Immigration Law

Travelling Away from the United States as a Permanent Resident

Immigrants to America who have achieved permanent residence status can travel abroad but those leaving for lengthier periods, particularly over one year, may face difficulties reentering the United States at the end of their travels. Those permanent residents going overseas will need to present a passport from their country of citizenship or their refugee travel document. The foreign country to which the resident is travelling may have additional visa requirements. When returning to the country, they…

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Obama’s Executive Order Seeks to Keep People with LPR Status with Family Members

One of the lesser discussed aspects of President Obama’s unilateral initiative to reform the country’s immigration system involves the component which affects individuals currently enjoying or applying for lawful permanent resident status (LPR). Under current law, there are many situations in which family members get separated from the individuals who are American citizens or who have already achieved LPR status under American law. The executive order the President announced in November of last year addresses this…

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Making Permanent Residency Actually Permanent For Family Members

While many immigrants come to the United States to marry their American husband or wife, those spouses who have been married for less than two years at the time immigration authorities officially bestow legal status, may merely obtain conditional permanent residency. Federal immigration law sets this initial durational limit on the practice of gaining permanent residency through marriage as a means to deter people from using the institution of matrimony strictly as a pretext to become…

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Recent Executive Actions by President Obama Not Yet Implemented

As the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) makes clear on its website, the actions ordered by President Obama relating to immigration have yet to be implemented. On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced a series of measures which (1) expands the population eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, (2) allows parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents who have been present in the country since January 1, 2010, to request…

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Encouraging Outside Investment in to the United States

The United States has a long history of immigrants who have come to the United States and established important businesses. The inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, emigrated to the United States from Scotland and later started the family of Bell companies now generally known as AT & T. More recently Sergey Brin came to America from Russia. Once here he and his business partner, Larry Page formed Google, the search engine giant which is…

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U.S. Employers Can Hire Foreign Nationals From 68 Countries To Fill H-2A And H-2

Federal immigration law provides that where certain fields of employment lack sufficient available workers to fill needed job spots, such defined positions may be filled by foreign workers on a temporary basis.  Specifically, the H-2A and H-2B Visa programs allow U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural and nonagricultural jobs, respectively. USCIS only approves H-2A and H-2B petitions for nationals of countries the Secretary of Homeland Security has designated…

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Trend Protecting Rights Of Undocumented Immigrants Continues

Across the country, judicial and executive officials are taking actions which – at least in some states – will shield some undocumented immigrants from potential detentions and arrests. In Illinois, the governor issued an executive order which prohibits the state police authorities from using immigration status as a sole reason to detain someone. In Arizona, a recurring battleground of immigration battles, a federal judge blocked the use by local law enforcement of the criminal offense of “identity theft…

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Extension And Redesignation Of Syria For Temporary Protected Status

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) is extending the designation of the Syrian Arab Republic (Syria) for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months, from April 1, 2015 through September 30, 2016, and redesignating Syria for TPS for 18 months, effective April 1, 2015 through September 30, 2016. The extension allows currently eligible TPS beneficiaries to retain TPS through September 30, 2016, so long as they otherwise continue…

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The Shulman Law Group Prevents Deportation Of Kidney Broker

In what appears to be a case of first impression, a Brooklyn, New York  resident previously convicted of trafficking human kidneys for patients, who were languishing on lengthy kidney transplant lists, was released from federal custody without being placed into deportation proceedings. Back in 2011, Levy Izhak Rosenbaum became the first man in the United States convicted of violating a 1984 law which banned the sale of human organs. After finishing the 2 ½ year sentence…

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Obama’s Executive Order Also Affects Families Of Stem Workers

Since the President made his announcement concerning steps his administration is taking with regards to changes in the current immigration system, most of the emphasis has revolved around the political controversy it has spurred and what it means for the millions of family members who may be able to avoid deportation and work legally in this country at least for a three-year duration. Less discussed have been the impact on STEM workers and their family members.…

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