Biden Administration Partially Lifts Green Card Ban

Biden Administration Partially Lifts Green Card Ban

Written by Taher Kameli & Chathan Vemuri   This week, a major Trump-era immigration ban has been considerably rescinded by executive order.[1] On Wednesday 24th, 2021, the Biden administration lifted the Trump administration’s immigrant visa ban for many green card applicants.[2] The ban was originally imposed on April 2020, under an order known as Presidential Proclamation 100014[3], and was justified as being necessary to protect American workers in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]  Under the ban, the Trump administration froze the issuing of green cards for new immigrants and stopped temporary work visas for

Trump Extends April and June Visa Bans to March 31, 2021

Trump Extends April and June Visa Bans to March 31, 2021

Written by Taher Kameli & Chathan Vemuri President Donald Trump issued a proclamation on December 31 of 2020, extending the bans on certain immigrant and non-immigrant visas that were previously banned as per his proclamations on April 22 and June 22 of 2020, respectively.[1] Although these orders were supposed to expire on December 31 of 2020 itself, the President invoked the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on jobs in late 2020 to justify protecting US workers by continuing both of the bans.[2]While the ban would primarily hurt applicants for the H-1B visa, it would

Federal Court Rules Trump Administration Violated Law with Visa Delays for Afghans And Iraqis Covered By SIV Program

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. While the general subject of immigrant rights often results in significant political debate, certain groups of immigrants receive special protection under the law.  One such group of immigrants are certain Afghans and Iraqis covered by the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program. If you are covered by the SIV program, a law passed in 2013 requires that your visa application must be processed within 9 months.  However, on September 20, a Federal court ruled that the Trump administration violated this law with visa delays for certain Afghans and Iraqis

U.S. Visas Now Require Social Media Information from Applicants

U.S.Visas Require Social Media Information From Applicant

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq.  It is good advice to be careful with what you post on your social media accounts because you do not want to be later embarrassed about it.  In the past, this advice has often been given to job applicants. Apparently, this advice should also now be given to foreigners seeking U.S. visas.  Effective May 31, 2019, US visa applications will now require social media information from applicants. This new rule, outlined by the U.S. State Department in March 2018, requires visa applicants to disclose their

TPS Visa Holders May Face Risk of Deportation in the United States

TPS Visa Holders May Face Risk of Deportation in the U.S.

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. The United States is one of the countries in the world that offers citizens of some politically and economically challenged nations temporary refuge in the country, as part of the Temporary Protected Status program of the Immigration Act of 1990. These countries include El Salvador, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Liberia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Till now, holders of the TPS visa were eligible for permanent residency and citizenship, based on fulfillment of the eligibility criteria laid out by the USCIS for the

Disconcerted by the Anti-Immigration Wave? File Family Petitions Now.

Disconcerted by the Anti-Immigration Wave? File Petitions

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. President Donald Trump made his priorities clear during election season, one of them being immigration enforcement. Over the past months, the fixation of conservatives has been on ending ‘chain migration’, a loose umbrella term describing immigration to the United States based on family ties. Building a chain so to speak is by itself challenging, as it can take years for an immigrant with a green card and citizenship to bring his siblings and parents to the country and then facilitate the entry of more immediate family members. Petitioning for and receiving a family-based visa takes time

Waiver from the US travel restrictions

Third Version U.S. travel restrictions go into effect

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. As you are aware, on September 24, 2017, Donald Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation imposing restrictions on travelers from eight countries including Iran and barring them from receiving U.S. visas. Unfortunately, the presidential proclamation has been fully implemented since December 08, 2017 per the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision allowing the third version of the travel ban to go into effect. However, this does not completely close the door on receiving a U.S. visa and individuals can still obtain a U.S. visa under certain circumstances. In fact, those willing to enter the United States are able

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