The official Visa Bulletin for February 2012 was released today and both China and India EB2 leaped forward one full year to 2010/01/01. This is following a nearly 10 months jump in January. Starting next month, nationals from India and China can file for I-485/EAD/AP as long as their priority dates fall on 2009/12/31 or earlier. Green card applications will also be eligible for approval if the underlying priority dates are before the cutoff.
In just three months, EB2 waiting time has theoretically been cut by half, from 4 to 2.08 years. See our retrogression tracker here.
DOS cited the same reason for such rapid movement of EB2: Low level of new I-485 filings:
Reports from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) indicate that the rate of new filings for adjustment of status in recent months has been extremely low. This fact has required the continued rapid forward movement of the cut-off date, in an attempt to generate demand and maximize number use under the annual limit. Once the level of new filings or USCIS processing increases significantly, it will be necessary to slow or stop the movement of the cut-off. Readers are once again advised that an eventual need to retrogress the cut-off date is also a distinct possibility.
All EB3 categories continued their slow pace in February. But what is more frustrating for applicants is DOS’ prediction for the coming months on EB3: Up to one month of movement.
All categories that are “Current” will remain so in February, and will likely stay this way for the foreseeable future
Over the past few days many articles have been published to look back on the year’s biggest immigration stories. I liked Leslie Berestein Rojas’ Top 5, and also ImmigrationProf’s Top 10, among others. However, if you look through the lists you will see one thing in common: illegal immigration issues dominated the entire 2011.
It is not that the authors are biased. With the Supreme Court’s decision to review Arizona’s controversial S.B. 1070, Obama Adminitration’s record-setting year for deportation, and the roller coaster ride of the DREAM Act, it is hard to look elsewhere. It is simply a reflection of the fact that legal immigration, once again, was thrown into the back seat for much of 2011.
But there are things happening. And below are my picks for the top 5 stories for legal immigrants:
1. H.R. 3012 and Efforts to Eliminate Per-Country Limit
On 11/29/2011, the House passed H.R. 3012, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act by a vote of 389-15. The bill aims to eliminate the employment-based per-country annual cap, currently at 7%, and raise the family-sponsored cap to 15%. If enacted, H.R. 3012 would re-shuffle the waiting lines for green cards, effectively altering the current system in which EB immigrants born in India and China have to wait much longer
than people from other countries. With such a strong bipartisan support, people had high expectations that the measure would sail through the Senate. But Senator Grassley (R-IA) poured cold water on the crowd right away, by placing a hold on the bill the next day. He was “concerned that it [H.R. 3012] does nothing to better protect Americans at home who seek high-skilled jobs during this time of record high unemployment.” He didn’t mention that the bill would not increase the total number of immigrants currently authorized by law.
On 12/15/2011, Senator Grassley offered an amendment making dramatic changes to the bill. Since then, it has been mostly silence, although it is safe to speculate that a lot of behind-the-door negotiations must be happening. The fate of H.R. 3012 depends on these politicians’ arm wrestling, and as it stands now, the outcome is anybody’s guess.
It is worth mentioning that not all EB immigrants support the bill. EB2 applicants from countries other than India and China, for example, may prefer the existing system because they don’t have to wait at all. With H.R. 3012, they would have to wait in the same line with Indian and Chinese citizens for a visa number. Fair? – that is another story.
2. Green Card Lottery Blunder
In early May, the Department of State notified 22,000 people worldwide that they had won the green card lottery, which offers a quick and easy path to U.S. permanent residence. On May 13, they were told the results were invalid, and the drawing would be held again.
DOS blamed a computer software glitch that caused 90% of the lottery winners to be selected from the first two days of registration, rather than the entire 30-day period.
Disappointed and shocked, the early winners rushed to facebook and other online forums in an attempt to persuade DOS to honor their initial selection. A class-action lawsuit was also filed on behalf of the applicants. All efforts failed, however, and a second drawing was conducted in the summer.
3. Rapid Visa Bulletin Movement
There are two stories actually.
For EB2 India and China, all is good. The visa bulletin cutoff dates jumped from 4/15/2007 all the way to 1/1/2009, over the last four months of 2011. Given the long black-out period following the 2007 visa bulletin fiasco, this is more phenomenal than it appears. In addition to long-awaited green card approvals, many people were finally eligible to submit I-485 applications, along with employment authorization and travel documents.
Unfortunately, EB3 continues to be in limbo. Most EB3 categories advanced only a few months for the entire year. Without additional visa numbers due to “spill-over,” it is hard to imagine the situation would improve anytime soon. New legislation, especially those that could potentially recapture unused visa numbers or even increase the total, are certainly much needed. But does anyone realistically expect much, given 2012 being an election year?
4. Renewed Focus on Immigrant Investors and Entrepreneurers
The EB5 investor visa has been around for 20 years, but 2011 witnessed rejuvenated interest from the U.S. government and private businesses.
On May 19, USCIS outlined a series of policy enhancements to make the EB-5 program more attractive to foreign investors. Among them, a premium processing option and a direct email communication venue for applicants and petitioners.
On August 2, USCIS unveiled a series of initiatives to promote the so-called “start-up visas” which would allow entrepreneurs to obtain H-1B visas and EB-2 green card classification. Several policy, operational and outreach efforts were also outlined as part of the White House’s “Startup America” campaign.
A slew of commercial EB5 and regional center Websites popped up one after another on the Internet this year, as businesses try to seize the opportunity by acting as bridges between foreign investors and investment projects in the U.S.
5. Ongoing Digital Transformation
USCIS has been undertaking a multi-year initiative to move immigration services from a paper-based system to a new electronic, account-based system. Over the next several years, USCIS will deploy a simplified, web-based system that will allow customers to apply online and also easily track their case status.
The first release of the new system was originally planned for December 2011, using the stand-alone Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status (Form I-539). But the launch was delayed due to the need for more ”post-development testing.” Despite the setback, the trend toward digital is inevitable. DOS’ Non-immigrant visa application is now almost entirely online (DS-160), the Green Card Lottery is all electronic (registration, status check and notification), the paper-based Advance Parole can now be built into the EAD card, and so on. Hopefully, 2012 will bring us one step closer to the digital world, making everybody’s life easier.
The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) is a government managed program that monitors U.S. based schools and foreign nationals in F, M or J status. It uses the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) to ensure only legitimate foreign students or exchange visitors can participate in the U.S. education system. SEVP acts as a bridge for multiple government organizations, including DOS, USCIS, CBP and ICE.
A school must be SEVP approved in order to accept international students. However, a school may lose its SEVIS certification at any time, although not common, as a result of SEVP audit or re-certification process. If you are currently enrolled in a school that is no longer SEVP certified, you need to take immediate actions.
First of all, stay in touch with your school’s Designated School Official (DSO). Make sure your contact information is up to date with your DSO. Discuss potential options and your plans.
You are allowed to finish your current semester or quarter as long as you maintain their active status in a manner required by regulations.
If your school’s SEVP Certification is being re-instated, you may continue to enroll at your current school.
If your school’s withdrawal from SEVP stands, you will be notified by letter from SEVP with further instructions. Usually, you will have three options in this case:
- Transfer to another SEVP certified school and maintain your F, M or J status;
- Change your status to another non-immigrant category; or,
- Depart the United States.
Throughout the process, keep in touch with your school’s DSO. Every step you take will likely require his/her approval or assistance.
Lastly, below is one example of such incident involving University of Northern Virginia Students earlier this year:
SEVP-certified schools are subject to a review of their certification at any time based on regulations. On July 28, 2011, pursuant to a review of UNVA certification, a SEVP representative served school officials at UNVA with a Notice of Intent to Withdraw (NOIW) the school’s SEVP-certification.
UNVA students have two choices (click the links to learn more):
- Continue to attend classes at UNVA and maintain their active status in a manner required by regulations.
- Seek transfer to another SEVP-approved institution.
UNVA students must immediately depart the country if they are unable to continue to attend classes and maintain their active status in a manner required by the regulation or if they are unable or do not wish to seek transfer to another SEVP-certified institution.
USCIS’ Beijing Office responded to our inquiry today with regard to the new EAD/AP combo card being rejected as valid travel document by Beijing Entry/Exit Inspection. The email explained that the United States Embassy has officially notified Chinese authorities of the validity of the new card. So hopefully the issue will be resolved soon and Chinese travelers will be allowed to use it to board their U.S.-bound flights.
Below is the USCIS email message:
Thank you for your inquiry regarding the new I-766 Combo card. We have had recent reports the Beijing Entry/Exit bureau was not recognizing the validity of the new card. Please be advised that the United States Embassy provided a formal notification to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ministry of Public Security on December 20, 2011. We believe this will eliminate any confusion as to the validity of the new Advance Parole cards.
Please note that the card must either state: “Valid for Reentry to the U.S.”, or” Serves as I-512 Advance Parole”, to be a valid advance parole document and in order to allow travel to the United States.
Thanks,
Sincerely,
USCIS, Beijing China
Update 12/23/2011: Confirmed by Beijing Station of Exit and Entry Inspection that the combo EAD/AP card is now accepted as valid travel document.
Recently we were alerted to some travelers’ experience at the Beijing International Airport: They were denied boarding on their way back to the U.S. because their EAD and AP combo cards were not yet officially recognized by the Beijing Station of Exit and Entry Inspection.
I called the Beijing station (8610-58105400) and a gentleman answering the phone confirmed such policy. He said they were instructed not to allow a traveler to board his/her flight if the sole proof of eligibility for entering the U.S. is the combo EAD/AP card. And in order for them to accept the combo card, the U.S. government must notify China, through official channels, to establish them as valid travel documents.
With the holiday season just around the corner, this is certainly shocking news. Many Chinese nationals may have plans to visit families in China with their EAD/AP card. Also because of recent visa bulletin movement, a large number of people just recently became eligible to file I-485 (along with EAD and AP), and were excited that they could finally visit China after a few years of visa retrogression. Although people could use non-immigrant visas to re-enter the U.S., advance parole (AP) is supposed to be a much easier and safer way for travel.
There is no indication when the Beijing Station will begin to accept EAD/AP combo cards, and there is no published information from either the Chinese or the U.S. government with regard to this issue.
If your trip to China is coming up, you may want to monitor the situation closely. If you’re already in China, contact the U.S. embassy or consulate in your area, or a USCIS local office if available, as soon as possible to seek assistance. Some reported on the internet that other cities in China, such as Shanghai, did accept the combo card. But this could change without notice.
I don’t think this particular issue will last long, but you never know. I’ll update this post as soon as I hear anything. In the mean time, good luck and travel safely.
Update 1 (12/20/2011): U.S. Embassy Sent Official Notification to China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ministry of Public Security on December 20, 2011.
The Visa Bulletin for January 2012 was released this morning and both China and India EB2 leaped forward nearly 10 months to 2009/1/1. This is great news for people who missed the boat in 2007, and have not been able to apply for adjustment of status since. Starting next month, nationals from India and China can file for I-485/EAD/AP as long as their priority dates fall on 2008/12/31 or earlier.
The reason for such rapid movement of EB2, as explained by DOS, is that the level of new filings in the past couple of months have not been as high as expected. Advancing the cutoff date aggressively would allow more people to become eligible for I-485 or consular processing. Once enough applications have been received by USCIS and NVC, cut-off dates will stop advancing or even begin to retrogress. In fact, a fast movement like this makes it more likely that retrogress will happen, as compared to a slower but more steady pace.
Although DOS’ intention is to spur new applications, January 2012 visa bulletin does allow more time for older cases (especially those with PDs around July 2007) to be processed. Many of them have been current for a few months, but may be stuck for some reason. So overall, the January bulletin brings nothing but good news for EB2, even though some of you will have to spend your Christmas holidays getting all the documents ready.
The China and India Employment Second preference cut-off date has been advanced at a rapid rate in recent months. As previously noted, this action was intended to generate significant levels of new filings for adjustment of status at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices. USCIS has reported that the rate of new filings is currently far below that which they had anticipated, prompting an even more aggressive movement of the cut-off date for January and possibly beyond. While this action greatly increases the potential for an eventual retrogression of the cut-off at some point during the year, it also provides the best opportunity to utilize all numbers available under the annual limit. – DOS
Below is the what our EB2 visa bulletin tracker shows (declining curve means improving retrogression):
All EB3 categories, unfortunately, continued their crawling pace to advance just a few days to a couple of weeks.
H.R. 3012, the Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act, passed the House by an overwhelming 389-15 vote with a rare bipartisan support. If it becomes law, there is no doubt Indian immigrants will benefit the most. China EB2 could see a shorter wait as well, but all other EB2 categories that currently have no waiting list may begin to retrogress. For the third preference, the vast number of India-EB3 applicants will likely push everyone else backwards. After all, the total number of visas doesn’t increase – this is the fundamental problem.
Is H.R. 3012 fair? Well, it depends on whom you ask.
Immigration attorney Cyrus D. Mehta posted a blog yesterday offering his opinions: How Fair is the Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act.
The passage of H.R. 3012 has been met with jubilation by Indians and Chinese, but those from the rest of the world may not be so happy. While Indians and Chinese may still need to wait, the waiting times will get more tolerable, but others who did not have to wait in the EB-2 will now need to wait. While it is hard to predict, there may eventually be waiting times of 1-2 years for all countries in the EB-2. While everyone in the EB-3 is subject to unreasonable waiting times, upon the elimination of the per country limits, Indians may still need to wait but it will not be for 70 years. Instead, it may be 10-12 years for all EB-3 nationals, according to the NFAP report.
Here is a nice website that can show you crime activity near your home, school or work. Developed by The Omega Group, crimemapping.com pulls data from enrolled law enforcement agencies around the country and present them on an easy to read online map. The idea is excellent: if residents see three burglary reports in their neighborhood, they will be more alert and pay closer attention to suspicious activities.
In addition, you can also sign up to receive crime alerts by email, for free. Check it out!
CrimeMapping.com utilizes ESRI’s advanced mapping engine which helps us provide a high level of functionality as well as flexibility to the agencies we serve. Crime data is extracted on a regular basis from each department’s records system so that the information being viewed through a Web browser is the most current available. This data is always verified for accuracy and all address information is generalized by block in order to help insure privacy is protected.
Yesterday USCIS released yet another warning on “misleading” websites and the fees they charge for preparing immigration forms and applications:
In recent weeks, USCIS has received a large number of applications prepared by an online business that charges users to complete their USCIS forms. In most cases, the charge for preparing an application is the same as the USCIS filing fee. When applicants pay these businesses online using an electronic check, the applicant is only paying for the service provided to prepare the application, and not the actual USCIS filing fee. As a result, applicants are attaching a copy of a cashed electronic check when mailing their applications to USCIS. Because the applicant has not paid the USCIS filing fee, USCIS cannot process these applications and must return them to the applicant.
Clearly, USCIS knows about this website…but isn’t planning to tell you. USCIS even worded their alert carefully to avoid calling such practice fraud or scam. I don’t know about you, but I’m kind of confused. So if an online business intentionally charges the same amount for preparing an immigration form as the USCIS filing fee, and as a result, a large number of its customers mistakenly think they are paying the government rather than the business, does USCIS consider it a scam or not? What about selling free USCIS forms for a profit?
Maybe USCIS is worried about getting themselves into legal trouble by disclosing these companies’ names; maybe they don’t think they are in a position to do anything — USCIS is not a law enforcement agency, after all. But I still hope they would do a bit more in the future, other than relying on public warnings. The intended audience here is the immigrant community which consists, obviously, immigrants. Many of them are new to America, don’t know much about immigration, and aren’t fluent in English. This is a group that is hard to reach, but in the mean time, the most vulnerable and easiest target for scammers.
In recent years we’ve seen increased efforts from USCIS, DOS, DOJ and other government agencies to fight immigration scams. There are also broader media coverage (see BBB, Union Tribune and the Beacon) and more ways for consumers to report fraudulent activities (see FTC Complaint Center and eConsumer.gov). Most recently the National Initiative to Combat Immigration Services Scams also kicked off. Let’s hope all the hard work will soon pay off.
Update 9/19/2011: USCIS posted another blog entry on this subject, again without releasing any names.
Update 9/23/2011: Illinois Attorney General has filed a law suit against a Chicago man for immigration fraud:
The lawsuit alleges Lekarauskas deceptively marketed and represented his website, www.USAimmigrationsupport.com, as an official government site. The website features a logo that closely mimics a federal seal next to the title “United States Immigration Organization,” and attempts to make consumers believe it is an official government site where they can obtain passports, visa and citizenship applications.
On September 9, 2011, the Department of State released the Visa Bulletin for October, the first month of FY-2012. DOS also provided an estimate of visa number availability over the next few months. In particular, DOS’ Visa Office emphasized the rapid forward movement of China and India EB-2, but cautioned that the trend may slow or even reverse course if visa demand catches up in these two categories.
It is important to note that although DOS is the official authority over visa number allotment, their prediction is still an estimate. The demand for visa numbers will always fluctuate, and as a result, the Visa Office must adjust cut-off dates accordingly.
Below is DOS’ visa bulletin prediction for the coming months:
- EB1: Current
- EB2:
- Worldwide: Current
- EB2 China and India: The current cut-off date is approaching the most favorable date previously reached for applicants from China and India. The rapid forward movement is intended to generate demand based on new filings for adjustment of status at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services offices, which currently accounts for over 85% of all Employment-based number use. Once the level of demand increases sufficiently, it may be necessary to slow or stop the cut-off movement, and a retrogression of the cut-offs at some point during the year is a distinct possibility.
- Mexico: Current
- Philippines: Current
- EB3:
- Worldwide: up to one month
- China: one to three weeks
- India: up to two weeks
- Mexico: up to one month
- Philippines: up to one month
- EB4: Current
- EB5: Current
- Family-Sponsored:
- F1: three to six weeks
- F2A:three to six weeks
- F2B:one to two weeks
- F3: one to two weeks
- F4: up to one month
ImmigrationRoad.com is now on Google Plus! If you’re interested in yet another social network, drop me a line for an invitation. I don’t have many to begin with so I can’t guarantee that you’ll definitely get one. Also, please use our secure contact form to request an invite, not the comment section below, for privacy reasons since you’ll have to provide your email address.
My intention is to use the circles feature on Google+ to publish immigration news and updates, effectively making it a more personalized twitter service. Hope it works.
Now I wish I did have a bunch of visa numbers to give out; well, maybe next time 
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced new initiatives on August 2, 2011 that would allow entrepreneurs to pursue a green card under the employment based second preference category (EB2). The new policy also clarified that entrepreneurs may qualify for National Interest Waiver (NIW) and H-1B, including an example showing when a sole owner of a petitioner (company) may be able to demonstrate an employee-employer relationship for H-1B purposes.
The initiatives are brought up with very good intentions – there is no doubt about that. In fact, it is a key part of the Obama administration’s Startup America campaign, aimed to attract the world’s best and brightest to become America’s job-creating entrepreneurs.
However, the new policy immediately raised concerns among current EB-2 applicants – many of them have been waiting in queue for several years. The visa bulletin for August 2011 set the cutoff date for China and India EB2 categories to April 15, 2007, which means that you may be able to get a green card only if you started your immigration process nearly five years ago. EB3 preferences face even a longer wait, ranging from 6 to 10 years.
Given the current situation, increasing demand without increasing the supply of visa numbers doesn’t seem like a good way to reduce existing backlogs. So the initiative to allow new entrepreneurs to share the same pool of EB2 visa numbers could potentially worsen the retrogression. On the other hand, however, more jobs created by more startup companies are good for the economy, which in turn improves the political atmosphere necessary for a true immigration reform. What do you think? We posted a survey shortly after the USCIS announcement and here is the breakdown of 120 responses (a small sample size, but from people who truly care about immigration):
This seemingly easy task took me literally two hours to figure out: Back up an Android phone’s contacts to a gmail account. My phone is an LG Optimus T – very nice phone in my opinion – but its user manual doesn’t even talk about this. There are numerous discussions on Android forums, unfortunately none of the “tips” or “solutions” worked for me. So I thought I’d share my experience in case someone is looking to do the same.
Below is a step by step process that will convert all contacts on a SIM card to “Google,” and Sync them with a Gmail account:
- Set up your Gmail account on your Android phone. If you didn’t do this initially, you can still do it in Settings, Account and Sync, then Add Account. I created a new Gmail account just for my phone, so that if the phone is lost my personal emails are not in jeopardy. But this is up to you;
- Allow Auto Sync with your Gmail account;
- Each contact in your smart phone is assigned a type, or multiple types, such as SIM, phone, carrier, or Google. Only contacts that are labeled “Google” may be sync’ed with your Google account. Future Android versions may expand this capability, but as of now, you need to convert all your contacts to Google or Gmail first;
- If all your contacts are on the SIM card, go to Contacts from the home screen or apps;
- Click the Menu button, tap on More, then Import/Export;
- Select Import from SIM card;
- The next screen will display “Create contact under account:” Select the gmail option;
- The next screen will ask you to select contacts for the conversion. You can do so one by one if you only want to sync some contacts but not all. If you wish to convert all contacts at once, click the Menu button again and tap Select All;
- Voila! Each contact on your SIM card will now have a duplicate that is associated with Google. In your Contacts Menu screen, you can change the display option to show all contacts or only contacts that have a certain type;
- Now go to your Contacts, Menu, Accounts. Select the Gmail account and click Menu again. Then tap Sync Now.
- Go to your computer and sign into gmail, and verify all your phone’s contacts have shown up in your My Contacts or Other Contacts list. If the list is long it may take a while. You must have a data plan or are connected through wifi for the Sync function to work;
- Now you can delete the contacts from your SIM card, leave them as backup, or even export them to a SD card for yet another backup.
Keep in mind that the example above is based on an LG Optimus phone. If you have a different phone or use a different Android version, the menu or items may be different too. I guess this is the drawback, among numerous benefits, of an open source operating system.
Another popular online backup option is to go with your carrier like Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile, but it may or may not be free. If you don’t trust the “cloud” stuff, you can always save all your contacts to the phone’s flash memory card, usually a micro-SDHC, and then transfer them to your computer via USB or bluetooth. Either way is better than losing your contacts by accident, and scrambling to recover them.
Google officially launched its new and expanded sitelinks yesterday, often referred to as mega sitelinks by Webmasters:
That brings us to today’s launch. Sitelinks will now be full-size links with a URL and one line of snippet text—similar to regular results—making it even easier to find the section of the site you want. We’re also increasing the maximum number of sitelinks per query from eight to 12. – Google
In case you’re not familiar with the term, sitelinks are the small links to sub-pages of a website after you do a search on Google. They don’t always show up, and are usually located under the first search result. This is done automatically by Google to help users nagvigate the website.
I was able to see the new sitelinks for immigrationroad.com yesterday and was quite pleased with the results. Google certainly picked the right links – they captured the essence of what our website is all about. Take a look:
The new sitelinks are being rolled out in phases so you may not have seen it. Also the individual links are picked by Google, and may vary from time to time.
Today I finally added a few social buttons to some of our pages at immigrationroad.com. Although I’m not a heavy user of social networks myself, I believe many of our visitors are. These buttons should make it easier if they wish to share our website with friends.
We don’t advertise, so word of mouth has been a major force that drives traffic to our site (in addition to search engines). Since I founded immigrationroad.com in 2007, site visits have increased from just a few pages to now over 10,000 hits a day. It tells me that the efforts we put in are not wasted, and a large number of people find them useful. It has been a rewarding experience.
With the addition of Facebook Like, Google +1 and Twitter buttons, I hope it is now more convenient if you do feel like recommending immigrationroad to your friends and contacts. Every bit counts and thanks in advance!
Recent Comments