Demystifying Immigration Law
WHAT IS THE DIVERSITY VISA LOTTERY? The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (“DV Program” or “DV-2025 Program”) is a government lottery program that provides up to 55,000 immigrant visas (aka green cards) to persons from...more
The first installment in this series discussing the International Entrepreneur Parole (IEP) program identified the challenge and a potential solution for foreign entrepreneurs to legally enter the United States to develop a...more
The final phase of the green card application involves an Adjustment of Status (AOS). While their AOS is pending, applicants cannot leave the US without permission, a document called Advance Parole....more
On January 30, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a redesign of permanent resident cards (green cards) and employment authorization documents (EADs). The new cards feature state-of-the-art fraud...more
USCIS is extending the validity of conditional permanent residence cards, or green cards, for 48 months beyond the card’s expiration date. The move is in response to the long processing delays for those filing petitions to...more
On January 23, 2023, USCIS announced an extension of the validity of permanent resident cards (“green cards”) to accommodate current processing times for forms I-829 and I-751. As a result, new receipt notices will be issued...more
On January 23, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it will be extending the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (i.e., Green Cards) for petitioners who properly file Form I-751, Petition to...more
Effective Dec. 12, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated the USCIS Policy Manual to allow USCIS to automatically extend the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (a/ka/a Green Cards) for lawful...more
Due to long processing delays, USCIS is extending the validity of green cards for 24 months for legal permanent residents who have filed a Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Residence Card. USCIS is doing this in...more
Effective September 26, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began automatically extending the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (i.e. Green Cards) to 24 months for lawful permanent residents who file...more
As Fiscal Year 2022 comes to a close, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) signaled it has used nearly all available employment-based immigrant visas for the fiscal year and will exhaust the supply of visas by the...more
Beginning October 1, 2021, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) will require COVID-19 vaccinations for all applicants applying for lawful permanent residence (i.e. green card) with some exceptions. ...more
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that, effective October 1, 2021, applicants subject to immigration medical examinations, including applicants for lawful permanent residence (green cards),...more
Effective September 4, 2021, USCIS permits the receipt notice given to Conditional Permanent Residents for the Petition to Remove Conditions (Form I-751 or Form I-829) to serve as evidence of lawful immigration status for...more
On August 24, 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced a new policy that will require foreign nationals applying for a U.S. permanent resident card (green card) to be fully vaccinated against...more
Effective October 1, 2021, by order of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), USCIS and the U.S. Department of State will require individuals applying for permanent resident status to be vaccinated for COVID-19, with limited...more
For the last year, the fate of the Public Charge Rule, which expanded the ability of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to deny green cards to lower-income foreign nationals, has been uncertain. In addition to the...more
Updates to USCIS Policy on New Forms, Premium Processing, and Filing Fee Increases Take Effect on October 2, 2020 - As previously reported in Epstein Becker Green’s August 2020 Immigration Alert, U.S. Citizenship and...more
Although technically part of the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) since July 1, 1997, Hong Kong has had special status recognition from the US government. This has meant it is treated more favorably for certain immigration...more
The US Supreme Court ruled on January 27 that the administration can begin to implement the public charge rule while the issue is still being litigated in the federal court system. ...more
On May 1, 2017, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services began issuing redesigned versions of the Permanent Resident Card (aka a “Green Card”) and the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) as part of the Next...more
Government Confirms New Guidelines -- Interview Requirement for Those Seeking Permanent Residence - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) issued a Press Release, which confirms the implementation of a new policy...more
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that, effective October 1, 2017, it will begin expanding in-person interviews for certain immigration benefit applications that currently do not require...more
On August 28, 2017, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security agency responsible for adjudicating immigration benefits, announced that it will begin expanding the...more
Beginning on October 1, 2017, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will start phasing in the requirement for an in-person interview for anyone obtaining employment-based permanent residency. For almost...more