This week, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security held a hearing entitled, “Asylum Fraud: Abusing America’s Compassion?”. Witnesses testified to members of the committee over the concern that there is an increase in people submitting fraudulent asylum applications attempting to take advantage of a generous system in a country known as a […]
USCIS has implemented a new process to receive and adjudicate applications for civil surgeon designation centrally at the National Benefits Center. This process change requires physicians seeking civil surgeon designation to file a formal application at a USCIS Lockbox. Centralizing the civil surgeon application process will: Improve the application intake process; Enhance USCIS’s ability to […]
By John Gossart Jr. It remains to be seen whether the United States Congress can muster the responsibility and will to do what is right and achieve comprehensive immigration reform this year. Republican leadership in the House of Representatives continues to hold immigration reform hostage, most recently justifying inaction by blaming President Obama’s alleged track […]
In 2007, Congress passed a bipartisan appropriations bill that discretely embedded several riders and conditions on federal funding allocations that have had a tremendous effect on immigration proceedings in the United States ever since. One such provision in the statute firmly requires Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to maintain a minimum quota of 34,000 immigrants […]
April 1, 2014 is the first day on which U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) may receive H-1B specialty worker petitions for the next fiscal year that begins on October 1, 2014. To qualify for the H-1B category, the position offered must be a specialty in which a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent is normally […]
By Danielle Beach-Oswald Due to a violation of human rights in 2008, a female immigrant has received a settlement of $490,000. After being detained, Ms. Villegas’ hands and feet were shackled to her hospital bed while giving birth. Six days prior to her hospitalization, a state police officer realized Villegas was illegally residing in the […]
By Danielle Beach-Oswald As most of us involved in the immigration field are aptly aware, the new immigration reform bill was recently approved by the Senate and on October 2nd, and the bill was finally introduced in the House of Representatives. If passed, the immigration reform bill will make a climatic and transformative impact on […]
By Danielle Beach-Oswald On November 20, 2013, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a News Release announcing proposed changes to international student programs. According to ICE’s website, “ICE is proposing changes to the requirements governing its Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) that are intended to improve management of international student programs and increase […]
By Danielle Beach-Oswald Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is an available form of temporary, humanitarian relief for those who are in the United States from countries that the currently facing ongoing armed conflict or an environmental emergency. According to USCIS, “The Secretary of Homeland Security may designate a foreign country for TPS due to conditions in […]
