Virtual Office Attorney

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has received a sufficient number of petitions to reach the congressionally mandated H-2B cap for the first half of Fiscal Year 2009 (FY2009). 

Additionally, USCIS will reject petitions for new H-2B workers seeking employment start dates prior to April 1, 2009 that arrive after July 29, 2008.

USCIS announced a revised list of vaccines required for applicants seeking to adjust status to become legal permanent residents. 

The additional age-appropriate vaccinations are:

• Rotavirus
• Hepatitis A
• Meningococcal
• Human papillomavirus
• Zoster

The requirements for these new vaccines went into effect on July 1, 2008, however the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved a 30-day grace period for any medical exam conducted before August 1, 2008.

The Los Angeles Times featured this difficult story for one family of a Mexican national, his United States Citizen wife and United States citizen children.  Because of 10 year bars, the family has made a difficult choice so that the family can be together. That choice has been to live in the dangerous city of Tijuana, Mexico.

Should families like this one be forced to suffer?   Or is comprehensive immigration reform that would allow this family to reunite in the US the answer?  Let me know what you think. 

USCIS announced it will deny or revoke all petitions filed by an employer for the same H-1B worker if more than one filing is discovered.  If multiple petitions are discovered, whether one or more such petitions are approved, USCIS will data enter all those duplicative petitions, retain all fees, and either deny the petitions or, if a petition was approved, revoke the petition. The petitions will not be returned to the petitioner.

As of June 6, 2008, USCIS has discovered that less than ½ of one percent of the total H-1B cap eligible petitions received involved duplicate or multiple filings for the same prospective beneficiary.

USCIS has announced Cap Count for H-1B and H-2B Workers for Fiscal Year 2009. 

Hopefully, the newly elected officials in 2009 will see immigration reform legislation as important to our nation's national security, economy and future. 

What do you predict will happen in 2009 regarding legislation?  Please comment and let me know.

U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) revised its instructions on where to submit applications previously processed by its Tijuana Field Office. See the link here.

U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it will permanently close its field office in Tijuana, Mexico on July 3, 2008. 

The U.S. Consulate (Department of State) in Tijuana is open to the public on Monday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. (except on U.S. and local holidays). The public is seen on a first-come, first-served basis. Waiting times vary and are sometimes longer than anticipated.

U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it will permanently close its field office in Hong Kong on August 29, 2008.

The U.S. Consulate (Department of State) in Hong Kong is open to the public on Monday thru Friday from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. The public is seen on a first-come, first-served basis. Waiting times vary and are sometimes longer than anticipated.

In the New York Times, Lauren, an immigrant child, was brought to the U.S. by her parents when she was just 1 year old.  Parents and child overstayed their visas. Recently, Lauren was diagnosed with cancer. 

Dates for surgery have been scheduled, then postponed.  The delays have nothing anything to do with the urgency of her condition.  Only that she is an undocumented immigrant.

Should her legal immigrant status matter for her to get treatment for cancer?  Would your answer be different if she was your child?  Let me know what you think by posting a comment.

According to the Dallas Morning News, informal surveys by the Mexican consulate in Dallas, many Mexican nationals returning to Mexico cite the sudden scarcity of jobs, fear of deportation and uncertainty about obtaining legal resident status any time soon.

Enrique Hubbard Urrea, Mexican consul general in Dallas, said it is impossible to track every Mexican who leaves the area. But he said the number asking for transfer documents at the consulate is on the rise.