May 2016 Immigration Update: Key Changes & News Insights

May 2016

Published by the Law Offices of Alena Shautsova, 2908A Emmons Ave, Brooklyn, New York 11235

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Two hands holding a globe depicting Earth, emphasizing care for the planet.

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

NEWS FLASHES:

Filing I-130 Abroad By Military Petitioner

Children As Dependents For Immigration Purposes

Eb-4 Cap Is Reached For El Salvador, Honduras And Guatemala

How To File For Marriage Based Green Card

U.S. Immigration Fingerprints Abroad

NEW IMMIGRATION FEE SCHEDULE (connect with the PDF I attach please)

Tips for Depositions during an Employment Discrimination Case

Read More: at www.russianspeakinglawyerny.com and http://www.workharassmentattorneys.com/ to find answers to difficult questions employees face at work: how they need to complain, and who they need to let know regarding uncomfortable environment; when is the time to file a formal complaint?; how to resolve a conflict with an employer?… and more!

USCIS HELPS THOSE AFFECTED BY EARTHQUAKES IN ECUADOR, BURMA AND JAPAN

Author: New York Immigration lawyer Alena Shautsova

Image source: NY POST

Recent earthquakes and natural disasters affected thousands of nationals of Ecuador, Japan and Burma. While these regions have not been designated for Temporary Protected Status, USCIS promised to help nationals of these countries. What does that mean?

It means that first, a national or a citizen of these countries who is in the United States, still has to do his/her best to comply with the law and file all applicable forms, such as I-131 form for a parole, or I-539 form for change of status, or I-290 B form for motions to reopen/reconsider or an appeal. While some leniency in terms of meeting the deadlines can be afforded, without an initial effort, a person will have really hard time asking for forgiveness if the deadline is missed. However, if the deadline is missed and a person can demonstrate that he/she was affected by the natural disaster, USCIS will “help” by considering the reason and forgiving the failure to meet the deadline.

Second, USCIS will allow affected persons to extend their stay in the United States, or be re-paroled; or will waive an application fee; or will excuse a missed appointment, or will expedite consideration of certain applications depending on the person’s needs. An example of the expedited request may be a request to expedite an employment authorization for an F1 student, arguing extreme hardship. It may also be possible to expedite consideration of family-based petitions, so that the relatives from the affected regions would be able to travel to the US faster, or be paroled in. A humanitarian parole is a an excellent tool to bring somebody form the affected region to the United States without having to wait for the family petition to be approved or a visa be granted. An application for the humanitarian parole should be filed on form I-131. It still would take some time to receive the approval and go through all the “hoops”, but it may take only 30-45 days for a family member to arrive to the US, opposed to years.

A person affected by a natural disaster should apprise USCIS of that as soon as possible. While a natural disaster is not a ground for asylum in the United States, it may affect person’s ability to comply with a one year deadline. If, in fact, the one year deadline was missed as a result of the disaster, a person should be able to restore it.

SUCCESS STORY: ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS IS GRANTED AFTER MORE THAN 16 YEAR WAIT

Pedro (not his real name) came to our office on an advice of a friend. He has lived in the United States for as long as he could remember so to say, but did not have “papers.” He was not even sure if anything could have been done at that point but wanted to check. Ms. Shautsova asked Pedro how he came to the US, and he admitted that he crossed the border many years ago. He also stated that he tried applying for TPS long time ago, but something went wrong, he was not sure what it was. Ms. Shautsova asked him about his family ties in the United States, and he responded that all of his siblings are US citizens, and his mother is a permanent resident. Then, Pedro showed an old, almost falling apart piece of paper that decided his Immigration fate…It was a notice of approval of I130 filed by his mother many years ago, with the priority date… prior to April 30, 2001… Many Immigration practitioners (or at least I hope so) would understand that this was the key to Pedro’s adjustment or green card. Surprisingly, Pedro said that he saw Immigration lawyers prior to Ms. Shautsova, and all of them stated that they could not help him because of the illegal entry. They probably overlooked the old I-130 receipt, or were not aware of the 245(i) grandfathering relief the law provides to those who entered the country without inspection or remained here unlawfully if a family based or an employment based petition was filed for them prior to April 30, 2001. The rest was easy: luckily, Pedro did not get married, and his mother did not become a US citizen. This eliminated dangers of automatic revocation of the petition and petition’s “jumping” through different preference categories. At the adjustment interview, the officer carefully looked at Pedro, and his elderly mother, and said, with a smile, the “magic words” Pedro was waiting to hear for over a decade: “I approve your case…”