Posted on May 01, 2023 in English

The First Amendment to the U.S. Bill of Rights guarantees the rights to free speech and assembly. But these may clash with the federal Immigration and Nationality Act that makes it unlawful to encourage a noncitizen to come into, reside or enter this country illegally. This encouragement provision of U.S. immigration law is currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Encouragement provision

Taking this law at face value, a prosecutor may seek a conviction if a person knew or recklessly disregarded that a noncitizen's entry into the country or residence would be illegal.

There are apparently no limits because the prosecution does not require a speaker to intend that a noncitizen commit a crime or that the criminalized speech be directed to an undocumented immigrant.

This INA provision took effect in 1986 and updated other laws that prohibited advertisements of U.S. job opportunities overseas and encouraging or inducing non-citizens to enter this county. Other provisions of that law criminalize harboring and transporting noncitizens who are in this country illegally or bringing noncitizens into the U.S. without limit.

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 Posted on April 17, 2023 in English

If you are an immigrant living in Virginia, you may wonder how a criminal conviction could affect your immigration status. The answer is not simple because different crimes and sentences may have different consequences, depending on your immigration status and history. However, some general principles can help you understand the potential risks.

Deportation or removal

First, it is important to know that any criminal conviction can make you vulnerable to deportation or removal proceedings, even if you are a lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder) or have a valid visa. This is because the federal immigration law defines certain crimes as grounds for deportation or inadmissibility, regardless of the state law or the severity of the offense.

These potential problematic crimes include aggravated felonies, which are serious crimes, like murder, rape, drug trafficking, fraud, money laundering, etc. Crimes involving moral turpitude, which are crimes that involve dishonesty, fraud, violence or depravity, such as theft, assault, forgery, perjury, etc., can flag you for deportation or removal. Crimes related to domestic violence, such as battery, stalking, child abuse, violation of a protective order, etc., can also qualify.

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 Posted on April 11, 2023 in English

A lot of people come to the United States in hope of securing a stronger financial future for themselves and their families. But this isn't the case for everyone. Each year, thousands of people arrive at the border in order to seek protection from some sort of threat that exists in their home country.

If you're amongst those who come to America seeking protection, then you're probably fearful of being returned to the danger that you've fled. And the complexities of the United States' immigration laws can leave you feeling uncertain about your future. We hope that this post will shed some light on the asylum process so that you have a better understanding of what the process entails and how it can be used to your advantage.

Asylum basics

In its most basic terms, asylum is the process of withholding removal of an individual who is unable or unwilling to return to their home country out of a well-founded fear of being persecuted on the basis of their race, religion, nationality, membership is a particular social group, or political opinion.

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 Posted on March 09, 2023 in English

When people in Virginia are trying to navigate the complex nature of immigration and naturalization, certain terms come up that could stoke confusion. A broad term that is used when assessing candidates for naturalization is that they are found to be of "good moral character," or GMC.

The idea behind GMC is that an immigrant is expected to live up to the standards of the community. They must show that they have been of GMC during a certain time called the statutory period. Generally, it is limited to the past five years, but courts may consider time beyond that. Certain spouses of U.S. citizens will be assessed based on three years.

This is done based on each individual case, but generally, any history of criminal activity can greatly hurt an immigrant's position.

However, there is an exception for people whose criminal charges were political in nature. Knowing how to take advantage of this exception requires understanding the rules and having professional assistance.

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 Posted on February 21, 2023 in English

Love does not always recognize international borders. When an American citizen gets engaged to marry a person from another country, the couple often asks about their immigration options.

Fiancé Visa

If the couple plans to live in the United States, it is generally necessary to petition for a K-1 visa, commonly known as a fiancé visa.

The K-1 visa authorizes a person engaged to an American citizen to enter the country for 90 days for purposes of getting married. It is important that the couple get married during that 90-day period or the person will need to leave the country.

Once the couple marries, the fiancé can petition for lawful permanent resident status and remain in the country while the petition is being processed. If the fiancé has minor children, they can also petition for their children's entry and residency in the country.

Requirements for a fiancé visa

As you might expect, a primary requirement to obtain a fiancé visa is intent to marry. It may be necessary to offer evidence that your engagement is legitimate, such as photographs, records of visits or time together or written statements from others attesting to the validity of the relationship.

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 Posted on January 23, 2023 in English

Many people from all over the world choose to come to the United States to further their careers. Even if you are not a citizen, you can legally live and work in the United States if you obtain your green card and become a lawful permanent resident. There are five categories of preference for employment-based (EB) visas:

• EB-1: Priority workers with extraordinary abilities.
• EB-2: Workers with advanced degrees.
• EB-3: Skilled workers and professionals who do not qualify under EB-1 and EB-2.
• EB-4: Special immigrants (e.g., religious workers, broadcasters, or armed forces members).
• EB-5: Entrepreneurs (Immigrant Investor Program).

What is the process required to obtain an employment-based green card?

The entire green card application process can take years to get through, depending on demand and other factors. The green card application process for those seeking an employment-based green card generally requires three main steps:

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 Posted on January 10, 2023 in English

Some children who arrive in the United States without legal status end up becoming involved in the state child welfare system after allegations of abuse and neglect arise. When this happens, concerns of removal from the country can take hold, threatening to send the child back to a country that they don't know, where they don't have support and where it may be dangerous.

Fortunately, there are legal avenues for these children to try to obtain lawful permanent residence. But in order to successfully do so, they have to know the intricacies of immigration law and how to use them to their advantage.

Applying for special immigrant juvenile status

The best way for these kids to protect themselves and obtain permanent residency in the United States is to obtain special immigrant juvenile status. In order to obtain this status and secure permanent residency, they have to meet certain federal requirements, including each of the following:

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 Posted on December 22, 2022 in English

Seeking U.S. citizenship is the ultimate dream for many immigrants. That dream has now been realized for many, as the United States has seen a 10-year high in immigrant naturalization in 2022.

Naturalization up

A survey from the Pew Research Center reports that the number of immigrants in the United States obtaining naturalization is the highest it has been in a decade. In the 2022 fiscal year, more than 900,000 immigrants were granted U.S. citizenship.

This is in contrast to the steep decline in naturalizations at the beginning of the global health crisis back in 2020.

Researchers cite an increase in migrants receiving green cards and an increase in lawful temporary migrants coming to the United States as the reason for the recent uptick in naturalization compared to 2020.

Steps in obtaining U.S. citizenship

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 Posted on December 07, 2022 in English

The U.S. government places a priority on investigating crimes, and also on protecting victims of crime. The government issues a specific visa to meet these important objectives.

Immigration status

The 2000 Victims of Trafficking and Violence Act authorizes a type of visa status known as U nonimmigrant for victims of certain gender crimes and other offenses who suffered physical and mental abuse.

This immigration law, along with other laws, is also intended to protect crime victims who suffered significant mental and physical abuse from these crimes and are willing to assist law enforcement investigate and prosecute offenders. The visa also helps law enforcement serve crime victims.

Eligibility

An individual may be eligible for a U Visa if they are:

• Victims of a qualifying crime.

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 Posted on November 10, 2022 in English

You are able to anticipate and plan some things in life and you have little or no control over other things. For example, you were able to anticipate and plan the move from your native country to the United States to pursue a better life for you and for your family. On the other hand, you probably could not anticipate that your marriage would end once were living in the United States.

Of course, one significant issue for you is your immigration status. The question is whether your divorce will affect your immigration status, and how. If you happen to hold citizenship in another country and your spouse is either a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident and you immigrated within two years of your marriage, you are considered a conditional resident. If that is the case, you will need to adjust your immigration status.

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