Increased Fines for Violations of Immigration Law as of August 2016
Penalties for violations of immigration law increased on August 1, 2016 after the Department of Justice issued an interim final rule as an inflation adjustment. The rule increased fines for Form I-9 paperwork violations, for engaging in unfair immigration-related employment practices such as discrimination, document abuse and document fraud, and for knowingly hiring or continuing […]
Read more →| Posted in EAD, Employment Authorization, Entrepreneurs, Green Card, H-1B, L-1, O-1, OPT, Silicon Beach, U.S. Immigration, USCIS, Work Visa |
Options for UK and British Citizens to Immigrate to the United States after Brexit
On June 23, 2016, citizens of the United Kingdom held a referendum to determine whether the UK should leave the European Union – known as the Brexit referendum. White there were fierce advocates for both sides, the world expected that voters would choose to stay in the EU. However, the unexpected happened and the majority […]
Read more →| Posted in E-2, Entrepreneurs, Fiance Visa, Green Card, H-1B, Investors, L-1, LGBT, Students, U.S. Immigration, USCIS |
Using K1 Fiance Visas to Help You and Your Loved Ones
K-1 visas, or fiancé visas as they are frequently referred to, are one of the tools utilized to bring loved ones into the country if they are not already related to you. The purpose of K-1 visas, according to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is “to bring a foreign national fiancé(s) living abroad […]
Read more →| Posted in Consular Processing, Employment Authorization, Fiance Visa, U.S. Immigration |
How the Legalization of Same-Sex Marriage Nationwide Impacted Immigration Law
Almost a year has passed since June 26, 2015, when the United States Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the fundamental right to marriage is constitutionally guaranteed to same sex couples. At the time, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote that gay couples have “the fundamental right to marry.” This is an especially momentous occasion […]
Read more →| Posted in Fiance Visa, Green Card, LGBT, U.S. Immigration, USCIS |
What to Expect in With the FY2016 H1B Visa Lottery
As you probably know, Congress allocates 65,000 H-1B visas every fiscal year plus an additional 20,000 visas for beneficiaries who received a U.S. master’s degree or higher. The window for petitioners/employer to file an H-1B petition this fiscal year is April 1, 2016 and, assuming that the number of applications exceeds the quota, USCIS will […]
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Employment Authorization for spouses of H-1B Holders in H-4 status
As of May 2015, spouses of H-1B visa holders who are in H-4 status may be eligible to apply for employment authorization if the H-1B spouse’s employer has an approved I-140 petition or if the spouse is in the 2nd H-1B extension under AC21. In either of these cases, H-4 spouses can file an I-765 […]
Read more →| Posted in Employment Authorization, H-1B, U.S. Immigration, Work Visa |