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Cambridge Immigration Law

Category: News

USCIS Policy Memo about Translators at USCIS Interviews

May 3, 2017

On January 17, 2017, USCIS published new guidelines on the use of translators at USCIS interviews. See https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Laws/Memoranda/2017/2017-17-1-RoleUseInterpreters-PM-602-0125-1.pdf.

The policy sets forth requirements for the interpreter’s qualifications including fluency, competency and impartiality. The policy prohibits the use of an interpreter who is under the age of 18, who is a witness in the case, who is biased, or who is the applicant’s representative/attorney. There is a new form, Form G-1256, that must be completed and signed by the interpreter and the interviewee.

April 2017 Department of State Visa Bulletin

March 10, 2017

The US Department of State released the April 2017 Visa Bulletin. Find the Visa Bulletin, with priority dates for family-based and employment-based visas, at https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/law-and-policy/bulletin/2017/visa-bulletin-for-april-2017.html.

New White House Executive Order on Immigration

March 8, 2017

See the White House’s website for Trump’s latest Executive Order.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/03/06/executive-order-protecting-nation-foreign-terrorist-entry-united-states

Apply for US Citizenship!

February 24, 2017

Now is the time to apply for US citizenship if you are eligible. Consult with me or another immigration attorney about your eligibility and check out USCIS.gov for information about the citizenship/naturalization test.

The basic requirements for citizenship are:

  1. Five or three years of “green card”/LPR/lawful permanent resident status. You need five years of “green card” status unless for the past three years you have been married to and living with your US citizen spouse. To qualify for the three year citizenship, you do not need to have obtained your green card through your spouse, but you do need three years of marriage and joint residence.
  2. 50% of your time in the US in past five or three years.
  3. Residence in the US for the past five or three years.
  4. No trips outside US for more than six months  unless you obtained permission to maintain your eligibility for citizenship or you can otherwise prove that you did not abandon your residence in the US.
  5. No outstanding US federal, state or local taxes due.
  6. No alimony or child support due.
  7. No bad acts in the past five or three years including alcohol/drug abuse (or use in the case of federally illegal drugs), no convictions for or even commission of certain crimes, no fraud or misrepresentation to any government official for any purpose, no unlawful voting.
  8. No open court cases, even for violations or crimes that would not make you ineligible for US citizenship

There are certain acts (generally criminal convictions and commissions) that make people permanent ineligible for citizenship. There are certain issues that make a person deportable/removable, but the person could still be eligible for citizenship. Because of the confusing nature of the law, make sure to talk with an immigration attorney before you file Form N-400. You do not need to hire the lawyer to represent you after the consultation, but you should understand your eligibility and any issues relating to your case before you file.

 

Immigration under Donald Trump

February 21, 2017

Donald Trump and his administration issued memoranda relating to the administration’s deportation/removal priorities. These memos do not change the definition of deportable, that is, reasons why someone could be deported from the US. However, the memos signal a drastic change from President Obama’s humane focus on immigrants with certain criminal backgrounds, to anyone who has ever made any criminal mistake (whether charged and whether convicted) and who has ever made any misrepresentation to a government agent. The memos leave no room for a compassion and reasonable immigration officer to determine that an individual may not have authorized status in the US, but nonetheless deserves to be considered for non-prosecution for deportation. In addition to making unrealistically broad priorities for deportation, the memos set forth the administration’s intention to authorize state and local law enforcement to enforce federal immigration law. Again, these memos do not change the law but they drastically change prosecutorial discretion and execution of the federal immigration laws.

Memos at https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/17_0220_S1_Enforcement-of-the-Immigration-Laws-to-Serve-the-National-Interest.pdf

and

https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/17_0220_S1_Implementing-the-Presidents-Border-Security-Immigration-Enforcement-Improvement-Policies.pdf

AILA New England Conference

January 30, 2017

As a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), I benefit from a wonderful, smart community of immigration lawyers in the New England Area. Each month our AILA chapter has a meeting on a timely topic, and each year, the chapter hosts an amazing conference. I am excited to attend this year’s conference on March 3. At the conference, I look forward to hearing from government officials about new policies and practices under the new administration.

The conference agenda is available at https://www.ailane.org/assets/cms/files/2016-2017/2017%20Conference/14th%20Annual%20AILA%20NE%20Conference%20Agenda%20(2016.12.15).pdf

Trump Issues Anti-Immigrant Executive Orders

January 26, 2017

Yesterday Trump issued an aggressive, anti-immigrant, unrealistic executive order that seeks to build more detention facilities and a wall between the US and Mexico, that targets immigration enforcement against immigrants with “southern” violations, that hopes to charge unqualified local and states law enforcement officials with federal immigration jobs, and that takes away the dignity of millions of immigrants living in the US. Trump’s beliefs on immigration are unconscionable and, on a more practical level, absurdly out of touch with reality.

Yesterday’s presidential actions are available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions.

Today is a very sad day for our country.

Trump Vows to Build a Wall, Scare Immigrants, and Deny Help to Refugees

January 25, 2017

The new administration set the tone for immigration months ago. Today we see that it plans to continue its anti-immigrant stance. Check out the Boston Globe article at https://www.boston.com/news/politics/2017/01/24/trump-to-move-on-border-security-immigration-enforcement.

 

Visa Bulletin

January 18, 2017

The new visa bulletin is available at https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/law-and-policy/bulletin/2017/visa-bulletin-for-february-2017.html.

USCIS Processing Times

January 4, 2017

About every month, USCIS publishes processing times for its decisions on most USCIS forms. Whenever you receive a receipt notice from USCIS, it should have an address at the bottom of the form (generally on the left side). That is the office that is processing the form. At the top of the form, there is a “receipt” or “priority” date. Check the status of your form by looking at the Processing Times for the office processing your form, checking the published date against your receipt or priority date. If USCIS is processing applications with a date BEFORE your date, then your application should be processed. If not, you can contact USCIS to request that it take action on the case.

See USCIS.gov for Processing times.

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