May 2001 Newsletter
**U.S.
IMMIGRATION NEWS**
May 1, 2001
Published by:
ImmigrationLinks.com, Inc.
“Your Immigration Link to the World”
Copyright © 2001, ImmigrationLinks.com, Inc.
Email: info@immigrationlinks.com
Internet: www.immigrationlinks.com
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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.
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Welcome
to ImmigrationLinks.com, Inc., “Your
Immigration Link to the World”.
Much has happened this
past year with new immigration laws and with a new President and a new Congress.
As the months pass, we can expect many more changes, and new and exciting
developments in the field of immigration law.
ImmigrationLinks.com has also grown tremendously since its beginning just
one year ago. In this short time
we have become one of the top immigration news and information providers on the
Internet, servicing hundreds of thousands of viewers each month.
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. For example, our Bulletin Board provides you with free answers to your immigration questions from some of the finest immigration attorneys in the country. 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, and many more features are coming soon.
How to Use Our Site?
- Immigration News Page: To get the latest immigration news, updated on a daily basis, go to this page. We have thousands of news articles covering every type of immigration petition or application. You can download free immigration and state department forms, get the latest fee schedules, list of immigration doctors, addresses and telephone numbers of immigration offices, the latest priority dates, current processing times, and much, much more. Check out the “NEWS FLASH” area for late-breaking immigration developments.
- Immigration Hints & Tips Page: Get useful immigration hints and tips that will make the filing of your immigration case easier and faster. Have access to forms and sample briefs and legal memorandum especially prepared by immigration attorneys that you can use with your applications. Attorneys listed in The Best Lawyers in America have prepared many of these documents.
- Immigration Research Page: Go here to get connected to thousands of public and private agencies and businesses related to US immigration law. You will have free access to copies of all of the immigration laws, all court decisions, agency memos and field instructions, forms, addresses and telephone numbers, and a lot more. We are constantly adding new links. No other immigration site has as many links as we have. (Feel free to look at all of our links and send us suggestions for any others that you believe are important).
- Immigration Services: These are the businesses that provide valuable products and services to assist the immigrant community. Let us promote your company’s business on our site for as little as $25.00 per year. You can also have our free banner placed on your business’s web site as a service for your customers.
- Languages: Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese translations of our site are now available. Simply click on the appropriate language button on our Home Page. Other languages coming in the future.
- Bulletin Board and Chat Room: Post your immigration questions on our Bulletin Board and get answers from others who have faced the same types of problems, including free advice from some of the finest immigration attorneys in the country. Chat live online with others, including immigration law experts. Tune in for other special features and programs.
- Other Services: Sign up for our free monthly newsletter, including urgent updates as necessary. Look for free downloads of immigration materials including official immigration, state department, and labor department application forms; specially prepared forms to use with your applications; news articles; and insider tips written for ImmigrationLinks.com by some of the finest immigration attorneys in the country.
- Banner Exchange Program: If you have a web site and would like to exchange banner links with us, please send e-mail to info@immigrationlinks.com. We will contact you to discuss your site’s inclusion in our program.
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Top
Immigration Attorneys Answer Your Immigration Questions for FREE
ImmigrationLinks.com is pleased to announce that some of the top immigration attorneys in the country will be answering your “general” immigration questions for free on our “Bulletin Board” page. This month the law staff of ImmigrationLinks.com will be answering your questions.
We plan on having guest attorneys available to answer your questions at least once a month. This service, as are all other services on our site, is completely free. We hope you will take this opportunity to ask the questions that are important to you.
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No Extension of 245(i) Deadline, for Now!
The April 30, 2001 filing deadline for submission of an immigrant visa petition or application for labor certification, in order to be grand fathered under Section 245(i) of the Immigration Act, has now passed. While Congress has not yet agreed to pass an extension of this deadline date, the encouraging news is that President George W. Bush has written a letter to the leaders of both houses of congress supporting an extension of the deadline.
For more information on this subject, and to view a copy of President Bush's letter to Congress, click here.
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New INS Commissioner Nominated
James Ziglar has been nominated by President Bush as the new commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. For more information on Mr. Ziglar, and his nomination, click here.
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The New V and K3 Visas
The Immigration Service and State Department have been very slow in issuing forms and instructions on the new V and K3 visas. While the State Department has finally come out with a new V visa form, many consulates are still not accepting applications because they are unsure of the procedures for processing these applications.
The National Visa Center has begun sending V visa packages to those who appear to qualify based upon the cases pending with them. Anyone who has a V visa case pending with a US consul should immediately contact the consul to ascertain how they are processing the applications so that the necessary documents and forms can be quickly obtained and forwarded to the consul.
We will of course post all the latest information to our web site as soon as it is published.
For more information on the V and K3 visas, click on any of the links below:
INS
on the New "V" Visa Application (04/18/01)
State Department Issues Interim Final Regulations on V and K Visas (04/16/01)
Filing for "V" Non-Immigrant Status in the United States (04/02/01)
INS Tells "V" Visa Applicants to Wait to Apply (03/30/01)
INS Proposes Using Revised I-129F Form for K3 Petitions (03/26/01)
New DS-3052 "V" Visa
Form (03/12/01)
New and Improved Form OF-156 for Non-immigrant Visa Applications
(03/12/01)
National Visa Center to Begin Sending "V"
Visa Packages (03/12/01)
V and K3
Visa Information from the State Department Web Site
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H-1Bs and
LCAs
(Reprint from last month's edition)
As anyone who has an H-1B case or reads this web site knows, the LCA faxback system has been having substantial problems. For that reason, INS has agreed to allow the filing of H-1Bs without certified LCAs for now. To read more on this subject, click the following link: INS to Allow H-1B Filings Without Certified LCAs--For Now (03/21/01).
Also, the INS has just announced that effective April 13, 2001, the new version of form I-129W will be required for all H-1B filings. For more on this, click the following link: New Version of I-129W Required Beginning April 13, 2001 (03/30/01).
The US Labor Department has also set up a special telephone number to resolve LCA problems. Click the following link for more information: How to Resolve LCA Faxback Problems (04/10/01)
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Vermont Service Center Congressional Unit Newsletter
April 30,2001
The Vermont Service Center Congressional Unit publishes a monthly newsletter that addresses the concerns of members of congress. In this month's issue INS discusses the upcoming premium processing program, nurses' eligibility for H-1Bs, O and P support personnel, and unlawful presence while an extension or change of status request is pending.
To view the newsletter, click
here. 
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US Supreme Court Hears Deportation Cases
April 24, 2001
The US Supreme Court has been asked to decide how much judicial review is allowed by a pair of 1996 laws intended to speed up the deportation of immigrants convicted of crimes.
At issue are two 1996 laws, the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act. They dramatically altered the government's treatment of permanent resident aliens who commit crimes or face deportation for other reasons.
For more on these cases, click here.
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Investigative Series on INS Wins Pulitzer Prize
April
17, 2001
The Portland Oregonian has won the 2001 Public Service Pulitzer Prize for its six-part investigative series on the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
The series focused on due process abuses, including the retroactivity and mandatory detention provisions of IIRAIRA, and the detention of asylum seekers. It also looked at other problems, such as the loss of files, poor training, low pay, and little discipline of agency workers, as well as INS reorganization proposals.
To view the entire series of articles, click the
following link: http://www.oregonlive.com/ins/
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AILA
ADVOCACY UPDATE
Vol. 5, No. 6, April 27, 2001
IN THIS ISSUE:
- Section 245(i) Extension Bills and INS Procedures for Filing;
- Supreme Court Hears Two IIRAIRA Cases;
- Senator Helms Leads Congressional Visit to Mexico;
- Summit of Americas Addresses Immigration;
- H-1Bs and the Economy;
- Recently Introduced Legislation;
- Media Spotlight – Washington Post Highlights Contributions of Undocumented Workers;
- AILA Members and Staff in the News;
- Issues in the News.
To view the entire issue, click here.
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Bills Currently Pending in Congress
To see a list and description of important immigration legislation that is currently pending in the 107th Congress, click on the following link: AILA's 107th Congress Legislative Scorecard (04/25/01)
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Have a Great Month,
and Keep Checking Back for All the Latest Immigration News and Information
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.
Even though Congress has remedied some of the harsh consequences of the 1996 Act, it has not gone far enough, and there is still much more that has to be accomplished. We will provide our readers with updates on what is still needed to bring fairness and equity to US immigration 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.
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