Jacksonville Immigration Attorney Blog

The once "standard" stamp that students entering the U.S. would receive from Customs and Border patrol (CBP) on their I-120 / DS-2019 is now being discontinued. As of on or about August 10, 2012, CBP will no longer stamp the I-20 / DS-2019 form for any students re-entering the U.S., upon completion of their foreign travel.

If some agencies still require a stamped I-20, a student can make an appointment with their local USCIS office via an info pass system to obtain a stamp. In addition, a student encountering problems because their I-120 is not stamped can either call 1-703-603-3400 or send an email to SEVP@dhs.gov.

The above contact information was provided by the CBP website and the information was released on or about September 5, 2012 to the general public.

Generally speaking, an immigrant should only have one alien number throughout the course of their immigration process and the same alien number should be placed on that applicant's naturalization certificate. These days, though, there have been some complaints online that applicants will receive one alien number on their employment card and then will receive a completely different alien number on their newly issued green card.

If you receive your green card and you notice that the alien number is a different one than the alien number that was previously issued to you on the employment card, you should take some action to ensure that the mistake is corrected. For instance, you can file a form I-90 and mark that there is a mistake on the green card resulting from USCIS error. In other words, check the box that says that a service error took place. You do Not need to attach a filing fee, but be sure to follow the instructions for the I-90 form.

However, some people do not want to mail in their newly issued green card. As a result, those individuals can write a letter to USCIS and request that the two alien numbers be merged into one file. Be sure to keep a copy of this letter and send it to USCIS via certified mail so that you can keep proof of mailing for your records. Please also call USCIS at 1-800-375-5283 after you mail the letter, to see if any action has taken place on merging your two files. It is best to keep records of your letter to USCIS, though, as you may have no record of the details of your phone call to USCIS.

Until you have a new green card issued with the correct alien number or you have knowledge that the two alien number files have been consolidated, be sure to list all alien numbers on future applications with USCIS, including address changes, for example.

The most recently issued Visa Bulletin has some good news for family category 2A, which is the category for lawful permanent residents filing for their spouses and / or children under 21 years old and unmarried. The current priority date for this category is now July 15, 2010. This means that applicants that filed their cases for their loved ones on or before July 15, 2010 have now reached their priority date.

It is important to note that just because USCIS approves the petition form, this alone does Not mean that the case is ready for processing. In order for the case to be processed and sent over to the U.S. Embassy, the petition form must first be approved AND the priority date must be current. The priority date system applies to lawful permanent residents filing for their spouse and children, but U.S. citizens filing for their spouses and children under 21 years old (and unmarried) do not have to wait for any priority date.

I just came back from a conference for immigration attorneys last week in Clearwater Beach, FL. One of the interesting topics discussed is the current practice of U.S. consular officers denying U.S. visas to potential applicants based on tattoos that they have. Some applicants with U.S. citizen wives have been denied green cards to the U.S. because of their tattoos, according to cases that were discussed at the conference I attended. This was interesting to me, because it seems like a subjective ground for denial. It also seems to somewhat conflict with our first amendment right to free speech and expression, as some have argued. People who like tattoos consider them as a form of art.

The State Department, however, disagrees and takes the position that they are now paying more attention to tattoos because they can be an indicator of an applicant's gang affiliation or past gang affiliation. In fact, some of the tattoos that have caused applicants to be denied include clown face tattoos, statements like smile now and cry later, face mask tattoos (i.e. theatrical face masks), obvious gang affiliation tattoos, "devil" face type tattoos, smiling face and frowning face tattoos, and three dot triangles (associated with "mi vida loca" or crazy life).

Most of these applicants are denied due to the stated ground of a possible affiliation with a gang or more generally a criminal organization. Many of the applicants denied for the above reason have No criminal history and many even deny having any previous gang membership. In the words of one of the men that was denied, he states that he likes tattoos but that does not make him a gangster.

In defense of the State Department, they state that tattoos are not being used soley as a reason to deny applicants, but rather tattoos are being used to determine if the applicant is linked with any gang membership.

I want to share this case with you, because I personally found it quite interesting. This is not a case that I have handled, but one that I heard about from Fox news Latino. The case involves a Mexican national who was previously ordered deported from the U.S. He has three children here in the U.S.

The Mexican national, Mr. Felipe Montes, was given legal permission to return to the U.S. so that he can physically appear for his court battle in North Carolina regarding fighting for custody of his three (3) biological children. Mr. Montes received permission to remain in the U.S. for ninety (90) days, based on Humanitarian grounds.

This case is interesting because it is the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that allowed him to re-enter the U.S. This case hopefully will give hope to people in similar situations to apply for Humanitarian permission to temporarily enter the U.S. Of course, a grant of humanitarian parole is in the discretion of the Officer.

In Mr. Montes' case, he has three U.S. citizen children with his U.S. citizen wife, and his wife remained in the U.S. while he was deported back in 2010. Unfortunately, his wife could not take care of those kids and the kids were placed in foster care where they were about to be adopted by foster families. Mr. Montes was the primary bread winner, and when he was deported, his wife would not financially support the children.

Thankfully, Mr. Montes was allowed to re-enter the U.S. so that he could fight for custody of his biological children, and according to his family law attorney, his presence was desperately needed at the hearing.

This case points to the reality that there are about 5,000 children of deported or detained immigrants currently being placed in foster homes, mainly due to the parents' not having the appropriate immigration status to remain in the U.S.

As part of my practice as an immigration lawyer for eleven years now, I have seen numerous cases with applicants that have several last names or different spellings of their last names. Some of my clients have a different last name in their passport than on their birth certificate translation, etc.

To end the confusion regarding which last name spelling or variation to include in the immigration paperwork, the Vermont Service Center (VSC) has provided a brief guidance in their Stakeholders newsletter. The following information applies to the following cases only: All I-129 cases (work visas, religious visa, fiancé visa, etc.), I-539, I-765 (employment card), and I-131 (travel document). This information does Not apply to green card applications.

The Vermont Service Center has indicated that regardless of what name the applicant places on the application form, the VSC Officer will list the applicant's name as spelled on the applicant's passport. The only exception provided to this basic rule is that the applicant's name will be changed to the name on the visa issued to the applicant, if this visa was issued subsequent to the passport. If there is no visa that was issued to the applicant subsequent to the passport, then the VSC will change the applicant's name as according to the passport provided by the applicant.

From previous experience, it is generally a good idea to have the passport contain the same name as the applicant's birth certificate and translation of the birth certificate. In this way, the confusion will be lessened as to the applicant's identity.

In any event, be sure to list ALL variations of names used in the appropriate box for other names used. Carefully placing all previous names used in this box will ensure the USCIS Officer that the applicant is being truthful as to their identity and exact name.

According to USCIS as released in the Vermont Service Center Stakeholder Newsletter issued on or about July 19, 2012, Form I-130 filed by a lawful permanent resident who later becomes a naturalized U.S. citizen will now automatically become upgraded once the petitioner becomes a naturalized U.S. citizen.

In the past, when a lawful permanent resident becomes a naturalized U.S. citizen, the petitioner would need to send USCIS a letter and a copy of their certificate to reflect their new status as a U.S. citizen. However, now the Vermont Service Center has upgraded their system by creating the program that tracks the petitioners' alien numbers and will automatically upgrade their status in the system once they become a U.S. citizen.

The difference is that a U.S. citizen does not have a waiting period when sponsoring their spouse or parent. A lawful permanent resident, however, does have a priority date when sponsoring their spouse and they will need to wait until their priority date becomes current before their application will be sent to the National Visa Center for processing to prepare the paperwork for the U.S. Embassy.

If however the Form I-130 has Already Been Approved, then you must notify USCIS and / or the National Visa Center of the upgrade in your status by providing a copy of the naturalization certificate.

USCIS has just announced that it has reached the H-1B maximum amount of visas available for year 2013. The next time period that H-1B's can be filed will begin on or about April 1, 2013, for an employment start date of October 1, 2013.

USCIS has issued a news release on the current number of H-1B visas that it has received for the FY 2013. As of May 11, USCIS has received approximately 36,700.00 H-1B regular cap visa applications. This number does not include the Master's cap H-1B visas applications. Of those Master's cap H-1B visa petitions, USCIS has received 14,800 applications as of May 11, 2012.

USCIS received almost 20,000 H-1B applications in just one month. As of April 6, 2012, for example, USCIS had only received 17,400 H-1B cap visa applications at that time.
For the H-1B regular cap cases, there are approximately 28,300 H-1B visas still remaining, for a total of 65,000 regular cap H-1B visas allowed for FY 2013. For the H-1B Master's cap, there remains about 5,200 H-1B visas available, for a total of 20,000 master's cap H-1B visas allowed. As you can from above, the H-1B visas may well run out within a month or two, so be sure to apply sooner than later if you are eligible.

Nationals of Brazil and China are recipients of a new policy enacted by the State Department that they are now welcome to visit the U.S. The State Department has enacted this new policy because it has realized that more visitors from China and Brazil mean more American jobs.

In Brazil, consular officers have issued 59 % more visitor visas this year than they did last year. This means that 555,000 visitor visas were issued during a period of time in the year of 2012, while only 350,000 visas were issued last year during the same period of time in Brazil. New Consulates were also opened in Belo Horizonte and Porto Alegre.

In China, the consular officers have issued 46 % more visitor visas than they did last year for the same amount of time. The State Department is now also considering adding Visa services in Wuhan, China.

In addition, the wait times for the application processed have also been drastically reduced. In Brazil, the wait times have been reduced to less than two weeks for their visa appointments. In China, the wait times have been reduced to five days (yes, 5 days) for an appointment at the U.S. Consulates in China.

The above is great news for Americans, since these tourists have money to spend at our local businesses, shops, restaurants, etc. We welcome this new policy.

The Department of Motor Vehicles, also known as DMV, has issued an update as part of their Liaison meeting. There are some interesting tidbits of information in that meeting, as I am sure many people are interested to know the types of documents needed for obtaining a driver's license.

Administrative Closure or Termination of Removal Proceedings:

The DMV liaison minutes indicates that it will accept Immigration Judges' Orders for Administrative Closure or Termination of Removal Proceedings as "proof of status." Presumably this means that applicants that have an original Order from an Immigration Judge showing Administrative Closure or Termination of removal proceedings are now eligible for a driver's license. This appears to be new, as previously the DMV employee would have needed proof of an employment card before the license could be issued. There is no mention of an employment card requirement in the liaison minutes notes.

The above is important, as hopefully thousands of people have been recipients of administrative closure, and so these individuals can now apply and receive a driver's license from the DMV.

Cancellation of Removal Applicants:

Applicants for cancellation of removal, who are in removal proceedings, usually need to show an employment card to obtain a driver's license. If they have a reason for not obtaining an employment card, a system has been put into place where the DMV can be contacted to explain why the applicant for cancellation of removal does not have an employment card but should still be eligible for a driver's license.

Syrian TPS:

The DMV has indicated that they have updated their systems to note that Syrian nationals are now part of the TPS program.

WHITE USCIS Receipts:

The DMV now accepts white USCIS receipts (Form I-797) as official proof. The white receipts are a new form of receipt issued by USCIS. The original receipts were printed on colored quality stock paper with the USCIS emblem present all over the form I-797. Now, some of the receipts are printed on ordinary white paper. The DMV has adjusted their policy to accept these white receipts as original receipts.

Until recently, if an applicant's naturalization petition was denied, he or she would be instructed to file the appeal with the USCIS office that made the Decision. Now, however, it appears that appeals of naturalization denials need to be filed with the USCIS lockbox in Phoenix, Arizona.

The USCIS denial letter should also contain an instruction as to where to file the appeal. All applicants only have thirty days to file the appeal, and so it becomes extremely important to file the appeal with the correct USCIS office in order to avoid missing the deadline.

Recently the above issue was addressed by the USCIS District Office in Chicago, Illinois. Specifically, the issue is whether a VAWA applicant who was approved as a self-petitioner and is now filing an adjustment of status petition is required to have obtained a divorce from the abuser, before the adjustment of status petition can be approved by USCIS. In other words, if the applicant has obtained VAWA status (under Violence Against Women Act) and filed a petition based on the abuse he or she suffered at the hands of a U.S. citizen abuser, does that applicant have to divorce the abuser to qualify for a green card?

The clear answer provided by the USCIS District Office in Chicago, Illinois is that a divorce decree is NOT required. In fact, in some VAWA cases the applicant still lives with the abuser and remains eligible for VAWA status. At the USCIS District Office in Chicago, Illinois, an Officer had requested a divorce decree, and if none could be provided, then the applicant was told that he or she needed to obtain a divroce before the adjustment of status could be approved.

The above issue was addressed at the liaison meeting, and the conclusion was that the above Officer would review the case again since a divorce decree is NOT needed before the case can be approved. Also, while the above issue was discussed for the USCIS District Office in Chicago, Illinois, the general policy indicated above should be correct for all USCIS District Offices.

The USCIS has released a notice that Syrian nationals may now apply for TPS starting on March 29, 2012 until the deadline of September 25, 2012. The notice initially stated that the deadline is September 30, 2013, but this is incorrect. USCIS has released a new notice that clarifies that the deadline is in September of 2012. It is a good idea to file sooner than later, given the confusion over the correct deadline.

Individuals who habitually resided in Syria and are without nationality are also eligible for TPS. All applicants must present proof of residence here in the U.S. on March 29, 2012. Applicants with a criminal record may not be eligible for TPS, so individuals who have a criminal record and wish to apply for TPS should seek legal counsel before filing for TPS.

Examples of other countries eligible for TPS include El Salvador, Sudan and South Sudan, Somalia, Honduras, Nicaragua and Haiti.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has, through the Office of Immigration Statistics, issued its estimate of how many illegal immigrants are residing in the U.S. The report indicates that there are approximately 11.5 illegal immigrants residing in the U.S. during in January of 2011. The Report further estimates that more than half of these illegal immigrants entered the U.S. during the years of 1995 and 2004, and that since 2007, it is unlikely that the illegal U.S. population has significantly increased.

The Report indicates that since 2007, there is no real significant increase in the number of illegal immigrants due to the U.S. suffering from high unemployment and due to the economy in Mexico improving. The Report indicates that despite the greater levels of border enforcement, fewer apprehensions are taking place. The Report attributes the lower number of apprehensions at the U.S. border being due to lower demand for Mexican nationals to enter the U.S. for employment reasons.

The number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. has not always remained the same. In 1980, the number of illegal immigrants doubled from 2 million to 4 million in the U.S. This number jumped to over 8 million by the year of 2000. The numbers indicated above reflect an approximation of illegal immigrants, and not immigrants that have authorization to remain in the U.S.