The beginning of the new year starts with a familiar refrain for the immigrant community – BEWARE OF DEADLINES. The first big deadline comes on January 14th when Section 245i of the Immigration and Nationality Act comes to an end. Section 245i is a provision of the immigration law which lets people who have prior immigration status violations pay a penalty fee and process permanent residency applications from within the US instead of at a US consulate abroad (note that one must otherwise be eligible to apply for permanent residency based on family, employment, winning the green card lottery, or through asylum status). This provision is crucial to those who have been out of status for more than 180 days and would be barred from reentering the US for three years if they had to leave the country to process an immigrant application. Congress has decided to allow persons who file immigrant visa petitions or labor certification applications before January 14th to continue to be able to apply under the 245i rules. This means that anyone who has had an I-130, I-140, or labor certification filed before that date can still take advantage of 245i. For those of you who are not familiar with this issue, you might want to read the article we wrote last month on the subject at https://www.visalaw.com/visa-spotlight-the-new-245i/.
Two other deadlines to keep in mind are the phase in of the new ten year immigration bar at the end of March and the filing deadline of April 1st for asylum applications for persons in the US more than a year (after that date applicants will need to apply within a year of entry or demonstrate changed country conditions since the date of entry).
If you are potentially affected by any of these deadlines, you are urged to contact an immigration lawyer to discuss your case. And we recommend not waiting until the last minute. Most immigration lawyers will be very busy with last minute filings.
With this issue, we are excited to announce the addition of two new attorneys to our firm. Mabel Arroyo is an associate in Siskind, Susser, Haas, and Chang’s West End office in Nashville, Tennessee. She graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelors degree in Marketing from the University of Puerto Rico in 1987, and received her Juris Doctor degree from Interamerican University Law School in 1990. Ms. Arroyo holds licenses in both Tennessee and her native Puerto Rico. Prior to moving to Nashville in 1997, she held several positions in the Puerto Rico Department of Justice, including interim director of the antitrust division. She was appointed by the governor in 1995 to serve as an assistant district attorney in San Juan. During her legal career, Ms. Arroyo has been active in the American Bar Association and the American Immigration Lawyers Association. She is fluent in both English and Spanish and she can be reached by email at [email protected].
Leonard Pearl acts as of counsel to Siskind, Susser, Haas & Chang in the firm’s Toronto office. He obtained his Bachelor of Laws from Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, Canada. Mr. Pearl is a member of The Law Society of Upper Canada (“LSUC”), the Canadian Bar Association of Ontario (“CBAO”), and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”). Mr. Pearl is currently an executive of the CBAO Immigration Section, Media and Communications Section and the Young Lawyer’s Division Liaison for the AILA Canada Chapter. He was a speaker at the 1995 Toronto International Film Festival and has been a guest lecturer at Osgoode Hall Law School. Mr. Pearl practices exclusively in the field of Canadian immigration and is a member of numerous immigration and entertainment organizations.
This month’s issue of our newsletter is packed with news on important developments. We have several articles discussing the INS’ and Labor Department’s attempts to remedy many of the service problems that have become a fact of life in the last few years. We discuss a new moratorium on deportations for certain Haitians as well as new bars on entry to the US for certain Sudanese nationals. We also include our regular features including Legislative Update, Consular Focus, Visa Spotlight, Immigration and the Internet and Government Processing Times.
Finally, as always we remind readers that our twelve lawyers are able to serve immigration clients in any state or province in the US or Canada. You are always welcome to call us toll free at 800-748-3819. We also provide full-scale consultations via telephone. Just complete the appointment request questionnaire at https://www.visalaw.com/intake.html.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk.