OUR BLOG

How to get an H1B

Expats view the H1-B visa as the golden gateway to a successful life filled with brand new career opportunities and a high quality lifestyle. The visa is also particularly popular among expats and foreigners because as a dual-intent visa, it could often lead to an employment-based sponsorship for a Lawful Permanent Residence (green card). What is an H1-B visa? This is a visa category that allows workers seeking employment in the United States under the Immigration and Nationality Act section 101(a)(15)(H) to be ‘sponsored’ by their employers for work visa. The workers seeking employment need to be able to meet certain merits and conditions required to be granted the H1-B visa for a temporary period of time. The requirements to get an H1-B visa The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) opens up to 85,000 H1-B visa applications each year, with 65,000 reserved for those with the bachelor’s degree and [...]

Student Visas

Navigating the student visa among the vast sea of American visas with the immigration offices on your own is like sailing your ship in deep waters without a ship captain. There are as many types of visas depending on each situation as there are alphabets. Each visa type has its own sets of requirements, permissions and timeline. The educational visas are divided into three common categories which can then further be divided according to each situation: F Student Visa: for study at an accredited U.S. college or university or to study English at an English language institute J Exchange Visa: for participation in an exchange program, including high school and university study M Student Visa: for non-academic or vocational study or training in the United States Many students aspire to study in the US to get the best quality education in their fields of study. Most of them want to[…..]

Jus Soli Law and the 14th Amendment

Every year a large number of people from all over the globe visit United States in order to fulfill the “American Dream”. United States is one of those countries in the world where you have freedom of speech, justice for all and equality for all people irrespective of their gender or gender orientation. This is why people try to find different ways to obtain permanent residence in the States. American Immigration laws are strictly enforced. To become an LPR (Lawful Permanent Resident), foreign nationals tend to spend a lot of time and money to achieve such objective. People with flexible spendable income tend to focus on employment-based or investment-based visas or green cards. Others try different avenues such as student visas (ex: F1) or exchange visitor visas (ex: J1). There are also those who “depend” on their future children born in the U.S. to sponsor their parents. By entering into[…..]

Entry Without Inspection

Immigrants who wish to stay in the U.S. permanently should avoid EWI at all costs. There are few ways a foreign national can stay in the U.S. permanently. Most common ways of obtaining green card in the U.S. are through family relations or employment. Some immigrants who come to the U.S. lawfully (through a visa) or unlawfully (Enter Without Inspection) hope that someday they will be eligible to apply for a green card and eventually become U.S. citizens. Some hope that they will find a sponsoring employer; others hope to find their soul mate who also happens to be a U.S. citizen. The green card (or Adjustment of Status) process, especially through a U.S. spouse, is fairly simple; however, there could be two similar scenarios with two very different outcomes. Scenario #1: Boy comes to the U.S. on a student (or any other) visa. Scenario #2: Boy enters the U.S.[…..]

H&R Block: Helps to File Taxes and Resolve Immigration Issues

According to their website, H&R Block is becoming a one-stop-shop. You can now file taxes and resolve immigration issues in one visit. Maybe in the future they will start providing medical services too. H&R Block started a new office concept called Taxes and Multiservicios, which aims to “meet the demand for certain services of interest to the Latino community, beyond just filing taxes.” According to their website, H&R Block partnered with the company called FileRight, which provides immigrants with information, resources, and tools to independently choose and complete their immigration applications such as the Application for Citizenship or the Replacement of Permanent Resident Cards and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Of course, the website states that FileRight is not a law firm and the “service does not provide migratory service advice.” But let’s get real for a minute. If I am going to H&R Block to do my taxes,[…..]

To sponsor or not to sponsor? Factors start-ups and small businesses should consider before sponsoring H1-B

Every employer tries to hire the best and brightest employees to join his business. Some scout the whole world to find individuals who are willing to come to the U.S. and invest their skills and talents in order to promote the growth of a business as well as the U.S. economy. These foreign skills and talents come at a high price. In addition to negotiating employee contracts and bonus structures, the employer must petition on behalf of the foreign employee for an H1-B visa. Naturally, it is easier for larger corporations to sponsor an H1-B. Large corporations have funds set aside for a designated department within the company that handles all immigration issues or they retain an outside law firm. It could be more difficult for a start-up or a small business to sponsor H1-B, but it is not impossible- Here are some of the factors a start-up or small[…..]

Strict Standard of Proof For an Asylum Claim Forces Applicants to Fabricate their Stories to Get Approval

Asylum application requires applicants to prove that they suffered past persecution in their home country or they have a credible and articulated fear of future harm if they go back. Applicants must state, in detail, that they fear persecution and had or will suffer harm because of their race, religion, political opinion or membership in a particular social group. The asylum application requires the applicant to explain in detail, who, when, where and how the applicant was or will be persecuted or harmed if he is required to leave the U.S. and return to his home country. Unless the applicant has specific instances of threats or abuse, it is nearly impossible to obtain an asylum. Unfortunately, the living conditions in their home countries are not enough to support an asylum claim. For example, many applicants from Latin America seek to escape their home countries where they are forced to choose[…..]

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals

President Obama has announced changes to the immigration enforcement system that will allow as many as 5 million immigrants to remain and work legally in the U.S. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an executive program that allows certain undocumented immigrants who were brought into the U.S. as children to stay and work on a temporary basis. For many immigrants who were brought to the U.S. by their parents who are afraid of being deported, this is a big victory. DACA, however, has two major flaws. DACA technically does not grant an immigrant any legal status. DACA is an executive action by President Obama which grants the youths (to qualify, the immigrant must be under the age of 31) work permits and deportation deferrals. DACA does not, however, grant these youths green cards, visas, or formal immigration status, which can only be granted by Congress. There is absolutely no[…..]

Kat Shnayder

Kat (Katya) Shnayder, Esq.
Kat ZavadskayaReviewsout of 3 reviews
Kat ZavadskayaClients’ ChoiceAward 2019
 AILA
AILA

REQUEST A CONSULTATION

Fill out the form below to recieve a confidential initial consultation.