The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) has updated its Policy Manual to provide guidance on the type of “published material” that persons applying for an Employment Based First Preference Immigrant Visa category (“EB-1”) can present as evidence when applying for the visa category. Persons with “extraordinary ability in the
Immigrant visa applicants who have a criminal history often face significant obstacles in being able to immigrate to the United States. Immigrant visa applicants who have been found guilty of a “Crime Involving Moral Turpitude” (“CMIT”) are ineligible to immigrate to the United States and obtain a “green card”. Even
The EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022 (“Act”) was passed by Congress and signed by President Biden on March 15, 2022. Most of the provisions of the Act will become effective 60 days from enactment, which will be the middle of May 2022. The Act includes many changes to
The doctrine of consular nonreviewability refers to visa decisions decided by consular officers at U.S. Embassies and Consulates cannot be appealed to courts within the United States. The doctrine applies very broadly to decisions made by consular officers whether they apply to foreign nationals who have been refused an immigrant
The Department of State (“DOS”) March 2022 visa bulletin continues to show EB-5 regional center visa categories (I5 and R5) unavailable (U) because the EB-5 regional center program remains expired. Read more: the regional center program (“Program”) having lapsed on June 30, 2021. Visas in non-regional center visa categories (C5
There has always been a challenge with some U.S. government offices incorrectly listing Vietnamese citizen’s names on government documents such as visas and Form I-551 “Green Cards” because Vietnamese passports list names in order of last name (or “family name” or “surname”) followed by middle name then first name. This
On January 5, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”), on behalf of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”), filed a motion to dismiss its appeal of a U.S. District Court’s ruling in the case Behring Regional Center LLC v. Alejandro N. Mayorkas, et al. (“Behring v. Alejandro”).
Six months have passed since the EB-5 Regional Center Program (“Program”) expired and Congress has still not taken any steps towards its renewal. Originally enacted in 1993, the Program was a pilot, or test, program and was never made permanent. The Program had been extended on a regular basis for
The COVID-19 Pandemic has in no doubt permanently altered the way business is done across many industries and professions. From international borders closures to internal movement control orders, activities and transactions which were once routine and seamless are now complex and difficult. Despite all of the hardship caused by the
Effective December 6, 2021, the United States Centers for Disease Control (“CDC”) has established new rules requiring international air travelers arriving in the United States to obtain a negative COVID-19 test within 24 hours of departure. Under the current rules, vaccinated international air travelers may present a negative test result
Good news for Vietnam EB-5 Investors, as the “Final Action Date” priority date on the Department of State’s April visa bulletin leaped forward by almost two months, from October 22, 2017 to December 15, 2017. The priority date indicates that any Vietnamese investors who filed their I-526 Petitions on or
A Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relatives, is filed with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) to establish a qualifying family relationship between a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (Green Card Holder) and a foreign national immediate relative (“Beneficiary”) . Submitting the Form I-130 is the first step
Visa Bulletin for March 2021 Priority Date Three weeks forward for Vietnamese EB-5 immigrant investors; China frozen; Taiwan and rest of the world current. The “Final Action Date” priority date for Vietnamese EB-5 investors moved forward three weeks in the Department of State March 2021 visa bulletin, from October 1,
United States President Joseph Biden has revoked former President Donald Trump’s Executive Order (“EO”) restricting certain immigrant and non-immigrant applicants from visa processing. Intended to protect U.S. jobs at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump issued an EO on April 23, 2020 suspending selected immigrant visa applicants which
Enterline and Partners is pleased to share that we were able to overcome a refusal for one of our clients who was successfully issued an EB-2 Immigrant Visa in the Philippines. Our client, a healthcare provider, was petitioned by a U.S. employer as a physical therapist. After the Form I-140
In June we wrote about the option of filing a Writ of Mandamus for EB-5 investors whose I-526 Petitions have been pending for a long time without a decision. In August 2020, Enterline and Partners assisted one of its clients to file a Writ of Mandamus for an EB-5 immigrant
Following the increase to the minimum investment in a targeted employment area, from US$500,000 to US$900,000 in November 2019 [see here, here and here], interest in the EB-5 immigrant investor visa significantly dropped in early 2020. Data from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) on quarterly filings indicated
Starting in January 2021, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) will replace the sticker that is currently issued to lawful permanent residents (“LPRs”) to extend the validity of their Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card (“Green Card”). The new document will be a revised Form I-797, Notice of Action
We have previously written about what lawful permanent residents can do if their Form I-551 “Green Card” has been lost, stolen, or destroyed and they are outside of the United States. In these articles, we have mentioned obtaining a travel letter or ‘Boarding Foil,” so they may return to the
United States President Donald Trump has extended an earlier Presidential Proclamation restricting certain immigrant and nonimmigrant visa categories from consular processing in response to the growing COVID-19 pandemic. The Executive Order (“EO”), which was first issued in April 2020, restricted certain immigrant visa applicants from receiving their visas for at
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