Jul
19
President Bush Defends Immigration Bill
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US President George W Bush has defended the comprehensive immigration reform bill (aka the Strive Act, or Z Visa) recently defeated in the US Senate.
President Bush expressed his deep disappointment in the lack of support for the bill, and predicted that many people who opposed the immigration reform would regret it when the US faces labor shortages.
President Bush says, “I can make you a prediction … that pretty shortly people are going to be knocking on people’s doors saying, ‘Man we’re running out of workers.’ ”
To read more about this story, click here.
Jul
18
USCIS Revises Visa Processing Procedure
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The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a revision to current permanent visa application allowances after mistakenly announcing their backlog had cleared.
Here is the new announcement in full:
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that, beginning immediately, it will accept employment-based applications to adjust status (Form I-485) filed by aliens whose priority dates are current under the July Visa Bulletin, No. 107. USCIS will accept applications filed not later than August 17, 2007. Read more
Jul
16
New York filmmaker Sebastian Cordoba’s documentary film detailing the difficulties homosexual couples have with emigrating to the US is set to premier at the annual gay and lesbian film festival in Los Angeles, California.
“Through Thick and Thin” highlights the barriers facing homosexual couples as a result of the federal government only giving immigration benefits to those with “valid” marriages to US citizens.
Tim Miller, a US citizen whose partner will have to return to Australia when his visa expires, says, “U.S. laws are creating pointless heartache for thousands of American citizens.”
Jun
29
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reminded US residents that a new fee schedule will be effective from July (30JUL07).
Any petitions/applications received by the USCIS that are either filed or postmarked after that date are subject to the new fees, which are an increase of approximately 66 per cent on the old fees.
However, the new schedule also expands the amount of fee waivers and exemptions available, and includes benefits for families with children.
Applicants are advised to visit www.uscis.gov/21stCenturyService for more information.
Jun
28
USCIS Issues Reminder to Hondurans and Nicaraguans
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The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released a press statement reminding Hondurans and Nicaraguans in the US eligible for Temporary Protected Status to file a re-registration application by July (30JUL07).
The press release is as follows:
With only five weeks remaining, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today reminded Hondurans and Nicaraguans eligible for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to file a re-registration application for TPS by the closing date of July 30, 2007. Failure to file a TPS re-registration application by July 30, will result in the withdrawal of TPS benefits, including employment authorization and protection from removal from the United States. There are approximately 78,000 Honduran nationals and 4,000 Nicaraguan nationals (or aliens having no nationality who last habitually resided in Honduras or Nicaragua respectively) who may be eligible for re-registration. From May 29 to June 22, 13,715 Hondurans and 797 Nicaraguans have filed TPS re-registration applications. Read more
Jun
25
Green Card Backlog Clears for Thousands of Immigrants
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Immigrant workers in the US are celebrating after the US federal government announced it is finally accepting new Green Card applications.
From July (01JUL07), legal immigrants who already have the Department of Labor certification will be eligible for green cards, resulting in a clear and easy path for thousands of high-tech and skilled workers living in the US and overseas.
Immigrants such as Houston legal assistant Reshma Soni are thrilled at the news. Soni says, “I almost ran out of the office, I was so happy. I had been waiting six years already, and I had anticipated waiting another six years. It was the best news I could ask for.”
To read more about this story, click here.
Jun
22
Immigrant Opinions on Z Visa
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A poll released by the LA Times shows a majority of illegal immigrants in the US would heed the current immigration reform bill battling its way through the Senate.
According to the survey of 1,600 undocumented Hispanic immigrants, the immigrants are willing to pay fines and undergo background checks, but they are less willing to return to their home countries to apply for the ‘Z’ Visa.
If however their return to the US were guaranteed, the immigrants would not be afraid to go home.
New America Media spokeswoman Maria Cardona says, “This is a debate that is going to affect 12 million people, and up until now, no one has known what they’re thinking. This poll gives us the voice of the undocumented immigrant who is going to be affected by this, and it gives policymakers an important insight to the practicality of the bill they’re discussing.”
To read more about this story, click here.
Jun
20
Nearly 800 people took the oath of citizenship in the town of Chandler, Arizona yesterday (19JUN07).
The new citizens, who took the oath at an auditorium in Chandler, were part of one of the largest swearing-in ceremonies in Arizona history.
795 people from 83 different countries became official US citizens - according to an immigration official, the number of people was large as a result of the many immigrants rushing to become citizens before the prospective hike in application fees ($390 to $610) comes into force.
Jun
18
Sham Marriage Ring Exposed
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US federal authorities have exposed a fake marriage ring that allegedly linked nine US citizens and nine Eastern Europeans in a series of sham marriages for the purpose of obtaining permanent residency for the Eastern Europeans.
According to the authorities, the US citizens were paid $5000 per fake wedding and worked with each other to make the marriages appear genuine.
All nine US citizens have been charged with conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, which can mean up to five years in prison if convicted.
The indictment states, “The US citizens took steps to further each other’s marriage frauds, including driving each other to and attending each other’s weddings and posing for photographs after the weddings, well knowing that the photographs were to be used to support the legitimacy of the fraudulent marriages.”
To read more about this story, click here.
Jun
15
Univision Campaign Encourages US Citizenship
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Spanish-language television giant Univisión is encouraging Spanish-speaking peoples in the US to apply for US citizenship as part of its Ya Es Hora (”Now is the time”) campaign.
The campaign, which started this January (07) in Los Angeles is now in a dozen US cities, including Miami. Univisión officials started the campaign to show Hispanic people the significant power they would have as voters if they became citizens.
According to federal immigration data, the majority of the eight million legal residents in the US eligible to apply for US citizenship are Hispanic.
To become citizens, immigrants must be legal residents for five years before applying for citizenship. Univisión helps in this process by broadcasting live every Friday from a citizenship drive location where, for $25, prospective citizens can get help with their applications from volunteers.
Click here for more information on Univisión’s citizenship drive.