Rachel Browning’s Legal Blog

Smith & Garg, LLC

Rachel Browning’s Legal Blog header image 4

Entries from December 2008

Consular Processing - Avoiding a Denial

December 30th, 2008 · No Comments

            One of the more frustrating experiences for foreign nationals seeking to enter the U.S. can be consular processing – the application for a visa to enter the U.S. at the U.S. Consulate of the alien’s home country.  While the initial determination of an applicant’s eligibility for a visa lies with the Department of Homeland [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Employment Based Petitions · Immigration · International Law · Uncategorized

New Adjustments to the H-2B Visa Program for Temporary Non-Agricultural Workers

December 30th, 2008 · 1 Comment

            The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (DOL) its regulations to initiate new procedures for the issuance of labor certifications to employers sponsoring H-2B non-immigrants entering to perform temporary nonagricultural labor. The new procedures cover the enforcement of employer compliance and certain attestations made by those employers. Specifically, the new [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Comprehensive Immigration Reform · Employment Based Petitions · Immigration · Temporary Workers · Uncategorized

Voluntary Departure - The Effect of a Motion to Reopen or Reconsider or Petition for Review

December 19th, 2008 · No Comments

The Department of Justice is publishing its final rule to amend the immigration regulations regarding “voluntary departure.”  This rule adopts a previously proposed rule under which a grant of voluntary departure is automatically withdrawn when a motion to reopen or reconsider is filed with the immigration judge or the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), or [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Comprehensive Immigration Reform · Immigration · Uncategorized

DHS Announces Changes to the H-2A Agricultural Worker Regulations

December 18th, 2008 · No Comments

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that it is implementing changes to the H-2A regulations that will simplify the hiring process of temporary and seasonal agricultural workers and facilitate the H-2A process for employers by removing certain limitations, thereby hopefully encouraging lawful employment of available foreign workers.  These changes stem from the commitment [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Comprehensive Immigration Reform · Employment Based Petitions · Immigration · Temporary Workers

USCIS Publishes New Rule for Nonimmigrant Victims of Human Trafficking and Certain Criminal Activity

December 15th, 2008 · No Comments

The Department of Homeland Security will be amending its regulations to permit persons who have been granted T or U nonimmigrant status to apply for adjustment of status to a lawful permanent resident. The new rule will become effective January 12, 2009.  The USCIS has provided the public with a Fact Sheet and Questions/Answers here.
T [...]

[Read more →]

Tags: Uncategorized