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H1B nonimmigrant visa petition may be filed starting April 1st 2016. LCA cannot be submitted earlier than six months and therefore you must put the starting date on the LCA before October 1st, 2016. Regarding US degrees, one must submit proof by way of an official of the school: dean, registrar, etc. There are regulations that extend the authorized stay of all F1 students under the Cap Gap exemption. Be very clear with the attorney working on your case as to the kind of position that you’re applying. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob Sapochnick, your host of You Ask, We Answer, my immigration lawyer podcast. I’m excited to record this episode because we are now in January 2016 and just a few months away from the H1B filing season. And so I wanted to — in a series of podcast episodes, talking about what needs to be done before you can file for the H1B visa. Today, I just want to talk about some general filing tips that are really important to know months in advance. As you know, the H1B nonimmigrant visa petition for [F1 00:00:46] 2017 which is basically starting in October 1st, 2016 all the way through September 30th 2016, may be filed starting April 1st 2016. This is just a few months away. Some important things to consider: People are wondering how they can give their Labor Condition Application filed before April 1st, 2016. Because if you wait for the last minute, if you wait for April 1st, then it may be too late to file and you may not be able to get your numbers in the lottery. Since we are not able to submit the Labor Condition Application earlier than six months prior to the beginning date of the period of intent and employment, we must put the starting date on the Labor Condition Application before October 1st, 2016 if we want to be able to get an LCA in hand before the filing period. So for example, you can have a certified Labor Condition Application that has a start date of September 15, let’s say, 2016 but that LCA date cannot be longer than three years from the start date. So in this example, the end date will be September 15, 2016 which is fine because even though you lose a few weeks from the LCA, you can still file it earlier which is really the key here in this application. So that’s one little tip about how to file a Labor Condition Application before April 2016. You basically make it — you start it earlier and this way, for starting date of September instead of October 1st, and while you lose a couple of weeks, you still have a certified LCA to be able to use in the filing of the case in March. Some people also ask me what if the US degree is not going to be awarded before March 31st, 2016. Some people are in school right now, they’re waiting to graduate but they may not have the actual degree. We know that the USCIS has approved petitions for foreign nationals that have earn degrees from US institutions where the foreign national has completed all the requirements for the degree. And according to the law, consider to have earned that degree. But the degree has not been confirmed. You must submit evidence that the foreign national has completed all the requirements for the degree from an official of the school who is qualified to provide that information. So typically, it will be a Dean or Registrar, something like that. If we have that document stating this particular — that you’ve earned and you satisfied all the requirements — we should be able to use that short of an official degree and this way allowing to file your case before April 1st. Other people ask if multiple identical petitions can be filed for the same foreign national. Again, this is important because people are considering what you do if there’s a lottery and how they can overcome that. The USCIS will deny or revoke multiple petitions filed by employer for the same H1B employee that is completely unauthorized but you feel considering several jobs. So let’s say you’re looking at five companies and you had these five companies committed to filing H1B’s for you, that’s good because, you know, one of these companies may be selected in the lottery and you can actually proceed with them. It’s a legitimate way to do that. People are trying to get multiple job offers and commitment to file H1B’s and I definitely don’t see any problem with that. Another thing that people ask me about the H1B preparation period is if, for example, if you’re a student and you’re a student nonimmigrant status, are you going to be able to stay in United States if your F1 status expires before October 1st, 2016? As you know, we file the petition on April but then again, you can’t work until October 1st. And so there are regulations that extend the authorized stay of all F1 students under the Cap Gap exemption, as long as you file this before April 1st and your OPT starts before that time as well, you should be able to get your OPT extended as well. So there are some things you can do. When do we need to file those petitions? USCIS will receive petitions until they determine they have receive more than a maximum allowed under the H1B cap. And so typically we know we want to get them in on April 1st until they tell us they can’t receive any more cases. Again, every year with the lottery, things change a little bit but typically they leave it open for about a week after April 1st. Filing the case premium is not going to increase your chances of getting in the lottery but it’s always recommended to do that if you can because you have at least the chance to get the answer sooner and dealing with premium processing seems to be a bit easier because we can fax them and just a bit of easier communication. Few last minute tips. I want to make sure that cases are prepared on time. Make sure that you have your degree evaluations prepared in advance and to leave it to the last minute. Make sure that you have all the documents translated from foreign educational institutions. If you’re looking for a job, make sure you have the job offer secure on time and a commitment to file your case probably by beginning of February so we have enough time to prepare your cases. The most important thing is be very clear with the attorney working on your case as to the kind of position that you’re applying that many, many changes under immigration regulations to what positions qualify for H1B and these things change every year. And so make sure that you understand and your lawyer understands how to fit you within what is allowed and what worked in the past to increase the chances of you getting this H1B. So there’s a few tips I wanted to share. We’re going to do more of these episodes as we come closer to April. You ask, we answer, simple. This is Jacob and we’ll see you at our next episode.

Applying for green card can be family-base or employment-based Reasons for the denial can be health-related, criminal-related, security-related, public charge, immigration crimes, not able to meet requirements, and not showing up to immigration appointments. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody. Well, welcome to another episode of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. You ask, we answer, simple. Today, I wanted to tackle a general topic that people ask all the time. They want to know what are the main reasons green card applications might be denied. So, permanent residency, green card in the common name, we have family-based and we have employment-based. The common reasons that when you apply for permanent residency may result in a denial of your application. There are quite a few reasons and I think it’s important to understand them because as you venture on the journey, you may want to be prepared. These are reasons that both the US Immigration and the US Embassy’s State Department Consulate consider before they issue a final approval on an application. So, first reason can be health-related. As you know, before you get to adjustment of status or the final step in the green card, both in the US and outside of the US or the US Embassy, you have to go through a medical example. Medical example report is required for admission as a green card holder and this is performed by a government-approved doctor. The results of these medical reports can lead to the denial of the green card if they find out that you have some sort of communicable disease dangerous to the public. Again, in the past maybe five, six years ago, HIV was on that list, for example. Now it’s no longer. But just to give you an example, people that carry the HIV virus were not allowed to enter the US and get their green cards unless they filed a waiver. That law has been changed a few years back and now that’s no longer an issue. Just to give you an example. So health is one issue. Another one is criminal, criminal-related. So if you’ve been convicted of certain types of crimes and you’re coming to the US to apply for the green card, you are not going to be able to finish the process unless you get some sort of a waiver, if at all possible. So for example, crimes of moral turpitude, multiple crimes. Let’s say if you have multiple DUI’s; that can be a bar for you to get a green card. Let’s say something like a petty theft and other small multiple crimes altogether can lead to a bar; drug trafficking, prostitution, money laundering, being involved in criminal organizations. All these things can lead to somebody’s denial of a green card or not even letting him finish the process. So criminal is another issue. Security-related. After 9/11 we had a lot of issues with people that were on certain list, terrorist list. People that visit in certain countries, former Nazi or totalitarian parties. People like that who are flagged for security purposes may not be able to get a green card or finish the process. Public charge. So, if you’re seen as likely to become independent on the US government for a long-term care or financial support, then a green card cannot be approved. For example, when a person marries a US citizen, the US citizen is considered to be their sponsor. But if that US citizen is not making enough money, they can’t emigrate their spouse or their relative. So they have to get a co-sponsor. The reason they do that is they don’t want the immigrants to become a public charge until they are part of society and become a US citizen and they are able to contribute. So that’s another issue to consider the public charge. Any people that committed immigration crimes. So if you came here legally or came as — smuggle in here or help somebody come here in that way. Those people can also have an issue unless they get some sort of a waiver before they can emigrate. Anybody that is not able to meet the requirements of the application. So for example, if they lie on the forms or if they commit or provide false information, that means they’re unable to meet all the requirements on the forms and they’re not able to finish the process. If you are not showing up to an immigration appointment. So let’s say you have an adjustment interview or any other interview leading to a green card and you fail to appear, your application may be considered abandoned and closed, and you’re not going to be able to get a green card. So it’s very important to attend the fingerprints appointment, the adjustment, the interviews. All the appointments you’ve been called by the government, you have to show up. For example on the employment side, if you apply for an I-140 which is the immigrant petition, and then you changed jobs before the six months allowed or before you meet the requirements on when you can change jobs, you may lose the ability to get a green card. So that’s kind of just an example on the immigration side. If your appeal was denied after a motion to reopen or a series of request to the government to overcome a denial then, of course, you’re not going to be able to finish the process because all appeals have been exhausted. This is some of the reasons why green cards are denied in very, very general terms. But it’s always good to know as you start to venture on this process. Hopefully it was a little bit helpful. If you have any questions, email me at jacob@askanimmigrationlawyer.com, and we look forward to seeing you at our next episode. You ask, we answer, simple.

Green card marriage interview usually takes place three to four months after the green card application is filed. Some things you need to know/prepare for the interview. Common questions asked. Raw Trascript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob Sapochnick, the host of Ask an Immigration Lawyer podcast. Welcome to the show. Today I’m going to cover something that people always, always ask me. How do we prepare for a green card marriage interview? The green card marriage interview usually takes place about three or four months after the application for the green card is filed with the immigration service, also known the 485 and I-130 Adjustment of Status package. Again, there’s some things that you need to know in preparing and attending this green card. First of all, I always tell my clients be on time for the interview. You can’t imagine how many people come late or five minutes before they get started they forget something in the car. I would say at least arrive 45 minutes before the appointment because you never know. Dress reasonably and conservatively. You don’t have to be very formal. Think about it as if you’re going for a job interview. This is probably the best tip I can give you. Next thing is always listen carefully before you answer anything. Sometimes before you respond, I would ask you to count until five in your head. The reason is because it takes you five seconds to comprehend the question. So always reply to the officer’s questions as briefly as possible. They are given very, very short amount of time to ask you questions. You don’t want to start rambling on stuff that they are not interested. You answer what they ask and you think carefully before you answer. Very important thing is never guess anything. It’s better to say I have no idea, I don’t know instead of guessing. Because if you guess and it’s not true, they may assume that you try to lie to them. Never memorize anything. Because if you start memorizing things, it’s going to be a problem because then you’re going to get confused. Like I said, if you don’t remember, just say “I’m sorry, I don’t remember.” If they ask you what visa did you use the first time when you entered. You’ve been here for seven years and you have many visas. If you don’t remember say, “Unfortunately I don’t remember but it’s all in the file and I can look at it.” It’s better to say “I don’t remember” than give a wrong answer. One thing that is important is prepare documents carefully. Come with all the documents in order. Make sure you know where the originals are. Make sure you know where the copies are. Make sure you prepare another set for the officer. Make sure the photos are organized carefully. That you have photos of you and other people together. It’s very important that when you present the documents, you clearly understand what is in the documents. If you have a bank account and they want to see it, you should be able to explain it instead of looking like you see it for the first time. Another important tip is never argue with the officer, ever. Even if you don’t have an attorney with you, accept what they say, take notes because they’re not going to make a decision right there. There’s always going to be an opportunity to respond. Remember, the biggest thing that people are always worried that they’re going to get a decision right there and then. No. Even if the interview is not going well, they’re not going to deny you on the spot. They’re going to send you a note and you’re going to have a month to respond. But it’s important to understand what happened, never argue, and be prepared. What are some of the common questions they ask you? Well, some of the questions they ask you — let’s go through five of them. Where did you meet your spouse? What are the names of her parents? What is her date of birth? What is the date that you got married? What bank accounts do you use and what banks do you back in? What is the color of your sofa in the living room? Things like that that I’ve seen happen recently but, of course, there are many, many, many questions. The key is be prepared, be comfortable and not nervous and you’ll do very well. Thanks for listening. You ask, we answer, and we’ll see you at our next episode.

SCOTUS granted a request that secures timely consideration for the Executive Action raising the likelihood the case will be heard in the spring and a decision by the end of June; just a few months before the Presidential election . When the Executive Action changes was announced last year, several states filed an injunction against DAPA and has since then been stopped. Twenty-six states are involved and Texas is the lead plaintiff. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. You ask, we answer. This is your host, Jacob Sapochnick. I wanted to cover one quick topic today. This is something that was announced earlier this week, a couple of days ago. The US Supreme Court on Tuesday granted a request from the Federal Government that essentially secures timely consideration of President Obama’s Executive Action on immigration and raising the likelihood that the justices will hear the case in the spring and decided by the end of June when the current term ends. So just to give you a little background. If you remember when President Obama announced the Executive Action changes last year, one of the things they were talking about was giving Deferred Action which is some sort of legal status and a work permit for parents who are undocumented of US citizen children who are living in the US — also known as DAPA. What happened is that after it was announced, several states filed an injunction against the implementation of DAPA and since then it was stopped. Again, since the administration filed its appeal of the case to Supreme Court in late November of last year, Texas and the US Solicitor General Donald Verrilli had embroiled in [persecutional 00:01:27] tussle over timing. Texas, which is the lead plaintiff in 26 states, lawsuit against the Executive Actions of the President announced last year and have been seeking to delay consideration of this appeal. This Supreme Court decision is cool because it means that hopefully there’s going to be some sort of a decision on this issue of DAPA by the spring of 2016. Again, if the court agrees to hear the case, its rule would allow briefing to take place probably in February, even in March, and oral arguments in April, and probably the final ruling is going to come down in June — just a few months before the Presidential election. We are very hopeful; very, very hopeful that it’s a big victory for President Obama. If this happens, people who are kind of in the limbo waiting for this are going to know very soon what’s going to happen with some of this Executive Action. Things that were put on hold because of that lawsuit by these 26 states lead by Texas. Thanks for listening. Hopefully that gives you some hope. You ask, we answer. This is Jacob, your host, and we’ll see you at our next episode.

The San Bernardino gunwoman came to the US on a fiancé visa. Is the fiancé visa safe? Applying a K-1 visa is a very rigorous and complicated process — too many things they have to go and disclose — for a terrorist to use to enter the US. It is much easier for them to falsify application for a tourist visa, and enter US, than with the K-1. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody and welcome to another episode of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. This is your host, Jacob Sapochnick. Today I want to talk about an issue that we’re getting a lot of inquiries via emails and also via our Facebook page. This is regarding the horrific shooting in San Bernardino right here in California. We have two gunmen, a husband and wife, who shot more than 14 people in a horrific act of terrorism. Now the biggest issue with the question I’m getting is that the spouse came to the US on a fiancé visa. The biggest question is, first of all, is the fiancé visa a safe visa? Is this a loophole? What is this fiancé visa all about? Many of the immigrant clients know what is a K-1 visa. I’ve done, I think, a couple of episodes about what it is but let me recapture. K-1 visa allows a foreign fiancé to travel to the US to enter, to marry a spouse. They have 90 days to enter the US to get married. The fiancé visa requires several things. First of all, there has to be a physical meeting. Second of all, the applicants have to prove that it’s a legitimate relationship and that they in fact intend to get married. But what is more important to understand about the K-1 visa is it requires an applicant to submit a nonimmigrant form with personal and security questions, plus certificate from police in every country in which an applicant has lived for more than six months: medical exam, passport document, financial support, proof of relationship with the US citizen; many, many different fees, finger prints. People get the fiancé visa eventually. They get a sealed file, personal, a government document. So they have to bring with them when they enter United States. It’s a very, very rigorous and complicated process, and eventually the person who gets approved on a K-1 visa and comes here, they have 90 days to marry. Now an interesting thing about the K-1 visa. If the person who enters the US, the fiancé, failed to marry the US citizen within those three months, they are not able to get a green card ever as long as they stay inside the US. So there is even an addition on layer of security that if they don’t fulfill the requirements, they are not going to able to stay in the US. People who say this visa should be reformed, it’s not a safe visa, in my mind they are wrong because terrorists who want to come to the US, they are not going to choose the K-1 visa. There’s too many things that they have to go and disclose to be able to get it. They’re going to try to falsify an application for a tourist visa which requires less and less, much less security clearance. So to answer the question, the K-1 visa is a good visa for people that intend to marry and there are no other way for them to enter the US. They have three months to do this. I feel that this is a good program. It should stay intact. Unfortunately these people, after they came to the US, who knows what happened to them and how they became radicalized but it wasn’t because of the K-1 visa that they’ve done what they’ve done. Thanks for listening. Hope this information was useful. If you have any questions, email me at jacob@askanimmigrationlawyer.com and we’ll see you at our next episode.

STEM OPT proposal will provide for an extension of OPT optional practical training as compared to the 2008 proposal. The proposal will increase the extension from 17 months to 24 months. This will require employers to implement formal mentoring and training programs. Proposal to safeguard US workers in related fields. Students must report to DHS for any changes in their name, address, and employers. Raw Transcript: Jacob: You ask, we answer, simple. Welcome to Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. This is your host, Jacob Sapochnick. In this episode, I just wanted to kind of touch and explain a little bit the major provisions of the recently regular action F1 OPT STEM Extension changes. Those of you who have been following this, the STEM OPT proposal would, again, provide for an extension of OPT optional practical training, which is a work authorization for certain students with STEM degrees. Degrees in Science, Technology, and things like that, as compared to the 2008 proposals. Some of the changes that were included, they were talking about lengthening the STEM extension period for OPT. The proposal will increase the OPT extension for STEM OPT students from the 2008 17 months to 24 months. The STEM definition for STEM OPT extension, the proposal would more clearly define which fields of study, which department of education. Basically what kind of fields will fall within in this. Also sets process for public notification the federal register when the DHS updates the list because there’s a confusion as to really what professions or occupation fall within that category. They’re talking about mentoring and training plan. Proposal would require employers to implement formal mentoring and training programs, to augment students’ academic learning through practical experience. That’s something that they also propose. Another thing is previously obtained STEM degrees. So the proposal would permit an F1 student participating in post-completion OPT to use a prior, eligible STEM degree from a US institution of higher education as a basis to apply for a STEM OPT extension. As long as the student’s most recent degree was also received from an accredited educational institution. That’s very interesting, it’s very broad, and we didn’t have that before. In addition to talking about in order for such a student to be eligible for the STEM OPT extension, the employment opportunity must be directly related to the previously obtained degree, which is another interesting thing. They’re going to propose safeguards for US workers in related fields just to protect US workers from adversity. They talked about school accreditation and employer’s side visit. This proposal would enhance the academic benefit and oversight of STEM extension which is good. In addition to these changes as compared to what were proposed in 2008, the proposal would retain the other provisions from 2008. Among them the E-Verify and reporting requirements for STEM OPT employers, a reporting requirement for STEM OPT students. The students must report to DHS any changes in their name or address as well as their employers. And the Cap Gap Extension for F1 non-immigrant with time filed H1B petitions will remain. Meaning that if you apply for an H1B in April and your H1B is going to expire — if your OPT will expire before October of the fiscal year, you’ll get an automatic extension between April and October. As long as you file your H1B on April 1st, those things will remain with the new OPT STEM changes. Hopefully — just kind of give you a quick summary of these major provisions. If you have any other questions, feel free to email us. We look forward to seeing you at our next episode. You ask, we answer, simple. Your host, Jacob Sapochnick,

November 2015 visa bulletin. Final action dates and family-based preference categories. A new chart called Final Action Dates. EB visa updates for China, India, Mexico, Philippines. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody and welcome to Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast, you ask, we answer, simple. Your host, Jacob Sapochnick here. Today, beginning of November, I want to talk about the November 2015 visa bulletin. Department of State reports November 2015 visa numbers. We’ve seen that bulletin, it’s out. First of all, I always tell people check the bulletin every month to see if your date are current. If your dates are current, if you’re working with an immigration attorney, you need to let your attorney know so action can be taken because sooner is better than later. Quick update. Final action dates and family-based preference categories. The family-based categories continue to progress kind of slowly. Moving, I would say, one month in most cases. Category F1 for the Philippines jumped by a year from June 1, 2001 in October, to June 1, 2002 in this particular bulletin. The advancement is kind of interesting because F1 Philippines retrogress at the end of the fiscal year. They move from February 1, 2005 in May 2015, to dates in 2000 from June through September 2015. The October and November movements kind of show somehow a bump, a bounce back from that retrogression that we’ve seen before. Officials in the State Department predict that this category is likely to continue to advance for the next month or so. Obviously it depends on demand numbers and things like that. Now, as far as the final action dates, as you know the new visa bulletin since October has different categories. One category is called and it’s a new chart called Final Action Dates, an employment-based preference categories. So if you want to talk about that EB-5 regional center and also religious workers, they were originally listed as unavailable in October and then Congress considered an extension of these programs. But in September 30th 2015, both of these programs were, again, reauthorized until December 11, 2015. This resulted in those cut-off dates, cut-off like right away becoming current. I think the only exception was China in EB-5 because, as you know, Chinese EB-5’s were exceeding. And so for October … Yeah, that kind of looks like China was the only one. China EB-5 advanced to November 22nd 2013. This is in this current bulletin. Now China EB-2 category is going to advance one month in November from January 1st, 2012 to February 1, 2012. China EB-3 will advance, I would say, two-and-a-half months in November from October 15, 2011 to January 1, 2012. As far as India – a lot of inquiries from India – India EB-2 will move forward about, I think, 14, 15 months from May 1, 2005 in October to August 1, 2006 in the November bulletin. This seems to be a kind of a big jump but it’s actually because of this correction that they made based on the retrogression of this category – it was last fiscal year – as the number of available visa numbers kind of, in a way, essentially went down. The final action day for EB-2 India reached October 1, 2008 in August 2015. But then retrogressed to January 1, 2006 in September. Again, State Department assumes that this category will likely to continue to progress and move forward. Let’s see. Let’s talk about Mexico. Final action dates for Mexico categories are going to remain the same in November, with all categories current except from the EB-3 and EB-3 other workers which are almost current at August 15, 2015 which is not too bad. Philippines EB-3 and other workers, they’re going to advance five-and-a-half months in November, this bulletin, to June 15, 2007 and all other Philippine EB-5 categories remain current, which is pretty cool. All in all, it looks like we’ve got some good movements in the visa bulletin. All employment base filing dates listed in the revise October 2005 visa bulletin are the same for November. Not much changes here. We’ll continue to update you as we get more information for December visa bulletin. But, again, I encourage everybody to check their dates and let’s hope for some better movements in the next few months. Thanks for listening. You ask, we answer, simple.

When you come to the US as a visitor, or a student, or on a work visa, sometimes you will need to change your status. Can you leave the country while status of application is pending? If you leave, it will actually result in the abandonment of the application. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob with Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. You ask, we answer, simple. Today I want to answer a couple of questions that came from people that are either about to file or are currently waiting for their change of status application inside of US. Whether you come here as a visitor, or a student, or on a work visa, sometimes you need to change your status. So for example, let’s say you came on a work visa and then you lost your job, you want to move from work status to a tourist status or a student status. All these things require what is called a change of status application. Typically it’s used on form I-539. When you file most of these applications, it takes place two to three months. That’s what it typically takes to file those kind of change of status applications. But the biggest question that I get on these applications no matter what visa you’re here on or what visa you’re transitioning to, is whether you can actually leave the country while the application is pending. That’s an interesting question because the application is pending. In many cases, people are not allowed to work if they are doing this from a tourist to a work visa until the work visa is actually approved or from a work visa to a tourist visa. Obviously you cannot work. What can you do during this few months? Some people are wondering whether they can leave and wait in their home countries. Well, the problem is that when you leave an application that is pending – change of status – it actually will result in the abandonment of the application. In fact, ICE, which is the Immigration Customs Enforcement agency, have not really provided a guidance on how travel applies to individuals with “pending change of status.” But we clearly understand that if somebody is pending something, the moment they leave the country, their application will be deemed abandoned. My recommendation is that when you are going through on change of status application, it’s better to wait for it to be approved or at least get some sort of result. If it’s not an approval, then you know at least that you have no reason to stay or maybe you want to file a motion to reconsider. But the bottom line is that when your case is spending, you’re not allowed to travel. And the reason is because travel or departure from the US will deem the application abandoned. So don’t travel when you have an application – any application – for a change of status. Hopefully it was clear. Thanks for listening to these series of short episodes of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. We love your support. The questions that come in, we will continue to try and answer them on a weekly basis. You ask, we answer, simple. This is Jacob here in sunny San Diego and we’ll see you at our next episode. http://askanimmigrationlawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ep62.mp3

It allows people to re-enter US after traveling overseas without an immigrant visa. If you leave without a visa, you can’t go back unless there’s a permission to travel which is advance parole. It preserves the adjustment of status application that is pending in USCIS. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody and welcome to Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. You ask, we answer, simple. Today, I wanted to answer a question that involves an advance parole. What is an advance parole? The term is … you hear that when you are applying for your adjustment of status cases, you hear this when you actually have a need to travel out of the country. So, advance parole is actually a document for certain people that allows them to re-enter the United States after traveling overseas without an extra visa or – an immigrant visa or known immigrant visa. Such immigrants must be approved for advanced parole before leaving United States. For example, when you file for an adjustment of status 485, you file an application on form I-131 for advance parole with it. Generally, if an immigrant has not obtained an advance parole before leaving, he or she will not be allowed to re-enter back to United States when it’s a very, very important document. Because typically, if you leave without a visa, you can’t go back unless you have a permission to travel which is advance parole. Examples of people that may need it: people who go through an application for adjustment of status 485 – they need parole. If you’ve been admitted as a refugee or asylum, you need a parole to come back. If you’ve been given benefits under the family unity program, you get a parole. If you got a TPS, Temporary Protected Status, or an asylum is pending at this moment, these categories require an advance parole. Some of the things that you need to know about it. First of all, it allows you to come back to the US. It’s a very important benefit that you actually can go back to the US. But most importantly, it actually preserves the adjustment of status application that is pending with the USCIS. It is important because as you file the adjustment of status, if you’re here on a visa let’s say on an H or L, you don’t need this but any other situation, if your visa expires or you lose your position, you need to have an advance parole to be able to come back to the US. Some people were wondering what happens if say somebody came to the United States, they overstayed and then they married a US citizen and filed for adjustment of status. Can these people apply for parole and leave the country? Well, under the current regulations, yes, you can apply for parole even if you overstay the visa before getting the green card, and even if you depart the country under certain circumstances on the certain case law that came about recently, certain people will be able to return to United States even after an overstay and departure with an advance parole. Again, typically I would not recommend to somebody who overstayed and has an adjustment of status application pending to leave the country even with the parole, but it could be a possibility in some cases especially under the current laws. How long does it take to get one? From filing the I-131 about three months, two to three months. Typically these advance paroles are valid up to one year. Hopefully within that one year, either you get your adjustment of status or you can file for a renewal. Hopefully it was helpful information about advance parole. If you have any other questions, please remember that we are not your attorneys. We don’t represent you. This is just for general information. If you do have an issue, if you do have a complicated matter, please always seek the council of an experienced immigration lawyer. Thanks for listening. You ask, we answer, simple. We’ll see you at our next episode.

On September 25th, the United States Department of State made some additional changes to the October 2015 visa bulletin. This essentially replaces the September 9 announcement. It includes new and earlier date of filing cutoffs. It is hard to say what caused them to reissue, but it can be assumed that they might be overwhelmed with the workload if they follow the earlier chart. You should be prepared with your applications, get documents organized, as Department of State may continue to make changes on a weekly or a monthly basis. Keep monitoring the visa bulletin. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob Sapochnick. You ask, we answer, simple. The My Immigration Lawyer Podcast. Today, I wanted to update our listeners about the breaking news a couple of days ago. The US Department of State reissues the October visa bulletin and everybody’s wondering what’s going to happen now. People are familiar with the news that the visa bulletin of October 2015 was going to be very different is going to have two different charts and categories for people to be able to file for their adjustment of status. But on September 25th, the United States Department of State made some additional changes to the October 2015 visa bulletin and these changes include new and earlier date of filing cutoffs than those that originally they release on September 9th. On September 9 they created this chart which is called date of filling which will be, in many cases, much earlier for some people to file for their adjustment of status. Now the date of filing chart that they released on September 25th essentially replaces the prior one that they released on September 9 which is pretty devastating for many people. In our blog, we actually have a link to the two charts. Now, these changes really started confusing people because people were very excited that they could file now their adjustment of status in October that wasn’t qualified. But now many people are no longer will be able to do this. Some of the things people want to know is why did they do this? What cause this visa numbers to be re-issued after they done it already on September 9. It’s hard to say, honestly, because we assume that most of the reasons are because the concern on the USCIS and Department of State is the workload. Now, thousands of people are going to be fighting for adjustment of status on October 1st and they are just worried that the amount of work of cases they’re going to get is just going to be overwhelming and they are not going to be able to process everything so they had to kind of raise your numbers. Another thing people wonder is if the Department of State went back on the promise to make the system much better, much streamlined, are they actually going back on the promise? I think if you look at it, yes, it’s disappointing and they went back to … they kind of changed the promise and numbers are no longer as variable as they were before. The visa numbers have been adjusted kind of in an effort to streamline the immigration process to make it more viable, practical, and effective. These days that they’ve adjust it for family and employment based, they really created this timeline that will allow them to process – to USCIS to process these cases much quicker. We’re not sure exactly what’s going to happen but people are wondering what they can do now. One of the things that I advice people right now is they should definitely be prepared to file their applications, get the documents organized because changes may happen in a [portion 00:04:01] of a week or weeks actually. So you need to have all the documents, all the supporting documents for the 45, all the supporting documents that need to show that you are eligible for adjustment of status. Because Department of State are going to continue to make adjustments and change these dates and it may happen on a weekly, maybe on a monthly basis. I don’t recommend filing the adjustment of status on October based on the September 9th filing chart. I heard rumors people are saying that they will still file based on the original chart because there are lawsuits that are being currently organized. I think not. Because people who file based on their original date may risk their applications rejected by any new version. It may take weeks for them to be rejected but you may actually lose your filing fees because they may charge you and then they will say that you don’t qualify. If you want to pressure the Department of Homeland Security, it’s better to writer your Senator, Congressman, Ombudsman and not file based on the original date because that’s just going to create a pressure on their side and it’s not going to help. It’s not going to help your cases. We think that heavily used categories will likely not be adjusted in the near future unless the immigration and other stakeholders are able to pressure the state to use the first chart that they release on September 9. We hope that there’s going to be more advocacy. I know that AILA is continuing to pressure the Secretary of Homeland Security Jen Johnson and Director of Domestic Policy Cecilia Muñoz to reinstate the filing the dates [unclear 00:06:00] September 9th. I know there’s a lot of pressure of lawmakers to do that. But as of today, which is the 30th of September, when I record this, there have not been a change. And so I would not recommend people to file base on the original September 9th bulletin. My best advice to people is to do a couple of things. First of all, get all your documents ready, make sure that you prepared for filing because change is going to be ready. Second of all, keep monitoring the visa bulletin. I would say people monitor it on a weekly basis to see if you’re eligible. As soon as the dates move forward, you should not miss the opportunity to file. Finally, I would say continue writing your Congressman, call, advocate, demonstrate, start a blog, whatever you can do to put pressure on the government to reverse the original dates and continue to abide by Obama’s promise for executive action and more changes that he promised in November of last year. Let’s make it happen. Hopefully this was a little bit of update for you to understand that this is why the changes happened. September 9th filing chart is no longer effective. There’s new changes. They were overwhelmed by applications. They are worried that it’s going to be a problem and so they have basically reissued these numbers. Finally, keep advocating, keep monitoring the visa bulletin, and hopefully we can give you some better news in the near future. You ask, we ask answer, simple. This is Jacob. We’ll see you at our next episode.

Starting on October 2015 visa bulletin will have a new separate cut-off date chart for finding adjustment of status cases. Having this dual chart will have several purposes. This is an advantage to those who are working for the same employer for years. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody and welcome to Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. You ask, we answer, simple. This is your host, Jacob Sapochnick. Today I wanted to answer and explain the changes, the amazing changes that were announced last week about the October 2015 visa bulletin which will allow an earlier filing of adjustment of status applications known as the 45. This is a change that, I believe, we have not seen in more than 40 years. The October 2015 visa bulletin basically creates a new and revise system of essentially two cut-off dates. As you know, typically when we look at the visa bulletin there is a date where we know anything earlier than date would allow the person to file for their adjustment of status. Well, as of October, this visa bulletin will have a new separate cut-off date chart for finding those adjustment of status cases 45’s. Those cut-off dates are actually going to be much later than the final action on cut-off dates in the chart. Give an example. The employment based EB2 second preferences, let’s take for example India. In the new October 2015 bulletin it is set to July 1st 2011. This is the new category for filing. But the cut-off date for the final action on EB2 cases filed from India is May 1st 2005. This is very, very interesting because people that are going to be filing as of October 1st 2015, for example if they’re from India and they have a priority date before July 1st 2011, they will be able to file for their adjustment of status without needing to wait for their final action date which is going to be in May 2005. I’m going to explain that a little bit more how that rule works because a lot of people are a little bit confused as to how it really works and I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of updates and examples. The idea is that having this dual chart will have several purposes. First of all, cases that are filed for consular processing and cases that have a priority date earlier than the corresponding date of filing, they should be notified to assemble and submit their documentations to the National Visa Center. It’s not really going to change anything for these people that are going to get notifications for the state department, but at least they know that if they are in the US then they have an option to apply for the adjustment of status. I think this is really worth the main differences and where this change is going to make a difference. Again, we have people from countries like the Philippines and China and India that have been waiting for years working on H1B cases visas and other visas and they’re not able to adjust their status, they’re not able to leave their employers. I think this change is going to help a lot, make people a bit more mobile. I will explain that a bit more. Let’s take for example if you look at this dual chart then now we got … we’re going to post the link. I’ll try to post the link here as well. But let’s take, for example, employment base category EB2. The EB2 category for all countries, except for India and China, is current. But for EB2 India the cut-off date is set to May 1st 2005, which is the date of adjudication. The date of filing chart, however, has a much better date. This is I’m talking about the new revised visa bulletin. The filing date is set to July 1st 2011 which means that an EB2 person with a priority date, for example, let’s say June 30th or June 28th 2011 or earlier, actually will be eligible to file for adjustment of status on October 1st. Even though the adjustment of status 45 will not be adjudicated for years to come until the date will be current, meaning May 1st 2005. Do you see how that works? Before October 1st these applicants will have to wait for their adjudication date which is, at this point, is May 1st. But now with the new chart that allows us to use what is called the filing date, and now it’s July 1st 2011. So anything before that, these people can file for adjustment of status. If you look, for example, at EB2 for China, the filing date cut-off is set to January 1st 2012 which is great. But if you look at China’s date of filing, it’s cut-off May 1 2014 which is much, much closer. And people that have applications that are the priority date before May 1st 2014 can actually file for the adjustment of status which is really an amazing change that we’re seeing that is happening right now with this new multiple visa bulletin. If you look at, for example, the EB3 … So we have, for example, EB3 for Mexico is set to August 15, 2015. The date of filing chart sets these dates at September 1st 2015. It’s not that far but, again, it allow people to file their adjustment of status sooner and, of course, they’ll be able to wait while they are getting their work permit and travel documents and it will make their process a bit more flexible. But, you know, one of the other advantages of this is that people that have been working for employers for years, they were waiting for their priority date for years, they couldn’t leave these employers. Now, with this new change, there’s a very interesting thing that will happen is that because of the 180 day portability rule in the American Competitiveness Act in the 21st Century, AC21, this rule allows people in EB categories that have a proof the I-140 visa petitions and have 45 that’s been pending more than 180 days, 6 months, to change employers if their new employment isn’t the same or similar occupation which is actually part of the regulation. So that’s interesting because imagine if we have an employee that is working for a software company and he’s been in H1B status since, let’s say 2010, and this employer filed for his perm application in 2011. Everything has been adjudicated and his I-140 has been opposed since then but his priority date is not current. This person cannot change employers because he’s not able to file for his adjustment of status because the priority date is not current. Well, under this new rule, let’s say this person is from India and he has a priority date before July 1st 2011. Well, now he’s able to file for his adjustment of status and 6 months from now, around let’s say April or late April of 2016, that person will be able to put and leave his employer and find a new employer in the similar category. And that new employer would not need to file for his adjustment of status. This is really huge. Because now people will not need to rely on the H1B visa anymore that is already backlogged and basically can time their movement between company to company by filing their adjustment of status and basically going with that 6 months rule. This is going to be really amazing. And, again, another benefit of this new visa bulletin change. Another example in the EB5 category. The new rule is a really good benefit for Chinese investors because EB5 category for people from China will be October 8 2013 in October and any Chinese people in the EB5 category with the priority date before … this bulletin before May 1st 2015 will be able to apply for a green card in October. So that’s huge. A huge help for the Chinese investors as well as part of the changes. A lot of changes in the EB2, EB3 category, EB5, and the ability to move to a new employer, much faster after waiting for 6 months. Again, these changes are really good, are really powerful, and it’s going to take some time to understand how that work so we’re going to try to update and put some more examples. Of course, even though people will need to wait for their permanent residence for years for their priority dates, at least they have more flexibility now with filing for work permits, with filing for adjustment of status which is work permit is a benefit of that. While they’re here, it will be easier for them to transfer to new employers as they wait for their priority dates to become current. So it’s a major relief for people that are stuck waiting for years for their green cards. This is already a new beginning and we hope to see more changes. Hopefully a little bit light on the new October visa bulletin changes. Hopefully these examples makes a little bit of sense for you, and this explanation is a little bit helpful to understand these changes that are happening and are coming to us in October 1st. Again, just to summarize. There’s going to be a new structure for the visa bulletin system. We have new charts. One of them is the actually priority date and the other one is the date of filing that now will be used to allow people to file their adjustment of status earlier. We are very excited about these changes and we hope that if you have any questions you are able to email us at jacob@askanimmigrationlawyer.com. Also post your comments and questions on our blog. Once again, this is a major change that reflects a revised visa bulletin system with dual cut-off dates. Again, separate cut-off date chart for filing application of adjustment of status and this is very, very exciting news. Once again, thanks for listening. This is Jacob Sapochnick here. You ask, we answer, simple. We’ll see you at our next episode.

Criminal cases are big issue for visa approval. It will factor whether you get approved for a visa or not. Frequency and the recency of the crime will factor greatly – up to 5 years preceding when applying a visa. When applying, a proof that you have changed your ways, good moral character can be submitted, but it will not guarantee for a visa approval. Another way is the 212(d)(3) Nonimmigrant Waiver Raw Transcript: Introduction: You ask, we answer your immigration questions. Simple. Now your host immigration lawyer, Jacob Sapochnick. Jacob: You ask, we answer. Ask an immigration lawyer. Thank you and welcome to another episode of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. Today, I got a response to a direct email from Simon. Simon is in the UK. Simon is writing, “I live in the UK. Unfortunately I got two common assault battery charges in 2011 while trying to defend my mother and family. In 2012, I try to go to the United States by going through the whole process, interview at the Embassy, but was denied due it being too soon after the offense. How would you recommend I go about being granted a tourist visa? All I want is to take a holiday with my girlfriend.” Well Simon, thanks for the email. I am sorry for your trouble. Criminal, even minor criminal, convictions are really big issue for visas. Whether the offense happened in the US in the past or in your home country, the United States look at this as a serious matter. The frequency, the recency, the kind of offense are all factors in whether you’re going to get a visa or not. I typically tell people if the offense happened and they are 5 years preceding the time you apply for the visa, it’s going to be very, very difficult for you to get a visa. One way is to see if you … When you apply for the visa, you can come down with an application showing that you have change your ways, that you are a person of good moral character. Even so, it’s going to be very difficult for you to get a visa. Another way is to see if you qualify for what is called a 212(d)(3) Nonimmigrant Waiver. Sometimes those waivers are … If filed and granted, you may be able to speed up the time for when you can get a visa; the waiver consist of an application. Usually an attorney will prepare that. We’ll put together all the factors to show how you qualify on the section 212(d)(3) and the case law that controls the section to show that you’ve mitigated to the situation that you are not a threat to the United States and that you will return back to your home country. So if the waiver is submitted with the application for a tourist visa at the US Embassy in London, once granted, you’ll be able to get a one-year tourist visa. That’s one way to do it. But otherwise, the more time passes the easier will be for you to apply for a tourist visa, but if you want it now, I’ll definitely look in to see if you qualify for a Nonimmigrant Waiver. Hopefully this is helpful and thank you for listening, tuning in every week. You ask, we answer, simple. This is Jacob signing off here. We’ll see you at our next episode. Thank you for listening. Closing: Thank you for listening to the Ask My Immigration Lawyer Podcast. The show that’s dedicated to answering your immigration questions. Simple as that. See you next week for another round of questions and much needed answers.

OPT STEM has been extended. This ruling will basically stop OPT Program. District Court Judge Ellen Hovel found that the government made an error by not seeking public when it extended the 12-month OPT Program for STEM students. The ruling could have invalidated the OPT extension immediately but instead the government gave 6 months to submit the OPT extension rule. If the problem isn’t solved within 6 months, the OPT extension will be canceled on all these visa holders. They will then have only 2 months to leave the country. OPT was created in 2008 due to the shortage of H1B visa. Raw Transcript: Introduction: You ask, we answer your immigration questions. Simple. Now your host immigration lawyer, Jacob Sapochnick. Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob here your host of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. You ask, we answer. There’s been a lot of changes, propose changes, a lot of interesting things happening in immigration law in the past week or so. Many of you heard about the breaking news from last week on the OPT STEM Extension news that had happened and I wanted to kind of talk about that. The ruling on the OPT Program really created a lot of problems for people that are working right now in the US and the extension and students. Basically what happened that a federal judge made a ruling last week that could potentially force thousands of foreign workers, people that are employed in tech companies, in science companies, that are here on student visas and that they continue to work under the option of practical training work authorization which is available for students as they graduate from universities. Basically this ruling will kind of stop this OPT Program. The ruling released last Wednesday by US District Court Judge Ellen Hovel in Washington basically found that the government made an error by not seeking public comment when it extended the 12-month Optional Practical Training (OPT) to the 29th month for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) students. As you remember, there was an extension of the traditional OPT for 29 months which was a huge thing and helped a lot of people that were stuck in the H1B a mess. This judge ruling could have invalidated this OPT extension effective immediately. But instead the government kind of gave 6 months until, I think, February 12, 2016 to submit the OPT extension rule for actual proper notice and comments and hopefully that will make it actually permanent. I think that it’s basically the home and security that kind of overseas this rule. If they don’t fix the problem before the February 12 deadline, this OPT extension will be canceled with immediate effects on all these visa holders and they’ll have basically about 2 months to leave the country which is crazy. The United States extended – to give the background. OPT was created in 2008 to give the STEM students, the students that are in the Science, Technology, Engineer, Math, more time to obtain H1B visas. As you know because we have a shortage of H1B visas because we have a lottery. It’s very difficult for people to work. The government said, “We know that these professions are in high demand so we’re going to give you this extension.” The government argument was a demand for H1B visas was so high that it had to distribute the visas during this lottery and whatever they have done. If somebody didn’t get the H1B visa in lottery, they would have to leave the country or continue going to school which created a burden on employers and on the students. Of course, a lot of critics to the OPT extension claimed there was a backdoor H1B and things like that which, of course, we know it’s not. According to the court ruling, the real problem is that they said that the government mistake is that when they adopted this extension as an emergency, it kind of bypassed it’s on public comment policy and requirements. And the judge said that this basically made this OPT extension invalid. Right now we know that this OPT Program has been very, very popular in 2008 when the extension was adopted. I think there was more than almost 30,000 OPT applications were approved. In 2013 almost 120,000. Right now it’s going to be very, very interesting because the government had 60-day notice period so everybody’s going to get it ready for the Department of Homeland Security to push this rule within this 6 months. It’s going to be pretty tight because February is coming up so we’ll see what happens. We are hoping that the government is going to be able to … I’m recording this in August so I hope there’s going to be enough time for the DHS to propose that same rule again and provide the proper period for comments which is 2 months. And then the rule will be implemented again before February. I’m hoping that it’s not going to affect the current STEM extension, and people that are currently using it, and also for future ones because we do have time until February. This was the update on the OPT STEM extension and what the decision in the court ruling from last week means. I’m hoping that this makes sense. If you have any questions feel free to email us jacob@askanimmigrationlawyer. Of course, we’re going to keep you posted. But this is pretty big news. Hopefully this makes sense and I provide some light on this decision from last week. Once again this is Jacob, you ask, we answer. We’ll see you at our next episode. Closing: Thank you for listening to the Ask My Immigration Lawyer Podcast. The show that’s dedicated to answering your immigration questions. Simple as that. See you next week for another round of questions and much needed answers.

J-1 visa holders are required to go to their home country for 2 years after the program. You have to either comply or get a waiver, if not, the requirement will stay with you forever. It also applies even if one marries a US citizen. Raw Transcript: Jacob: You ask, we answer, simple. Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. This is your host, Jacob Sapochnick. Today, I want to answer the J-1 2-year residency requirement question. People ask me, what is this 2-year rule on a J-1 visa? Well, J-1 visa holders may become subject to a 2-year home residency requirement which means that they are required to go home – to the home country – for two years after finishing the J-1 Program. Typically, the J-1 is given for a year minimum but it could be up to 3, 5 years depending on the program. If you’re subject to the rule, the requirement will stay with you even if you later switch to another visa status. In other words, if you have had a J-1 visa before with the 2-year rule, you have not complied with it, the requirement will stay with you forever until you either comply or get a waiver. For example, people think that even if they marry a US citizen they can waive it. No, it’s not. So, even a marriage to a US citizen and trying to apply for a green card, they won’t allow you to adjust your status until you waive the 2-year rule. So, it’s very important to understand if you are subject to the rule and if you are, you can see it on your passport. There’s a notation on a DS-2019 form. And if you want to speak to an attorney to see if you qualify for a waiver and understand what waivers are out there to be able to get that. Hopefully this was clear. Two-year residency requirement on a J-1 is just what it is. You ask, we answer, simple. See you at our next episode.

It is issued to those who have the ability, and resources, to invest a minimum of $1 million. It doesn’t matter where you get the money from, as long as you have proof of where it came from. It can go to as low as $500,000 through specific requirements. It can also be more than a million. The money must be invested in a commercial enterprise. Starting a new one or buying an existing one. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody. You ask, we answer, simple. Welcome to the Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. This is your host, Jacob Sapochnick. Today, I’ll answer a question that’s been coming to us from emails and our Twitter account. This is about the EB-5 green card eligibility program. Are you eligible for green card through the EB-5 immigration process? How do you know if you’re eligible. Well, green card through EB-5 immigration process are only issued to people who have the ability and the resources to invest a minimum of a million dollars to create and start a business in the US, or to expand an existing one. Where you get the money from doesn’t matter. For example, if you get this amount in the form of a gift or an inheritance, then it’s fine. But it’s important you obtain the amount of money through lawful means. So it cannot be like cash without proof where it came from. Minimum amount needed to be eligible for immigration process can be reduced literally by half, $500,000, but this happens under specific requirements. So, the immigration is also authorized to increase the amount of minimum investment. For example, you can increase the amount to 2 million but this only happens when the applicant is intending to invest in an area that is economically strong and thriving and has low unemployment rate. We also expect changes in the EB-5 program to raise the amounts even more. But for the moment, we’re talking about a million, a half a million in certain cases. Passive investment, for example, land speculation, cannot be deemed eligible for a green card in this particular category. Except if the money required is lower through any specific circumstances. This obviously ended in total discretion of the immigration. The applicants for EB-5 must invest the money in a commercial enterprise. It has to be a choice of either starting a genuine company or buying an existing one. So you can buy a business that were formed after November 29, 1990, you can also acquire business, reorganize, and structure it from the form of a new business entity as well. Okay? The idea is that the EB-5 is a great opportunity for people that can afford it and doing it correctly. If you want to learn more about the EB-5, you’re welcome to visit our website. We have more resources there. But just kind of to summarize it, it has to be a focus investment. You have to prove that you hired ten full-time workers and you have to show that within the 2 years, because you get a green card for 2 years – it’s a conditional green card – and after 2 years you’re able to remove the conditions and get a permanent green card based on the investment. EB-5 is a pretty complicated process but if done correctly, pretty much you can get a green card without having to worry about obtaining a work visa. Hopefully this information is helpful. If you want to learn more, visit us at askanimmigrationlawyer.com. You ask, we answer, simple. See you at our next episode.

Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody. Welcome to Ask an Immigration Law Podcast. This is the show where we talk about immigration law issues and everything that connects with our immigration law system. Today we have actually a different format where I have a very cool and interesting guest on the show. We’ll talk about immigration policy and we’ll also feature the organization that she’s with and I’m very, very excited to have Katie Aragon today from FWD.us. Hi Katie, how are you? Katie: Hi, I’m good. Thanks for asking me to join your podcast today. Jacob: Absolutely. And just for our listeners, Katie is the Silicon Valley Chapter Director of FWD.us. Just for our listeners who are not familiar with this organization, one of the few that actually are making a difference. I believe FWD was launched in April of 2013. It’s created and backed by the top US tech community and priority funders include Mark Zuckerberg, Drew Houston, Sean Parker, and Bill Gates. And it lobbies for and promotes policies to keep the United States and its citizens competitive in a global economy. And really the idea here is to push for immigration reform. Was that correct? Katie: Yes. Yeah, that’s the perfect summary. The only thing I would add, and maybe we’ll get into this a little bit. One of the guiding aims of the organization is to really provide the tech community which has so many great things going for it in terms of network and good ideas and having really great technical skills and opportunity to really engage with our political system and actually help formulate some of the policies that affects … not just how you’re able to conduct your business but the community that you’re living in. So, that’s something that I’m always excited to share with people. Jacob: And I think it’s really important because it’s one thing to talk about what we want to change, it’s also important to start actually doing something for this to happen. Katie: Exactly. Jacob: Most people that come to the US from other countries, they always ask me, “Why is that that it’s so difficult to immigrate to the US? Why is that that it’s one of those countries where – we’re leading the world in so many things: technology, and science, and space. Why is that our immigration system is actually based on rules that have not been changed since the early ‘90s as you know.” I can’ really answer that question. It’s just that it seems to me that there’s so many things that are more important than doing this but now maybe the time has come to create change. Before we dive into some of these issues, I think – for me personally – immigration reform really has hit a nerve especially with the US tech community and especially in Silicon Valley where everything happens. And the willingness to think outside the box and take enormous projects is really happening all the time. This is really where entrepreneurs are making things happen. Katie: Right. Jacob: I wanted to ask you, Katie, why do you think immigration reform really matters right now in technology, especially in Silicon Valley? Katie: Yeah. I mean I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had with people at all different stages in their career in Silicon Valley as well as all different spaces about this issue and why they’re personally affected by it. And I honestly didn’t even realize that I had worked on immigration from a community standpoint in the past really focusing on helping the undocumented community come out of the shadows and that sort of thing. And I didn’t realize that the tech community also was in desperate need of revised immigration laws. But as soon as I came out here and started working and reaching out to heads of accelerators and executives at tech companies, foreign startup founders, as well as some students at local universities like San Jose State and Stanford and a bunch of community colleges, again and again I was hearing these stories of people who wanted to start businesses but couldn’t because they were on an H1B which is an employee visa that is supported by a company of students who had graduated with a degree in aerospace and were unable to work at federal organization like NASA because they were prohibited. All of these really sad examples of people who have ambition, who have skills being held back by what – framed perfectly and outdated immigration system and series of laws that haven’t been updated since we’ve had the shift in our economy from what was previously manufacturing based revolving around physical labors who one that is termed as a knowledge economy where people are relying on their technical skills, on their innovative mindset to really pioneer concepts that drive the economy. And our immigration laws just haven’t shifted to incorporate the workers that companies based in the US really need and also the dreams that people who are committed to this industry have. Jacob: Right. Absolutely. Again, this is something that I think people in legislation are not understanding because it seems that they are kind of far remote to sitting in their … In Washington they are doing their thing and they don’t see how it’s actually happening on the ground. And that’s why I think the work that you’ve done in FWD has been so amazing. And I wanted to ask you, since launch – and it’s not even been two years – you’ve increased amazingly the grassroots support for the movement. Can you share with us some of the highlights of what you’ve achieved? Maybe a few highlights of what you’ve achieved since launch. Katie: Absolutely! I think three things really stand out to me. As you mentioned we launched in April 2013 which was right before the Senate voted on a big, comprehensive immigration reform bill. We did a lot of work around that with other coalitions working on immigration reform to incorporate the opinions of tech and business leaders along with allies from the faith community and immigrant rights movements into these conversations and these policy debates to really provide that prospective from an economic standpoint as to why these reforms were so necessary. We were able to fly in about 80 leaders from Silicon Valley to Washington D.C. to have face-to-face conversations with legislators which I think doesn’t happen enough. So, that was a great example of working from within our own community to really brought in this debate and the scope of prospective that people who were voting yes or no on this comprehensive immigration bill had. We also did a lot of work on the ground to get support for some of the components of the executive option that President Obama announced in November. I think having our supporters and our members all around the country, sharing their stories not just in a traditional format, calling the office of a member of Congress or calling the office of the President. But actually circulating stories online, leveraging social media, Twitter, Facebook, blogs to get these stories out there was really impactful in helping the President go big essentially in taking as broad of an action as was legally available to him to address the needs of both the undocumented community and also the tech community. And you saw that reflected in his announcement. One piece of it got a lot of coverage but what I always like to remind people of is that there were several really great provisions in their for tech including allowing certain individuals on an H4 visa which is the spousal visa attached to the H1B to work which is now in effect actually and people have been able to apply for work permits which is really exciting. There was also a stipulation to increase the number of months that individuals on – students graduating from universities in the United States on a STEM degree would be able to spend an OPT (Optional Practical Training) which essentially is a period of time where you – even if you aren’t an American citizen but have graduated from US university, can spend in the US job market, honing your skills, and finding permanent employment if that’s what you’re interested in. There are pieces of that that really would affect the fabric of the tech community and enable more individuals to participate and contribute and that was really exciting for us. The other big component for the tech community that was in that executive option was the mention of the Entrepreneur Pathways Program which we’ve been doing a ton of work around in a month since and actually have submitted a pretty extensive policy brief on to the White House. But essentially what that program would be, and hopefully it will be rolled out in the relatively soon future, but it would expand some of the existing visa categories to allow foreign entrepreneurs at different stages in their business development to come here legally and continue to work on those projects. It’s not a startup visa which I know the tech community has been really interested in seeing made into law because it was an executive action and only Congress and the Senate can actually create a whole new visa. But in the period between having our current system and having a whole new visa for startup founders, the Entrepreneur Pathways Program is a really great step in that direction. So, that was another big component of that. As I mentioned, it was so interesting to have these interviews with people and tech venture capitalists, people who lead accelerators here in the valley and ask them what the major pain points were in the system when we were putting together this policy brief. There are whole host of issues that I could talk about with the current system but what’s encouraging to me is that people were so willing to have this dialogue with officials from the White House and really think about this not as a problem that will never change but as something that we as individuals who are part of this industry, part of this community, have an opportunity to give input on and really shake. So, that was exciting. Jacob: You know, Katie, I just came back from Washington D.C. at the National American Immigration Lawyers Association Conference. The overall feeling was pretty grim as far as the future. Because while we are all excited about the proposals in November, and some of the things actually happen just like you mentioned the H4 for certain people that qualify and also the STEM, but other things like the expansion of the National Interest Waiver and we were expecting for more options for entrepreneurs based on the election, are not yet effective. And we don’t know when they will be effective. So, that was kind of the overall feeling that we’re not really sure what to tell our clients and don’t know what’s going to happen. Maybe we can talk about… Last year, and especially two years ago in 2012, when DACA was announced, it was an amazing kind of like a feeling of revival. People are so happy jumping, hugging, and this year was more of a – Well, honestly, we don’t know when and if things are going to happen. They said they’re going to happen but we don’t know. Katie: Right. Jacob: So, I want to ask you, Katie. What is next on the horizon as far as legislation that we are excited about, especially on the tech side? Katie: Yeah. That’s a great question and I think there is. That sense of disappointment or feeling uncertain about the future is widespread. It’s not isolated to the group that you mentioned. You also mentioned the National Interest Waiver. That probably would be the next thing that I would see the most potential to expand. I would actually use all that hesitation and that sort of negative energy, I would turn it into action, into asking for these reforms from both whoever you’re elected representative is as well as, for example, the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Because really there are so many issues that are on the floor or are being considered. Immigration, of course, is what FWD is focused on but obviously we have questions of job growth, we have questions of our educational system in the country, climate change, all of these things occupy legislature’s minds. And it’s really our job to make sure that we are always reminding people, especially decision-makers, that this is a huge issue, that it’s holding us back and that there’s a lot of positive energy for really prompting these changes. And I think if you make it a priority to your legislature, they’re much more likely to take action. I would just really highlight that but it can feel like you don’t really have a place in the process because there’s a lot of layers of the bureaucracy to work through in that sort of thing. But in reality, the only people that politicians listen to more than high-level donors are their constituents. And so it’s our responsibility to take any opportunity that comes our way and actually to make opportunities for ourselves to share our stories, to ask for progress, and to really demand that this system has changed. In terms of what could be coming up on the horizon, I can’t really postulate. I have no idea which legislature will next bring forth a really great Reform Bill. But what I can say is that 2016 will be a great opportunity, and I think a big window for people who care about this issue, to express their opinions and share what direction they think that our country should be moving in on the immigration front. There is still a coalition for Comprehensive Immigration Reform that’s working everyday to push this issue forward. Especially for the tech community, I think we don’t hear from people in tech enough and I think that that’s a great opportunity and reason to become engage on this issue. Because if you’re not sharing what your issues are, how can you expect anyone to know what they are and address them. Jacob: I agree. Katie, as we come to the end of our episode, is there anything that you want to ask our listeners or audience or something that you want people to do or can do to help make this thing happen? I’ll give you the stage to say that. Katie: Yes! Absolutely! So, I would start by saying you should visit our website FWD.us. We have a couple of really neat online tools that are really aimed at making it easier for people to share their stories like I mentioned which is so important, and to engage with whoever your local representative is. One of those is called Push for Reform which is a super cool legislative score card where you can type in your zip code and it will pull up your representative and show you exactly where they stand on various pieces of Comprehensive Immigration Reform including things like expanding the H1B cap or recapturing green cards, that sort of thing. Check out the tools. There’s also a tool called Built by Immigrants which is a mobile story sharing platform. With each of these tools you can essentially generate a tweet or a letter – physical letter – that we print out for you and mail to your representative. So, that would be a great place to start. You never know what’s going to catch fire especially with social media. We’ve seen people post their stories, share them with their networks, and see thousands of people start responding to them which is so exciting. The other thing I would say is just to remain optimistic and look for opportunities in your community to really get out there and make sure that people know that if you are an immigrant that you’re there and that you are part of the community. And if you happen to live in one of the cities where FWD has a chapter, definitely check out our local events because we have a lot of those advocacy opportunities and cool events where you get to meet people who also care about this and are doing really exciting work around it. If you want to find out where our chapters are you can just visit FWD.us/chapters and that will show you all the cities where we actually have a physical presence. Jacob: And we can link everything you said in our show notes. You can send me the links that you want us to share. We’ll put them on the show notes so it’s easier for people to just go there, they don’t have to take notes right now. Katie: Sure, that would be great. Yeah. Stay optimistic. I know it’s hard and it can be really frustrating but there are people – and you can be one of them – who keep this issue alive. There are, I think, real lessons for the tech community here in the importance of being engaged because if you speak up people will hear you. At the end of the day all of those voices in those stories feed directly into the policies that are being created or refined. I would not want to under emphasize the importance of that. Jacob: Perfect. And I love the enthusiasm in your voice and people can hear it and we have to make it. Katie: Yes. Jacob: Thank you so much, Katie, for coming on the show. I encourage people to check FWD.us. We are a huge supporters and fans of this. Katie: Thank you so much. Jacob: Of course. We are an entrepreneurial nation because we are a nation of immigrants. Always remember that. Thanks for listening. You ask, we answer, simple. Come back to our show. Next episode will be something different. Thanks a lot.

Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob Sapochnick. You ask, we answer, simple. Here’s another episode of Ask an Immigration Lawyer. I’m actually recording it now here from Washington D.C. at the National American Immigration Lawyers Association Conference. So much content to share but I’m going to do this episode with a friend and a live guest here, Mark Deal. We’re going to talk about e-Visas and the importance of business plans because a lot have been talking about e-Visa approvals and how we can improve that with a sole business plan. Mark, how are you today? Mark: I am doing great. Thank you for having me on, Jacob. Jacob: Excellent. Why don’t you tell our listeners – in 30 seconds – more about yourself and your experience with e-Visa and business plans? Mark: Sure. Well, my name is Mark Deal. I co-founded Foreign Investor Resource Group and now I am the Content Director for US Immigration Media and the US Immigration Podcast. During my time at Foreign Investor Resource Group, I’ve done hundreds of business plans for E2’s and L1’s and EB-5. I’ve really got to learn the difference between the regular business plan and what the immigration authorities are looking for in those business plans for their petitions. And how, honestly, foreign nationals, with the right advice can do it themselves and save some money. Jacob: Excellent. People are listening right now and they want to do an e-Visa, we had some episodes about e-Visas. Why don’t you tell us a bit what is the importance of a business plan and e-Visa case first of all. Mike: Well, for new e-Visa what the adjudicator is going to want to look for is is this a real business? Is this a viable business and a mature idea? And a good business plan is going to communicate that to the immigration law officer and show that this person, this treaty trader, treaty investor is legit and they have a good business idea and a plan to execute on it. As well as there is a few things on the I-129 form that you, as an immigration attorney would prepare, that needs to tie up with the business plan and having that substantiation for the document and the petition really helps the e-Visa come together. Otherwise you may get a denial or – I think is a pretty bad scenario – is you get a one year e-Visa. Basically go out and try and come back. That’s honestly not enough time to get your business off the ground and get it running, get it profitable, and then to come back 12 months later to show an immigration attorney – the USCIS, yeah, my business is running. You want e-Visa up to five years and a good business plan is going to help you get that visa for a long period of time. Jacob: Right. Why don’t you give us three points that are essential to be in the business plan to win any e-Visa case that you can think of? Mike: That’s a great question because it’s different for bankers and venture capitalist but let’s focus on what immigration authorities are looking for for the e-Visa. They’re going to want to see who owns the company and how much of it they own. Do they own 50% or a 100%? Also, they want to see how much money is being invested in the company. Now, there is no hard fast rule. You have to invest at least $100,000 for e-Visa approval. It has to be substantial enough such that you don’t have to continuously fund the business. If you have a small startup with a lot of bootstrap stuff; maybe 50, 100, 150 grand. If you want to do real estate investing you got to put a lot more so it’s industry specific. They want to see who is investing, how much of the company they own, and the amount of money of investment. They also want to see source of funds and that’s something that typically isn’t shown in like a bank or venture capital business plan. But the immigration officer wants to see the source of funds. Where did it come from? Is it coming from your personal bank account? How did you get that money? Was it inherited or did you have a job or you saved up for ten years? In the business plan, have a simple flow diagram that somebody can follow in half a page format where the money is coming from and then have the documents, the bank records to back up and support that. I’d say those are three of the most important things that make an immigration business plan stand out from a regular business plan. Jacob: Excellent. Thank you so much, Mark, for this great information and thank you guys for listening. You ask, we answer, simple. We’ll see you at our next episode. This is Jacob, your host, live here from Washington D.C.

Be truthful and disclose any crime on the application. Failure to do so could be a problem. Most cases in most jurisdictions it will not be a problem as long as it’s fully disclosed. If it’s one offence, and as long as all the fines and rehabilitation programs has been completed, there is actually an exception. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob here at Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. You ask, we answer, simple. Today we got a question from our Facebook page and this question is about petty theft and marriage-based green card. Question talks about a person was arrested for petty theft and the court charged him with a misdemeanor and later the case was dismissed after a diversion program. Now this person just got married and would like to know if this theft – looks like it was under $100 theft from the store – is going to affect the adjustment of status for the green card. Well, typically it’s very important to be truthful and disclose this crime on the application. It’s very important. Many people they think that just because the case was later dismissed, like in this case, it’s not required to disclose it. Well, it is – So, the failure to disclose itself could be a problem. So, if it’s one offense, like in this case petty theft, there is actually an exception in the statue for that. So, as long as all the fines and the programs – rehabilitation programs has been completed. Most cases in most jurisdictions it should not be a problem for adjustment of status as long as it’s fully disclosed. And there are no offenses that occur within a short amount of time after this offense and during the adjustment of status process. So, yes, there is a petty theft exception in the law and it seems that this one can qualify. Again, it’s important to consult a qualified attorney in your state that can review the criminal charges and advice you whether you are qualified for adjustment of status. In any case, if you do file the application, recommendation is to get certified copies of this conviction and bring them to the interview and at that point the officer can make [unclear 00:02:22] decision. But on the surface it seems that you would be fine especially since the case was dismissed and because it’s a one offense and because it will qualify under the petty theft exception. So, hopefully this helps. Any other questions email me jacob@askanimmigrationlawyer.com. You ask, we answer, simple. Keep sending us your questions. We get it from our Facebook page, on Twitter and from – you emailing and ask from our website. We’ll catch you next time and have a great day.

The Simeio Solutions LLC case issued a president decision which held that employers must file amended H1B petitions. It changed the landscape as when we decide to file the amended petition specifically for cases being processed after April 9, 2015. This states that, one, when an H1B employee changes their place of employment to a work site location, employers must certify a new LCA to DHS; two, when there’s a material change in determine conditions of employment, an amended or new H1B petition must be filed by the employer/petitioner. Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob here at Ask an Immigration Lawyer Podcast. You ask, we answer, simple. This is an update based on a lot of questions we’re beginning because of some new case law that came out recently and this pertains to H1B visa holders that are changing location of employment. So, traditionally when people were changing location, we file in the Labor Condition Application, the LCA was sufficient and – There are only certain instances when one would need to actually file a full, completed amendment to the H1B. But a recent case, the Simeio Solutions LLC case, it’s a USCIS Admin Appeal Office, AAO, on April 9th 2015 which is very really a recent case, issued a president decision which held that employers must file amended H1B petitions when a new labor condition application for known immigrant worker is required due to a change in the H1B employee’s location. This decision [unclear 00:01:23] because it states a few things: First, it says when H1B employee change their place of employment to a work site location that requires employers to certify a new Labor Condition Application to the Department of Homeland Security, this change may affect the employee’s eligibility for H1B status. And so it’s important for this condition to be a material change for the purpose of 8 cfr 214.2(h)(2)(i)(e). Now, second point, when there is a material change in determine conditions of employment, the petitioner or employer must file an amended or new H1B petition. This President decision kind of represent the USCIS position that employers are required under certain circumstances to file an amended petition before placing an H1B employee at a new worksite. And USCIS will accept the comments on the draft of this law guidance for limited period of time. So, it’s important to re-consult with a qualified immigration attorney whenever there is a situation where you’re concerned whether you need to file an amended H1B or not. But this case, the Simeio Solutions LLC, definitely changed the landscape here as to when we decide when we have to file the amended petition specifically for cases that are being processed after April 9, 2015. So, if you have any questions feel free to email me jacob@askanimmigrationlawyer. And please remember that this information is provided as a courtesy to you, public service, and I’m not your attorney so keep this in mind. Thanks for listening. You ask, we answer, simple.

F visa holder must know that when you apply for a green card you may lose the chance of renewing your F1. The length of a green card process can take two or more years. This process will not allow you a right to stay in the US. Until you can get to the adjustment of status process, you won’t be allowed to work. It may take years especially for those from India and China. Always get advice from a qualified attorney before filing from an F1 Raw Transcript: Jacob: Hello everybody, this is Jacob here at Ask An Immigration Lawyer Podcast. You ask, we answer, simple. I’m getting a lot of questions now that the H1B lottery is over. Many, many people were not selected and they have to go back to student status, they have to give up those jobs because H1B visas were not – they were not selected in the lottery. So, we have a lot of people who are in student status and they ask: Well, what if this future employer is going to sponsor us directly for green card? We get multiple questions from F1 visa holders that have the option to get sponsored by these employers. Well, first of all, you have to remember, that unlike the H visa, unlike the H1B visa which is a dual intent, the F visa is a single intent. Which means that if something goes wrong or if, you know, the process [is stuck 00:01:05] the F1 student that now file for a green card may lose this F1 or may lose the chance to renew it just because they file for a green card. So, that’s one thing to consider. But the other issues that if the student visa is coming to an end, the length of a green card process is really, really – you know, sometimes it can be two years and more. So, even if the company sponsors you for a green card today the process is not allowing you a right to stay in the US, a right to say here in status until you’re actually eligible for the final step which is the 45 adjustment of status. So, in practice, F1 students need to find a way to keep their status until they get to the 45 step. And, again, it depends on the category and the country of birth. Sometimes it may take years if you’re from India or China. We’re talking about years. So, it’s not just processing time that tell us the overall weight but it’s also the availability of green cards based on the visa bulletin. And this availability is updated pretty much every month by the Department of State and the visa bulletin which is – it’s an online bulletin where we can see every month what visas and how many visas are available for country. So, as a student, you have no way to work while you wait for the green card to be processed. It’s not like you file for the green card and then you can work. So, until you get to the adjustment of status process you can’t really work. So, I always tell people that going for the green card straight from there, from visa, is really a complicated process. I wouldn’t recommend it necessarily every time unless really there’s no option. It’s very important to consult with a qualified attorney. They can look into this and decide whether it’s the best way or maybe the other visa options or maybe it’s just worth it just to wait another year so you can file for the H1B the following year or maybe a person can qualify for some other visa. But I always recommend to file for a visa before starting the green card process because many things can happen while the green card is pending and if things go wrong a person may lose their student status. So, always best to get advice from a qualified attorney before filing for a green card from an F1. Thanks for listening. You ask, we answer, simple. We’ll see you at our next episode. Thanks for listening.