Immigration News & Updates
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eNewsletter POSTING DATE: September 18, 2017
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Immigration News & Updates eNewsletter © 2011 - 2017
For questions about U.S. Residency, Green Cards and Immigration Visas, Visit our Website at: www.ImmigrateToday.com or call our office at: (954) 382-5378
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Immigration
Questions & Answers
This Week's Immigration News
Question: I had a visitor visa to the U.S. and came to visit my girlfriend last year. The problem is that I miscalculated my time in America and stayed two days over the deadline. I did not know this was so serious until I tried to come to visit my American girlfriend recently (who is now my fiancée) but once I arrived in the U.S., the immigration officer said my American visa was terminated and I had to get back on the plane and come home. He also told me that I had to apply for a new visa at the embassy. That was such a bad experience and now I don’t know what to do. My fiancée and I want to get married, so she is going to come here to Colombia to get married, but we are not sure what happens after that. We need to know what we have to do so that I can travel back to the U.S. with her when she comes back home after we are married. Its so hard to get a straight answer, everybody is telling me something different. Thanks
Florida USCIS Announces Special Services To Victims of Hurricane Irma
Answer: Yes, unfortunately, under Immigration regulations, once a foreign visitor overstays their period of authorized stay in the U.S. - by even one day, once they leave the U.S., they are not allowed to re-enter on their current Visa and are instead required to apply for a new B1/B2 Tourist visa at the U.S. Consulate in their home country. And, since the visitor overstayed, once they apply for a new visa at the U.S. Consulate abroad, the Consular officer is very likely to deny the request, effectively closing all possibilities for legally travelling to the U.S. again. The exceptions are immigrant visas, such as a Fiancée Visa and Spousal Visa (for foreign Fiancées & Spouses of U.S. Citizens). However, foreign Fiancées and Spouses are not immediately issued a Visa which allows them to travel to the U.S. until all the technical processing is complete, which takes 8+ months or more.
In your case, since your U.S. Citizen Fiancée is going to fly to Colombia to marry you, once she returns, a Spousal Immigrant petition can be filed to initiate the process of bringing you to the U.S. as a U.S. Resident (Green Card holder). However, you won’t be allowed to immediately return to the U.S. along with your new wife, and instead you have to wait in Colombia for consular processing.
We can assist you in taking care of your Residency process so that your case is properly and professionally prepared and filed, and you are able to immigrate to the U.S. as quickly as possible under USCIS and Consular processing procedures.
Immigration How To:
How Do I Know What Happens At My Medical Exam?
In light of the severe damage and displacement caused by Hurricane Irma last week, the USCIS in Florida is making special accommodations to Immigrants in the state, on a case-by-case basis to assist those who were affected, including those who lost their Green Cards and other vital immigration documentation, who were not able to attend biometrics and other appointments scheduled at local USCIS offices due to the storm, who were not able to respond to USCIS requests for evidence or file extensions or request for change of status prior to deadlines, emergency requests for work and travel permits.
This Year’s Visa Lottery called DV-2019 begins on Tuesday, October 3, 2017 at 12:00 noon, Eastern/Standard time (EST), and concludes on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 at 12:00 noon. The Depart of State has released instructions for the DV 2019 lottery which explains eligibility and procedures for applying online.
In a hopeful sign, Trump and top Democrats Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer met last week on Thursday to discuss a possible deal on DACA which would protect Dreamers and make the law permanent. Pelosi and Schumer announced the deal following the meeting, but the Whitehouse immediately issued a statement that no deal had been made, just discussions.
Trump and Democrats May Cut Deal On DACA
Now That USCIS Medical Exam Requirements Have Changed - Find Out More About The New Requirements And How To Locate An Authorized Physician
The USCIS has an enhanced resource webpage to assist Immigrants in locating local doctors authorized to perform medical examinations required for Green Card applicants.
Visit the new USCIS webpage: USCIS Medical Examination
Helpful Immigration Tips You Can Use
Read The State Department’s Visa Bulletin
Released For October 2016
The Visa Bulletin released by the State Department each month details the current waiting times for Immigrant Visas in Family and Employment Immigrant Petition cases.
You can view the current Visa Bulletin by clicking on the link below:
The improved resources provide Immigrants with information including:
1) What to expect during the medial exam
2) Checklist of documents to bring to the examination and
3) Tools to easily locate authorized doctors by zip code, driving directions and local transportation.
Immigrants affected should make an Infopass appointment at their local USCIS and be able to explain exactly how they were personally negatively impacted by Hurricane Irma.
This Year’s Visa (Green Card) Lottery
Begins On October 3rd, 2017!
Countries NOT eligibility this year are: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible. If you were born in one of these ineligible countries, you can use your spouse’s country or if neither of your parents was born there, and they were not legal residents of that country at the time of your birth, you can still qualify by using the country of birth of either of your parents to apply.
To qualify, applicants must:
1): Be born in a qualifying country or qualify by claiming a parent or spouse’s eligible country, and
2): Meet the education/work experience requirement by having either: at least a high school education or equivalent, or two years of work experience within the past five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of qualifying training or experience. Only one entry is allowed for each person and those with more than one entry will be disqualified. See the DV-2019 Questions and Answers for more details.
Remember, the DV Lottery is always FREE and no paper applications are accepted. Lottery applications are required to be filed online through the official Department of State DV Lottery Website. Once the online entry is made, applicants receive a Confirmation Number, which allows them to return to the official government website and check the status of their entry through the “Entrant Status Check” at: dvlottery.state.gov beginning on May 1, 2018. There will be no other official notification. The program does not send notification emails or letters and never directs applicants or winners to wire money under any circumstances. Beware of websites claiming to be official Lottery sites and paralegals, which charge a fee for entry, since they are not affiliated with the official U.S. Department of State and may be scams. Only sites that end in .gov are government sites. Apply yourself – its FREE and easy!
Applicants should also have Internet Explorer 8 browser or later in order to submit your application without technical difficulties.
Get More Information on applying:
Question: I am 26 yrs old and single and my mom got her American citizenship through her husband and sponsored me 3 yrs ago. I am trying to make plans for my future, so I want to get an idea of how much longer I need to wait to immigrate to the U.S.. I saw an immigration website that says it only takes 1 yr since I’m unmarried and being sponsored by american parents, is that true?
Answer: As the adult, single child or a U.S. Citizen parent, you are in the F1 Immigration category. It will take about 7-8 years for an Immigrant Visa to become available. The USCIS website only provides processing time for the I-130 petition approval, but you still need to wait for an immigrant visa to be available in the F1 category. You can see current visa availability by visiting the current Visa Bulletin website and looking for F1. I hope this is helpful. You can always call my office for free information if you have any questions.
Trump has indicated since, that he is open to more discussions on protecting Dreamers, however, Trump has a long history of completely changing course and reversing his position on an issue, therefore Dreamers should not rely on such reports in the news until an agreement is in writing and signed. Republican Party reaction to a purported Trump deal with the Democrats was swift, bringing immediate condemnation from congressional leaders and his base supporters. With such opposition from his own party and supporters to Trump striking a deal with Democrats on DACA, it’s not at all certain that a real agreement will emerge, but let’s be hope for the best…stay tuned.
