This week we include the fourth of our J-1 waiver flowcharts. This one deals with persecution-based waivers. This is a waiver category that is not used often and many immigration lawyers mistakenly advise their clients that the persecution category is always inferior to getting asylum status. It is true that being granted asylum means quick work authorization and a straightforward path to permanent residency. But asylees with a J-1 home residency requirement can only get permanent residency by filing for adjustment based on their asylum status. Waits in that category are more than four years right now. However, if one can get a persecution waiver, then any permanent residency category can be used, including ones that can be completed much more quickly.

This week also saw the governor of California following through on one of his campaign promises – the repeal of a law that allows undocumented immigrants to qualify for driver’s licenses. I personally have always had favorable feelings about these laws and it is not just because I am pro-immigration. I worry about millions of people driving in this country without licenses. The ability to get a driver’s license motivates people to learn the rules of the road and everyone is safer as a result. We are a driving culture and it is a mistake to believe people will not drive if they are barred from getting a driver’s license. We know from generations of experience that this is simply not the case.

So why do people have problems with granting the undocumented driver’s licenses? There are legitimate objections. First, there is the national security concern. Driver’s licenses are government identification documents and they are, in many ways, the ticket to moving around in society.  Some of the 9/11 hijackers had driver’s licenses and critics of the liberal licensing policies believe that the terrorists would not have had such an easy time operating in the US without the licenses. Another argument is that driver’s licenses reward illegal behavior.  Why should people respect our immigration laws when there are no consequences for failing to adhere to the rules?

But maybe we are better off addressing the bigger question? Why are an estimated 10 million people here illegally in this county? What would happen if they were not here? Do we need them? If we do, why can’t we find a way for employers to be able to legally bring in foreign workers to fill jobs that would otherwise remain unfilled? If we had a genuine guest worker program in this country, the driver’s license debate would largely fade to the background. And by changing our laws to create a way for lesser skilled workers to work legally in the US, we can bring these people back out into the open and law enforcement authorities will have an easier time tracking terrorists.

In firm news, I congratulate my law partner Lynn Susser in receiving her AV rating from Martindale Hubbell. The Martindale Hubbell rating has become the hallmark rating for the better attorneys around the US and it is one that is known to most attorneys. The Martindale folks survey lawyers in communities across the country and ask those surveyed about the legal abilities and ethical standards of attorneys being rated. The AV rating is the highest rating one can attain. To learn more about the ratings process, you can go to http://www.martindale.com/xp/Martindale/About_Us/Ratings/ratings_intro.xml?PRV=LL2&searchid=. Well done Lynn!

Finally, as always, we remind readers that we're lawyers who make our living representing immigration clients and employers seeking to comply with immigration laws. We would love to discuss becoming your law firm. Just go to http://www.visalaw.com/intake.html to request an appointment or call us at 800-748-3819 or 901-682-6455.

Regards,

Greg Siskind