Ontario’s PNP Program Ramps Up

On April 22, 2020 the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) issued 26 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) under the Entrepreneur Stream (OINP:ES). Expressions of Interest (EOIs) received and scored by the OINP:ES between November 22, 2019 and April 17, 2020 were eligible for consideration for this ITA Round. ITAs were issued for EOIs that received a […]

President’s Signs Limited Temporary Suspension of Immigration

Washington, D.C., April 24, 2020: Citing the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation on Thursday which temporarily suspends immigration to the United States for 60 days. The full text of the Proclamation can be found here : whitehouse.gov The proclamation becomes effective on Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 11:59 PM (ET) and specifically restricts […]

What’s In the New Executive Order Suspending US Immigration?

Washington, D.C., April 22, 2020: The White House has still not released the Executive Order suspending immigration to the U.S. The President first announced this new measure by Tweet on Monday evening — apparently without prior coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, USCIS and Department of State. The text of the Executive Order was […]

US Temporarily Suspends Immigration to the US

Washington, D.C., April 20, 2020: President Trump by Twitter announced his intention to adopt an executive order that temporarily suspends all immigration to the United States. Observers expect the executive order to be signed on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. The President ostensibly is using this measure to bolster hiring of U.S. workers during the significant […]

Canadian immigration processing fees will increase on April 30

April 15th, 2020 Canada is increasing immigration processing fees, effective April 30, 2020. These increases are in accordance with percentage increases in Canada’s Consumer Price Index, and will be reviewed again in two years’ time. The following fee increases will take effect on April 30: Fees for principal applicants of non-business economic classes (Express Entry, […]

USCIS Historical Processing Time for EB-5 Petitions Improves

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently updated its historical processing time webpage which confirms that average I-526 processing times have dropped from an average of 19.8 months in FY 2019 to 12.6 months so far in FY 2020 (Oct. 1 to Jan. 31). USCIS has yet to update its current processing time webpage to […]

Canada Suspends Processing of Visitor Visas due to COVID-19

Ottawa, April 10, 2020—With the current travel restrictions in place, most foreign nationals are prevented from entering Canada, with some exemptions. With these restrictions, Canada is suspending processing of non-essential visitor visa applications. This allows Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to focus resources on critical services. This suspension also applies to some electronic travel […]

Ignacio Donoso, founding partner of Donoso & Partners, LLC, was again recognized in 2019 as one of the Top 25 Immigration Lawyers in the USA for EB-5 visas

Washington, D.C. – April 9, 2020: EB-5 Investors Magazine once again recognized Ignacio Donoso, founding partner of Donoso & Partners, as one of the Top 25 Immigration Lawyers in the United States for immigrant investor EB-5 visas. The magazine announced: “Proudly releasing our annual Top 25 issue of EB5 Investors Magazine! The most anticipated issue […]

USCIS Provides Narrow 60-Day Extension of Deadlines During Corona Crisis

Washington, D.C., April 2, 2020: In response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that it is adopting a measure to assist applicants and petitioners who are responding to requests for evidence (RFEs) and notices of intent to deny (NOIDs) dated between March 1 and May 1, 2020. For applicants and […]

COVID-19 Travel Restrictions Among the United States and Canada and Mexico

Washington D.C., April 2, 2020: The United States, Canada and Mexico agreed to limit travel across their respective land borders by foot, car, rail or ferry to “essential travel” beginning March 20, 2020 until April 20, 2020 (for now). The United States will not apply these restrictions to air travel. Essential travel includes: Citizens and […]