In listening to people (lawyers and non-lawyers) speaking about immigration I often think, like Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” So, I thought I would try to bring some clarity to some terms we use all the time (Lizzie B already handled the acronyms), which can actually be confusing or which can be misused.
Read moreOptions for Fine Artists Applying for a US Visa
I love that in New York City art is everywhere—there’s graffiti on the side of buildings; sculpture installations throughout the streets and parks; and a huge variety of galleries and museums with artwork ranging from modern multimedia exhibitions to Renaissance paintings.
Since we are based in a city that is a center of the art world, and we often work with some of the best of these artists, we wanted to highlight some immigration considerations in the context of the fine art world, namely for gallery and museum artists.
Read morePreclearance: Cleared for Takeoff
Preclearance, also commonly known as pre-flight inspection, is offered by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at select locations around the world and allows US-bound passengers to undertake all immigration, customs, and agricultural inspections prior to boarding the flight outside the US.
How is preclearance different than the “normal” post-flight inspection upon arrival in the US?
A preclearance inspection is essentially the same inspection that travelers would undergo at a US port of entry. The only difference is that it is conducted outside the US. The advantage is that preclearance provides for domestic-style arrivals at US airports. Generally no additional immigration/customs forms will need to be completed upon arrival in the US.
Where are preclearance sites located?
There are many preclearance locations all around the world in such countries as Canada, Bahamas, Bermuda, Aruba, Ireland, and the United Arab Emirates (and possibly one day in the UK). These locations are based on agreements between the US and the host country, which allows CBP to staff officers at host airports and facilitate the customs and immigration process for passengers prior to arrival in the US.
Immigration Wins and Losses
Navigating US immigration law can be daunting, complex, and, at times, frustrating—for both attorneys and foreign nationals. Immigration law changes and bureaucratic delays and hurdles can seem insurmountable. There are good and bad days for immigration cases, and today we take a look at some recent wins and losses in the world of immigration law.
Wins
Dario Guerrero Meneses is a third-year Harvard student. He is also an undocumented immigrant who left the US without travel authorization (effectively "deporting" himself) to take his dying mother to Mexico for alternative medical treatment. He said: "'I don't think I'd be able to forgive myself for letting her basically continue the decline in her condition[.]'" His mother died in August, and after being unable to reenter the US from Mexico for months, he was granted permission to return home, where he will have to reapply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) for "Dreamers."
Will immigration reform be passed? Everyone (including us) has been asking this question since the Senate passed their own comprehensive immigration reform bill, S. 744, back in June 2013. President Obama promised and then delayed executive action. But a newly-released draft solicitation by US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) possibly hints at good news. The USCIS "Request for Proposal" is seeking a vendor who can produce a minimum of four million blank cards per year for five years, and nine million in the early stage. These appear to be cards that would be used for Green Cards and employment authorization documents—suggesting possible major executive action regarding immigration reform. A USCIS official says the vendor proposal was sought "'in case the president makes the move we think he will,'" and that the agency has not yet committed to buying these materials.
The Obama administration announced "The Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program" that "would reduce the lengthy delays facing thousands of Haitians who have already been approved to join family members in the United States and become legal permanent residents." While this is not part of President Obama's executive action on immigration reform, he could potentially enact similar measures to deal with the lengthy wait times that many foreign nationals experience in waiting to join family members in the US.
Losses
The practice of immigration law has many challenges, but most attorneys (okay, pretty much all) will never need to bring their four-week-old infant child to immigration court. This, however, happened to attorney Stacy Ehrisman-Mickle when an immigration judge in Atlanta denied her request to delay a hearing that fell within her six-week maternity leave. With her husband working out of town and no family in the area, she had no choice but to bring her newborn child with her. The judge then "scolded her for inappropriate behavior and commented that her pediatrician must be appalled that she was exposing the baby to so many germs in court[.]" Ms. Ehrisman-Mickle filed a formal complaint against the judge that day.
Overstaying the visa waiver program is taken very seriously by immigration authorities. Ben Sangari, a British man with plans to invest $1.5 million in the Buffalo area, found this out when he was stopped for a speeding ticket and is now in an immigration detention facility in Batavia, New York. While in detention he married his fiancée, who is from Buffalo, but an ICE spokesman said: "'After conducting a comprehensive review of Mr. Sangari's case, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has chosen not to exercise prosecutorial discretion in this matter. Additionally, under the visa waiver program, Mr. Sangari is subject to mandatory detention and his case is not eligible for immigration court hearings."
In West Africa, the death toll from Ebola exceeds four thousand and the region's inadequate healthcare infrastructure is desperately struggling to deal with the crisis. Meanwhile in the US, Ebola fear is leading to hysteria and racism against Africans as well as backlash against immigrants from Mexico and Central America.
To end on a more positive note, kindergarten students in Texas won a competition to name a recently-adopted Mustang horse, as part of a program by the Laredo Sector Border Patrol. The horse's name: Bravo.
You Probably Shouldn't Say That....
When I hear some of the things foreign nationals say to immigration officers at the border when trying to gain admission to the US, I break out in a cold sweat. If the officer becomes overly “concerned,” or doesn't believe what he/she is hearing, a foreign national may be refused entry. I thought I would share a few examples and explain what might cause concern to an immigration officer.
Read moreDo I Need an Immigration Attorney?
Many people ask themselves this question when considering applying for work visas, Green Cards, or other immigration benefits. At first glance the immigration forms and instructions on the US Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) website seem relatively straightforward. Some even may have heard stories from friends or colleagues who successfully applied without hiring a lawyer. In this post, we consider different kinds of immigration benefits (along with more complicated deportation cases) and the reasons why one may wish to hire an attorney to assist them in the process.
Of course, as a lawyer working for a boutique immigration law firm, I’m biased; however, I also write from the perspective of a lawyer who has seen what happens when applicants attempt to apply pro se (without legal representation) for cases that are far from as simple as they seem. In a separate future post, we will discuss the dangers of hiring an “Immigration Consultant” or “Notario” and also the unique ethical obligations of attorneys.
First, let’s be clear: There is no legal requirement to be represented by a lawyer in immigration petitions and applications. A petition or application filed pro se will not automatically be rejected by a USCIS Service Center simply because it was not prepared by an attorney. Such petitions or applications will be subject to the same review and adjudication process that others filed by attorneys go through.
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