When an immigrant is a victim of a crime such as domestic violence or sexual assault, U.S. law sometimes offers a nonimmigrant visa in exchange for the person’s cooperation with law enforcement. This is called a U-1 visa, and it comes with authorization to work in the...
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Policies are changing. It may soon be easier to come to the US.
According to a draft blueprint obtained by The New York Times, the Biden administration is planning an overhaul of the United States immigration system. Under the new plan, the forms and applications would be simpler and require less security scrutiny. Both...
What are the preference categories for immigrant work visas?
If you would like to live and work in the United States permanently, there are a lot of options. Here, we will talk about the preference-based system for employment-based (EB) visas. These are far from the only visas available that offer the chance to work in the U.S....
Lawsuit: H-1B rule favoring higher wages is unfair, unlawful
In January, the Trump administration issued a rule that changed how H-1B visas would be distributed. In the past, 85,000 H-1B visas were awarded each year by lottery, although 20,000 were reserved for workers with advanced degrees. The Trump administration’s rule was...
30 business and trade groups back work permits for H-1B spouses
In 2015, a group of IT professionals sued the USCIS to prevent it from issuing work authorizations for H-4 visa holders. H-4 visas are for the spouses and dependents of H-1B visa holders. The IT professionals claimed that they had lost job opportunities to these visa...
‘Dreamers’ who were brought to the US legally lack DACA protection
Sixteen-year-old Mily Herrera grew up in the United States. She and was brought here at age 6 by her parents, who came here from Mexico legally on E-2 “treaty investor” visas. E-2 visas allow people to come to the U.S. to start businesses – but they are non-immigrant...
Justices seem skeptical of allowing some on TPS to get green cards
Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, is a program that allows people fleeing war or disaster to live and work in the U.S. legally. Currently, there are around 400,000 people in the TPS program, which applies to El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Somalia,...
Carry on substantial trade with the US? Consider an E-1 visa
E visas are for traders and investors from countries with whom the U.S. has an existing treaty of commerce and navigation. An E-1 “treaty trader” visa could be a great way to work temporarily in the United States. The first step is to determine whether your home...
Pandemic-related ban on H-1Bs and other work visas expires
Last June, the Trump administration put in place a ban on H-1B visas for temporary skilled workers. The ban was intended to protect public health by preventing new people from entering the U.S. during the coronavirus pandemic. It was also meant to protect the U.S. job...
P visas allow athletes, artists and entertainers to visit the US
When athletes, artists, entertainers want to visit the United States individually or as groups, there are four types of visas available. These are all non-immigrant visas, meaning they do not allow you to relocate permanently to the U.S. P-1A: Internationally...