ImmigrationAmerica.org

I've always loved doing immigration waivers.  I enjoy getting to really know a person and their family.  I love the creativity involved in digging deep and finding ways to make the immigration case strong.

Recently, the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) made a decision (unpublished) that a combination of substance abuse, emotional instability, and potential financial hardship were sufficient to constitute extreme hardship to a US Citizen (USC) spouse of a foreign national.  This prospective immigrant had "unlawful presence" - meaning staying in the US without permission.  This is something many foreign nationals have, for which they need a waiver in order to adjust their status (become a green card holder).

I worked and lived for a number of years in Miami, Florida, where the housing bubble burst. Hit first and hit hardest, the housing market there has yet to even begin to recover. Interestingly, the most novel and effective solution to this problem lies in immigration.

What Will Happen All the Way Through the Green Card Experience

The whole system for receiving your green card is now exceedingly complicated and as a consequence as long as you are lacking familiarity with those procedures, the green card process actually is just a little intimidating. That will undoubtedly be true as long as American English just isn't one's main language. Usually the green card experience may differ to some degree depending on the category of green card you are receiving. A large proportion of people today are obtaining some type of green card via her/his business organization or being married, although there are really a couple of alternate methods, like through the green card lotto, financial investment, or perhaps filing for asylum.

How to Remove the Conditions on Your Residency: From Conditional Residence to Permanent Residence

In case you had been married to a US citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) for less than 2 years at the time your application to become a Permanent Resident of the United States was approved, then that makes you a Conditional Resident of the Unites States. The reason why you hold a Conditional Resident status is that you will still need to prove that defrauding the United States immigration laws was not what motivated you to get married. You must prove you married for love, not just to get US residency.

EB-5 Visas: Green Card Immigration Laws for Investors in the United States

There is an immigration law that provides green cards to foreigners who invest $500,000 to $1 million in an enterprise that creates new jobs. There are private firms developing two major New Jersey state-sponsored projects, which are planning to take advantage of this law.

How to Get a Green Card for Your Parents

As a United States citizen you may help your parents in coming to the US by obtaining a green card. This will help them become permanent citizens. By doing this you will be “sponsoring” your parents.

One out of Every Four Engineers and Scientists that Live in the United States is an Immigrant

Just so you know, TechAmerica Foundation has discovered that for every 4 engineers or scientists that live in the United States, you will always find that one of them was not born in the US. When this discovery was made public by TechAmerica Foundation, is also appealed to Congress, in the spirit of making the immigration process more effective. TechAmerica wants to improve the processes that workers in the technology industry have to go through to obtain visas.

Once upon a time, green cards didn't expire. Now, green cards are only valid for 10 years and must be renewed.  Even if you have one of the older green cards with no expiration date, you still must renew it immediately.

For all the information about how to renew your green card, click HERE!

Holiday Travel: How to Leave the United States on a Trip if you are an Immigrant

It is very important to assess the papers that you carry with you, especially if you are a foreign national living in the United States and wish to temporarily leave the United States on a trip. This is because your immigration status will determine the papers that you will be required to carry with you whenever you make such a trip.

Yesterday, the New Jersey Journal reported that Senator Chuck Schumer "has a new wrinkle he hopes will fool an American public that has for more than a decade rejected rewarding law breakers."  This "wrinkle," he claims is Schumer's two claims that 1) Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) is still alive and 2) that immigrants create jobs.

So you've decided to enter the diversity visa lottery, most commonly known as the green card lottery.  That's great! But what are your chances of winning?

If you applied for the diversity visa lottery last year, you should check to see if you won! The results are now available.  They became available for you to check on July 15, 2011, and will be available until June 30, 2012.  Check HERE to see if you won!

The US government, like most governments, is somewhat slow and bureaucratic.  We announced yesterday that the 2013 diversity visa lottery, known commonly as the green card lottery, is now open and taking applications. However, it will be nearly a year before you find out if you won the lottery!

The Diversity Visa Lottery is OFFICIALLY OPEN!  As of a few minutes ago, the US government opened up for applications to the green card lottery program.  You have one month to apply.  Don't wait until the last minute!

The diversity visa lottery, otherwise known as the green card lottery, is opening up for applications in just a few days! On October 4, 2011 at noon Eastern Daylight Time (EDT - which is GMT - 4 hours), you can apply for a green card through the diversity visa lottery. Yesterday, we posted about how to know if you qualify for the diversity visa lottery. But do you need a lawyer to help you apply for the green card lottery, or can you do it yourself?

The numerous forms of visas, combined with so many options for coming over to the USA may have your brain spinning. You'll discover a multitude of potential visas, in addition to over a dozen other ways get yourself residency in the U.S.. In this post, you will find several details that will help you pick which visa is the best for you.

Friday, September 9, 2011.  It is only two days away and there are many people who are rushing to meet this deadline.  That's because the US and its IRS long-arm is reaching into your bank accounts, no matter where in the world you live.  You have only until this Friday to file your back-taxes for the last 5 years, if you want to receive an amnesty for failing to file previously.

The diversity visa lottery, otherwise known as the green card lottery, is opening up for applications in just a few days! On October 4, 2011 at noon Eastern Daylight Time (EDT - which is GMT - 4 hours), you can apply for a green card through the diversity visa lottery. But how do you know if you qualify?

There are many types of visas along with so many choices for ways to come over to the United States of America that your mind could very well be spinning. There are dozens of potential visas, and additionally over a dozen other ways to get legal permanent residency. You can find several different criteria that will help you pick which visa is correct for you.

The system for receiving your own green card could be extremely tricky and so long as you're not at ease with it, the green card procedures actually are somewhat aggravating. That is truly your situation as long as American English is not your first language. The American green card experience varies to some extent based on the category of green card you are getting. The large majority of immigrants are making the effort to be given some type of green card by way of her/his corporation or being married, even though there are alternate approaches, like due to the green card lotto, attempting to obtain refugee status, or perhaps investing money.

I find many people asking me, "How much does it cost to renew a green card?"  The answer is: It currently costs $365 to renew your green card, which you must mail in with your Form I-90. You may also have to pay $85 for biometrics. All money must be paid in check or money order made out to the “U.S. Department of Homeland Security.”

So it will either cost you $365 if you have done biometrics recently or it will cost you $450 if you have not done biometrics recently.

You can download Form I-90 for FREE here!

I wanted to share with everyone a brief update on the subject of the green card lottery, which is officially called the Diversity Visa Lottery.

The entry registration period for the 2012 Diversity Visa Lottery has ENDED.  The US government is not accepting any more applications for it.  However, the 2013 green card lottery entry period should open soon.  We expect it to open up in the October-November time period, so keep checking back for more information.

Has an email stating that you have won the Green Card lottery arrived in your inbox? Has the email proceeded to request you to send or transfer money? If not you, has it happened to someone you know? The sender of such emails is attempting to steal your money. Please do not send anything to them!

There are 3 ways to get an investor visa:

1. Invest $1,000,000 in a company & create 10 direct jobs in 5 years.
2. Invest $500,000 in a company in a rural or high unemployment zone & create 10 direct jobs in 5 years.
3. Invest $500,000 in a regional center & create 10 direct or indirect jobs in 5 years.

EB-5 visas are a really hot topic right now. I've worked for and with some of the biggest players in the EB-5 immigration attorney competition to get clients. But then, what attorney wouldn't want clients with that kind of money to risk?

We recently posted a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page for Green Card Renewals.  It's been getting good feedback, so I thought it may be helpful to our readers if we posted something more about it with a little more detailed information.

See, for some reason people seem to think that renewing your green card is going to be a long, hard, and scary process.  The green card process can be pretty scary for many people... it seems like you're being given a difficult time at every turn.  You have to fill out a pile of paperwork, go through interviews, and sometimes wait years to finally get your green card.

The whole procedure of receiving a green card to America can be somewhat challenging, so long as you lack familiarity with this process. This happens to be especially true if English is not really your first language. The green card experience may differ in a few ways based upon the classification of green card you're hoping to try to get. Lots of applicants are making the effort to secure their green cards thanks to their business enterprises or being married; however, there are certainly a handful of alternate approaches, like via investing money, submitting an application for refugee status, or perhaps the green card lottery.

Earlier than 1989, after you were given your permanent resident card it continued to be valid forever. Sadly, following 1989, green cards remained valid only for ten years. If you've got one of those old LPR ("Lawful Permanent Resident") cards, you have to renew your green card before its expiration. Should you have an old green card, you have to renew it due to the fact that the prior versions aren't good any more. The process is quite easy once you learn all the steps.

In order to get one of the common temporary worker visa or one of thepermanent worker visas, in most cases you must have a degree.  But what exactly is a bachelor’s degree? Just because you went to college in your home country and were awarded the degree doesn’t mean it’s up to US immigration’s standards.

If you have a labor certification process going on and you are trying to get anemployment-based green card or visa, you’re probably starting to realize just how important proving your education is.  If you don’t do it correctly, you might not get approved! This becomes especially important when you’re getting a green card through the EB-2 or EB-3 categories.

In immigration, it's important to remember to always tell the truth!  Lying on an application or in an interview will come back to haunt you eventually.  USCIS officers are specially trained to look for lies and to identify them.  It is better to just come clean and tell the truth, with remorse, if necessary. 

The health care reform bill has been signed into law by President Obama, and now Congress can focus on immigration reforms. Congress’s previous inaction has led the President to respond by taking matters into his own hands and using his executive power to effect change. While his actions have infuriated some people, they are actually exactly what this country needs.

If you're looking for an immigration attorney, usually you pay for what you get.  Generally, if you find a super-cheap attorney, you're going to be hit with lots of extra fees later (so you really end up paying more) and/or your case won't be handled properly and you'll end up with more problems down the line.

If you can't afford to hire a private immigration attorney, you may want to look around in your area for organizations that do work pro bono.  Pro bono is the word lawyers use to mean "for free" or "for charity."  In some states, lawyers are required to do a certain amount of pro bono work (in Florida the recommended amount is 20 hours/year) while in others it's strictly volunteer.