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June 2000 Newsletter **U.S. IMMIGRATION NEWS** June
1, 2000 Published
by: ImmigrationLinks.com,
Inc. “Your Immigration Link to the World” Copyright
© 2000, ImmigrationLinks.com, Inc. Email:
info@immigrationlinks.com Internet:
www.immigrationlinks.com How to Subscribe:
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be removed. ************************************************************************ Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided for general information only. It is NOT legal advice, and should not be relied upon as such. For legal services such as representation, please contact an attorney who specializes in the area of Immigration Law, such as one of our attorney “Service Providers” whose businesses are promoted on our site. ************************************************************************ Welcome to
ImmigrationLinks.com, Inc., “Your Immigration Link to the World”.
With the phenomenal growth of the Internet, nearly everything you need or
want to know about US Immigration law is available at the touch of a button.
We want to be at the forefront of this new technology and be able to
provide instantaneous news and information on the immigration topics that affect
those persons wishing to visit, live, or work in the United States.
One way is through our monthly newsletters.
The purpose of these newsletters is to provide useful and timely
information about immigration-related topics that affect persons who come in
contact with US Immigration laws. In
conjunction with our News, Immigration Hints & Tips, and Legal Research
pages, we want to provide you with extensive, up-to-date, and FREE information
on US immigration laws and procedures. Soon,
just about anything you need to prepare and process your immigration case will
be available online. This includes
access to immigration forms and information, as well as direct contact with
attorneys and other service providers. Our
goal is to be "The Portal Site"
for everything having to do with US immigration law. We want to provide you with every service possible to
increase your knowledge of the law and to make your online experience more
useful and rewarding. We are
constantly growing and expanding in order to meet your immigration needs. How to Use Our Site?
************************************************************* New Feature: Top Ten Predictions for the Coming Year! (Based on information from our sources in Washington and around the world). 10. INS will continue to be in the news regarding its unlawful searches and seizures and border stops. Congress will be forced to restrict INS power by amending several of the controversial provisions of the 1996 Act. 9. The Immigration and Naturalization Service will be reorganized, into at least two, but possibly more different sections. For sure, there will be a separation between the enforcement section and the benefits section. This will only cause more confusion and delay than already exists within the agency. 8. Congress will amend the H-1B regulations and add substantially more visa numbers. But, obstructionist members of Congress will add additional provisions to the law that will erode much of the value of the added numbers. As a consequence, Congress will have to amend the law again within a year. 7. The US Department of Labor
will drastically revise its procedures in applying for labor certification.
Overall the procedures should be less complicated, but will be more
restrictive as to the types of occupations that can qualify for certification,
at least in the skilled categories. 6. The federal courts will continue to chip away at several of the unconstitutional provisions of IIRAIRA, and will ultimately restore 212(c) relief to those who committed deportable crimes before the law went into effect. 5. The requirements to obtain
fraud waivers will be relaxed, especially if there is a close US citizen
relative, and no criminal activity is involved. 4. Congress will amend some of
the harsher criminal provisions of the Immigration Act of 1996.
Waivers will become available for certain criminal offenses for which
waivers did not previously exist. 3. A new version of Section 245(i) will be enacted allowing those who are unlawfully in the US to obtain an adjustment of status in this country without the need to return to their country for consular processing. 2. Haitians, El Salvadorians, Guatemalans, and Hondurans will be given the same privileges granted to Nicaraguans and Cubans under NACARA. 1. Congress will pass, and the President will sign, a new Amnesty law granting permanent status to anyone who is statutorily eligible and who has been physically present in the US since before 1986. ************************************************************* Coming
Later This Month – ImmigrationLinks.com
is pleased to announce that starting later
this month, we will be inaugurating a new feature whereby our viewers can ask
general immigration questions to some of the finest immigration attorneys in the
country on our new Bulletin Board page. Our
first guest moderator will be Philip
M. Zyne. Post your questions on
our bulletin board and Mr. Zyne will answer them during the week of June 12-19. We plan on having guest attorneys available to
answer your questions at least once a month. This service, as well as all other services on our site, is
completely free. More
information will be sent to our subscribers next week. We hope you will take this opportunity to ask
the questions that are important to you. ************************************************************* SECTION
110 BILL PASSES CONGRESS-- Both the US Senate and House of Representatives have passed H.R. 4489, a Bill to eliminate Section 110 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act that was scheduled to go into effect next year. Under the Bill, the government will create a computer database of information collected from foreigners as they enter and leave the country. It will require border patrol and INS agents to question and track each alien who travels in and out of the country. The primary purpose of the Bill is to apprehend visitors and temporary workers who overstay their visas. The Bill represents an important victory for aliens rights advocates since it specifically prohibits the Immigration and Naturalization Service from using the Bill to implement any new data collection or documentary requirements, including exit controls on land borders or visas for currently visa-exempt individuals. The new database, which will be available to INS inspectors, border patrol, customs, and state department officials, is to be phased in over the next eight (8) years, first at airports and seaports, then at the fifty (50) busiest land borders, and finally at all ports of entry. It is expected that President Clinton will sign the legislation. ************************************************************************* Revised INS Memo on Dual Intent When Adjustment Application Pending The
memo states that Hs and Ls who have returned to the U.S. under advance parole
would be considered to have worked with authorization under H or L
status. For the complete memo, Click
Here. ************************************************************************* What
is the current H-1B processing date? According to INS, H-1B cases with a receipt date of March 10 or before are now being processed by the four service centers. ************************************************************ Ninth Circuit Denies INS's
Motion for Rehearing In a one-paragraph decision, the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Immigration Service’s Motion for Rehearing in the case of Daniel Magana-Pizano vs. INS. The court had previously ruled on December 27, 1999, that neither AEDPA nor IIRAIRA repeal statutory habeas corpus relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §2241. In addition, the court held that AEDPA §440(d) cannot be applied to eliminate former 212(c) relief for persons in deportation proceedings on or before April 24, 1996. Regarding pre-AEDPA convictions and post-AEDPA proceedings, the court held as a general rule AEDPA does apply in such cases to eliminate 212(c) relief. However, in those circumstances, the court left open the possibility that, under a specific factual showing that a guilty plea was entered in reliance on the availability of 212(c) relief, a petitioner may be able to establish that AEDPA §440(d) has an impermissible retroactive application to him. The INS has not yet decided whether it will appeal the court’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. For a sample pro se "Motion to Reopen to File for 212(c) Relief" pursuant to the Magana-Pizano decision in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, click here. *********************************************************** AILA
Supports Feinstein Bill to Eliminate INS Backlogs FEINSTEIN BILL SENDS IMPORTANT MESSAGE: INS BACKLOGS WON’T BE TOLERATED WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) offered their support for a measure introduced today by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) that would put the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) on notice that it must reduce its tremendous backlogs. “Senator Feinstein’s bill sends a message to the INS that we no longer will tolerate tremendous backlogs that hurts millions of people seeking to become U.S. citizens, fleeing political persecution, trying to reunite with their families, and businesses seeking to employ foreign workers who are needed for our continued economic growth,” said Jeanne Butterfield, AILA’s Executive Director. “This measure is a necessary first step in urging the INS to provide quick, effective and fair adjudication of the millions of applications that, for too long, have languished in the bureaucracy.” “The measure also acknowledges that money is the major problem,” Butterfield said, explaining that for the past few years, Congress has provided direct appropriated funds to INS enforcement, while the adjudications branch has been subsisting largely on user fees – the funds that people and businesses pay when they file applications. At the same time, Congress has imposed numerous unfunded and conflicting mandates on the INS. The agency has paid for those mandates out of the only pot of money they have access to: the user fees. As a result, we have seen the backlogs skyrocket to the current unmanageable and unconscionable levels. “We thank Senator Feinstein for her efforts on behalf of the millions of people whose hopes and dreams are buried on desks in INS offices. We also call upon Congress to take the next logical step and provide direct appropriated funds to the INS adjudications in amounts necessary to permanently reduce the backlogs,” Butterfield said. *********************************************************** President
Clinton’s Amnesty Proposal As we reported in our Urgent Update Mailing,
President Clinton has proposed the granting of permanent residence status to all
illegal aliens who have resided in the United States continuously since December
31, 1985. He also proposed granting
permanent status to all nationals from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and
Haiti who have resided continuously in this country since December 31, 1995.
For a copy of the White House letter to Congress containing these
proposals, click here. ************************************************************** For up-to-date information and current immigration news, check our News Page at http://www.immigrationlinks.com/newslink.htm *************************************************************** Thank you for taking the time to read through this month's mailing. We hope you have picked up at least a few important pointers. Please feel free to send us your immigration-related article that you want us to include in our next monthly mailing. Click here for instructions. Your article will be sent out at the beginning of next month to all of our subscribers, and it can be viewed online by millions of prospective immigration applicants around the world. We would also like to hear from anyone who has had either a positive or negative experience with the US Immigration Service, Immigration Court, or a US Consulate, as we would like to share these thoughts with our readers. Appropriate articles will be published in our monthly newsletters. We do need your name and e-mail address in order to obtain additional information if necessary, however this information will not be disclosed without your specific consent. As mentioned above, there are many proposals currently before Congress that will restore rights and benefits that were taken away under the 1996 law. It is important that everyone contact their Senators and Representatives to let them know that we want fairness and justice when dealing with those seeking to join their family members, or prospective employers, in the United States. With your help, the rights of immigrants and their family members will be greatly enhanced. The entire staff of ImmigrationLinks.com would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you the best in dealing with your immigration case. *********************************************************************** How to Subscribe:
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