Thursday, June 11, 2009

July Visa Bulletin

http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_4512.html?css=print


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Monday, June 8, 2009

My Immigration Lawyer Made a Mistake

When your lawyer makes a mistake, this is commonly called Ineffective Assistance of Counsel. Immigration courts have typically recognized mistakes made by lawyers as justification to reopen a case or otherwise let the immigrant try to fix his or her case. Below is a release from the Attorney General addressing the current state of this issue.

Attorney General Vacates Compean Order, Initiates New Rulemaking to Govern Immigration Removal Proceedings

Attorney General Eric Holder today vacated the order issued in Matter of Compean by Attorney General Mukasey in January and announced his intention to initiate a new rulemaking proceeding for regulations to govern claims of ineffective assistance of counsel in removal proceedings.

"The integrity of immigration proceedings depends in part on the ability to assert claims of ineffective assistance of counsel, and the Department of Justice’s rulemaking in this area will be fair, it will be transparent, and it will be guided by our commitment to the rule of law," Holder said. "It is important that the
American people have the opportunity to participate in formulating our procedures in this area, and this new process will ensure they do."

On January 7, Attorney General Mukasey issued an order in Matter of Compean overturning Board of Immigration Appeals precedent and procedures governing assistance of counsel in removal proceedings. The order limited non-citizens’ ability to make claims of ineffective assistance of counsel in immigration
proceedings, and it did so without the full range of public input that a notice and comment rulemaking would have provided.

In the order issued today, Attorney General Holder directs the Executive Office for Immigration Review to initiate rulemaking procedures as soon as practicable to evaluate the existing framework for making claims of ineffective assistance of counsel, to solicit public comment, and, if appropriate, to issue a final rule.
By vacating the previous order, Attorney General Holder restores the procedures governing removal proceedings to those in place before the issuance of Attorney General Mukasey’s order.

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Tuesday, May 5, 2009

H1B Visas Still Available

According to the most recent count by USCIS, there are still thousands of H-1B visas available. Since qualified candidates can have their petitions filed relatively quickly, there is still time to apply for H-1b visa.


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Thursday, April 9, 2009

President Obama and Immigration

The New York Times is reporting that President Obama plans to begin addressing the country’s immigration system this year, including looking for a path for illegal immigrants to become legal. Click here for the rest of the story:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/09/us/politics/09immig.html?_r=2






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Tuesday, April 7, 2009

TN Visa

TN status is available under NAFTA for professional workers from Canada and Mexico if they are filling one of the following positions and have the necessary qualifications for the position. TN status may now be granted for up to three years.

Accountant Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or C.P.A., C.A., C.G.A. or C.M.A.
Architect Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Computer Systems Analyst Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or PostSecondary Diploma or PostSecondary Certificate, and three years experience
Disaster Relief Insurance Claims Adjuster (claims Adjuster employed by an insurance company located in the territory of a Party, or an independent claims adjuster) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree, and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims; or three years experience in claims adjustment and successful completion of training in the appropriate areas of insurance adjustment pertaining to disaster relief claims.
Economist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Engineer Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Forester Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Graphic Designer Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or PostSecondary Diploma or PostSecondary Certificate, and three years experience
Hotel Manager Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree in hotel/restaurant management; or PostSecondary Diploma or PostSecondary Certificate in hotel/restaurant management, and three years experience in hotel/restaurant management
Industrial Designer Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or PostSecondary Diploma or PostSecondary Certificate, and three years experience
Interior Designer Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or PostSecondary Diploma or PostSecondary Certificate, and three years experience
Land Surveyor Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial/federal license
Landscape Architect Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Lawyer (including Notary in the Province of Quebec) LL.B., J.D., LL.L., B.C.L. or Licenciatura Degree (five years); or membership in a state/provincial bar
Librarian M.L.S. or B.L.S. (for which another Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree was a prerequisite)
Management Consultant Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or equivalent professional experience as established by statement or professional credential attesting to five years experience as a management consultant, or five years experience in a field of specialty related to the consulting agreement
Mathematician (including Statistician) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Range Manager/Range Conservationalist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Research Assistant (working in a post-secondary educational institution) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Scientific Technician/Technologist Possession of (a) theoretical knowledge of any of the following disciplines: agricultural sciences, astronomy, biology, chemistry, engineering, forestry, geology, geophysics, meteorology or physics; and (b) the ability to solve practical problems in any of those disciplines, or the ability to apply principles of any of those disciplines to basic or applied research
Social Worker Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Sylviculturist (including Forestry Specialist) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Technical Publications Writer Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or PostSecondary Diploma or PostSecondary Certificate, and three years experience
Urban Planner (including Geographer) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Vocational Counsellor Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree

Medical/Allied Professional
Dentist D.D.S., D.M.D., Doctor en Odontologia or Doctor en Cirugia Dental; or state/provincial license
Dietitian Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Medical Laboratory Technologist (Canada)/Medical Technologist (Mexico and the United States) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or Post-Secondary Diploma or Post-Secondary Certificate, and three years experience
Nutritionist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Occupational Therapist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Pharmacist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Physician (teaching or research only) M.D. or Doctor en Medicina; or state/provincial license
Physiotherapist/Physical Therapist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree; or state/provincial license
Psychologist State/provincial license; or Licenciatura Degree
Recreational Therapist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Registered Nurse State/provincial license; or Licenciatura Degree
Veterinarian D.V.M., D.M.V. or Doctor en Veterinaria; or state/provincial license

Scientist
Agriculturist (including Agronomist) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Animal Breeder Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Animal Scientist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Apiculturist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Astronomer Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Biochemist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Biologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Chemist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Dairy Scientist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Entomologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Epidemiologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Geneticist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Geologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Geochemist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Geophysicist (including Oceanographer in Mexico and the United States) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Horticulturist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Meteorologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Pharmacologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Physicist (including Oceanographer in Canada) Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Plant Breeder Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Poultry Scientist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Soil Scientist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Zoologist Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree

Teacher

College Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
Seminary Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree
University Baccalaureate or Licenciatura Degree

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

No Immigration Reform by Obama Administration Expected Anytime Soon

Ever since Barack Obama became a viable candidate for the presidency, immigrant communities and activists have had increased hope for immigration reform that would help millions of undocumented immigrants remain in the United States.

But according to a story reported by Reuters, Vice President Joe Biden recently told Costa Rican leaders in a press conference that, essentially, immigration reform is not an urgent matter at this time. This, despite what was said during President Obama's election campaign that he supported comprehensive immigration reform.

This may be the first definitive statement on the matter to come out of the Obama administration. Until now, many were still holding out hope for immigration reform in the near future, despite the economic concerns of the country.

For the whole story, see http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSTRE52T7SE20090330

Monday, March 30, 2009

DREAM Immigration Law

DREAM Act re-introduced in Congress.

To amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to permit States to determine State residency for higher education purposes and to authorize the cancellation of removal and adjustment of status of certain alien students who are long-term United States residents and who entered the United States as children, and for other purposes.

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