration Law, Family-Based Immigration Law, Green Cards, Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, Immigration and Criminal Law / Detainees, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Removal / Deportation Proceedings and Court Hearings, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, Undocumented Immigrants and Workers in the U.S.|

Published July 11, 2018 Under a new policy guidance memo released by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (US CIS) earlier this month, the agency will now be taking a more active role in initiating removal proceedings against denied applicants. Applicants for permanent residence, naturalization, change of status or other immigration benefits now will be more vulnerable to being placed in removal proceedings if they are deemed ineligible for the benefit sought and are in the U.S. in violation of immigration laws. Pursuant to the new guidance, US CIS is required to issue a Notice to Appear (NTA) – the […]

6 02, 2018

Chicago Based Applicants for Green Cards and Citizenship: DHS/CIS Processing Times

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T17:07:51-05:00February 6th, 2018|Categories: Citizenship / Naturalization and the N-400 Application, Conditional Permanent Residence Based on Marriage, DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Family-Based Immigration Law, Green Cards, Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S.|

Published February 6, 2018 Marriage based adjustment of status applicants living in CIS Chicago’s jurisdiction are seeing an approximately 7-8 month wait to be scheduled for an interview. Applicants for Naturalization (N-400) under CIS Chicago’s jurisdiction are being scheduled within approximately 8-10 months of application filing, and an oath ceremony, for approved cases, usually being scheduled 3 weeks or so following interview. At present the timeline for marriage based I-485 adjustment of status applicants — assuming all applications and supporting documentation are prepared and submitted correctly, is as follows: Dept. of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services receipts are issued within 1 to […]

23 01, 2018

Our Budget Impasse and Immigration

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T17:11:04-05:00January 23rd, 2018|Categories: Amnesty for Immigrants in the U.S., Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), DHS / Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Family-Based Immigration Law, immigration reform, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, Undocumented Immigrants and Workers in the U.S.|

Published January 23, 2018 Our country endured a brief government shut down in recent days, and there is a decent chance for a repeat performance in the coming weeks. At the core of the debate is our nation’s budget as well as major immigration law issues, including border wall funding, DACA and fundamental changes to our family based immigration system. The political stakes are enormous, with our nation and elected officials deeply divided on sensitive issues such as who is shielded from deportation and who gets to come to live in the U.S. in the future. First, we must take […]

28 11, 2017

Update: Green Card Interviews for Marriage Based Applicants, Including for Same Sex Partners

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T17:22:18-05:00November 28th, 2017|Categories: Conditional Permanent Residence Based on Marriage, DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Family-Based Immigration Law, Green Cards, Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Undocumented Immigrants and Workers in the U.S.|

Published November 28, 2017 A foreign national applying for permanent resident status by way of marriage to a U.S. citizen, continues to enjoy a mostly efficient and streamlined process, especially if they undergo all steps in the U.S. as an “adjustment of status” applicant. For most eligible foreign nationals present in the U.S., whether in legal status or not, adjustment of status processing for permanent resident status at their local Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services office (DHS/CIS) is usually preferable to overseas immigrant visa processing at a U.S. consular post. For various reasons though, not all individuals […]

15 11, 2017

Beware Immigrants: Automatic Voter Registration

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T17:25:53-05:00November 15th, 2017|Categories: Citizenship / Naturalization and the N-400 Application, Conditional Permanent Residence Based on Marriage, DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), DHS / Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Employment-Based Immigration Law, Family-Based Immigration Law, General, Green Cards, Immigration and Criminal Law / Detainees, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Removal / Deportation Proceedings and Court Hearings, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation|

Published November 15, 2017 On the topic of well-intended laws and unintended consequences, one of the first things that come to my mind is the law requiring local Department of Motor Vehicle facilities to ask all driver’s license applicants if they would like to register to vote. In theory, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, or “motor voter” is a beautiful law – where prospective voters, many of whom would otherwise not go out of their way to register, are solicited and provided a convenient avenue to register to vote and have a voice in our electoral process. However, the […]

9 07, 2017

Certain EAD Holders with Pending Extension Requests Can Continue to Work

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T18:00:49-05:00July 9th, 2017|Categories: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), DHS / Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, Family-Based Immigration Law, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, Uncategorized, Undocumented Immigrants and Workers in the U.S.|

Published July 9, 2017 Foreign nationals in the U.S. can qualify to obtain an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) under a variety of circumstances. There are more than a couple dozen categories of eligibility, although the vast majority of our nation’s undocumented population do not qualify under any of them. The most common bases of eligibility for an EAD include foreign nationals with pending applications to adjust their status to permanent residence (pending “I-485” green card application), pending asylum applications, and pending applications for cancellation of removal (for certain undocumented foreign nationals fighting removal proceedings). Most of the time the Employment […]

6 06, 2017

When Will CIS Expedite Processing of your Petition or Application? AND New Vetting Procedures in Place for Visa Applicants

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T18:05:12-05:00June 6th, 2017|Categories: DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment Authorization / Work Cards in the U.S., Employment-Based Immigration Law, Family-Based Immigration Law, General, Green Cards, Immigrant Health Care Workers in the U.S., Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Non-Immigrant Visas for Temporary Workers / H-1B, U.S. Immigration Law and Legislation, Uncategorized, United States Embassies Abroad|

Published June 6, 2017 These days, with processing times for various petitions and applications getting longer, it is important to be aware that U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) will entertain and grant expedite requests under a variety of circumstances. Firstly, there are a line of employment based petitions where CIS, for an additional “premium processing” fee, will review the filing and issue a decision in as little as 7-14 days. The additional fee is $1,225.00, and that amount is on top of base filing fee at issue. CIS offers this option for the processing of the vast […]

21 03, 2017

Applying for U.S. Citizenship: The Top 4 Things That Matter

By Richard Hanus|2020-05-01T18:20:10-05:00March 21st, 2017|Categories: Citizenship / Naturalization and the N-400 Application, Conditional Permanent Residence Based on Marriage, DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Family-Based Immigration Law, Green Cards, Immigrant Visas for Spouse / Fiancee / Child Visas, Immigration and Criminal Law / Detainees, Lawful Permanent Residence in the U.S., Removal / Deportation Proceedings and Court Hearings|

Published March 21, 2017 To be sure, a foreign national residing in the U.S. as a lawful permanent resident (aka “green card” holder) is not required to apply for U.S. citizenship. That is, for whatever reasons or no reason, a green card holder has the option of living the rest of their life in the U.S. without seeking U.S. citizenship. Of course there are downsides to such a decision, such as having to renew a green card every 10 years, not having the right to vote, and having limits on the type of immigration petitions you can file on […]

2 01, 2017

After Much Confusion, CIS Will Accept Older Versions of Certain Forms Until February 21, 2017

By Richard Hanus|2017-01-02T10:06:57-06:00January 2nd, 2017|Categories: DHS / Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Employment-Based Immigration Law, Family-Based Immigration Law, General, Green Cards|

Published January 2, 2017 Two weeks ago, and without any prior notice, U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) abruptly announced that as of December 23, 2016 only the newest versions of various specified forms would be accepted, and filings received featuring the older versions of the forms would be rejected. But as of last week, realizing the unfairness of the sudden change in policy, CIS reversed course and advised it would establish a transitional grace period and accept the older versions of the following forms through February 21, 2017: I-90, I-102, I-129, I-129CW, I-129F, I-130, I-131, I-131A, […]

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