H-4 Dependent Spouses Will be Eligible for Work Permits After May 26, 2015

Federal Judge Temporarily Halts Executive Action

On February 16, 2015, a Federal Judge in Texas granted a temporary injunction which stops implementation of President Obama’s recent executive action which sought to grant relief from deportation to up to 5 million undocumented immigrants. The Federal Judge’s ruling was based on a lawsuit...

USCIS Announces New Form G-28 To Be Released Soon

Today, USCIS announced by email that it will soon release an updated Form G-28 Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative. Form G-28 allows USCIS to verify that an applicant is duly represented by an attorney. USCIS stated that it is currently making...

February 2015 Visa Bulletin Warns of China Cut-off Date in EB-5

The U.S. Department of State recently issued the Visa Bulletin for the up-coming month of February 2015. The February 2015 Visa Bulletin continues to show that the EB-5 visa category is current and available for Citizens of China. As expected, the U.S. Department of State introduced...

I-526 Processing Time Increases to 14.7 Months

USCIS released data today indicating that its processing time for I-526 visa petitions increased to an average of 14.7 months, from an average of 13.2 months during September, October and November of 2014. At the recent EB-5 Stakeholder Engagement at which Ignacio Donoso participated in person,...

News Brief on Executive Immigration Order

On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced a series of executive actions aimed at cutting down on illegal immigration at the border, prioritizing the deportation of criminals, not families, improving access to visas for high skilled researchers and entrepreneurs to grow the U.S. economy, and...

New NVC Policy: Applicants can submit photocopies in place of original documents

As of November 12, 2014, the National Visa Center (NVC) no longer requires applicants to submit original documents with their immigrant visa cases. Instead, the NVC now accepts photocopies of all original documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, and police certificates. Applicants are now...

NVC no longer requiring original civil documents

The DOS has issued a public notice that it will cease requiring original civil documents of applicants for NVC processes of approved IV cases. After November 12, 2014, only copies of civil documents are required to be delivered to the NVC. The applicants will bring their...

Updated Visitor Visas for Chinese Citizens Permit Longer Validity

The United States and China to Extend Visas for Short-term Business Travelers, Tourists, and Students NOVEMBER 10, 2014 Starting on November 12, the United States and the People’s Republic of China will reciprocally increase the validity of short-term business and tourist visas and student and exchange visas...