Author: enterimmi

The client, a U.S. citizen (Jack) and his Vietnamese wife (Jill) wanted to return to the United States.  After the Form I-130 Petition for Alien Relative was approved, the case was forwarded to the National Visa Center (“NVC”). While at the NVC, the adjudicator questioned whether Jack had enough assets to financial support his family. The attorney provided the NVC with a detailed financial report of Jack’s assets showing his financial maintenance ability, which was accepted by the NVC adjudicator.

After Jack’s case was sent to the U.S. Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City for an interview, the consular officer issued a 221g Notice of Administrative Processing requesting a joint sponsor which would require a new I-864 in order to demonstrate that the intending immigrant, Jill, would not become a public charge.

After speaking with Jack, the attorney quickly drafted a robust response to the consular officer’s finding showing that Jack had already established that Jill would not become a public charge. The response was sent to the Consulate’s Immigrant Visa Unit and within a few days, update was sent that Jill no longer required a joint sponsor and that the immigrant visa would be issued.

We emphasizes that we have no special connection with any government officers.  In this and other cases, as experienced immigration lawyers, we were able to analyze a client’s case and bring relevant law and information to the attention of the examining officer to be considered for further review and making a positive decision on a case.

For more information on 221g refusals and the I-864 Affidavit of Support, contact us today at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration lawyer in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.

The United States Department of State (“DOS”) has announced a third extension authorizing consular officers to waive in-person interview requirements for individuals applying for a non-immigrant visa within the same category. The first extension, which expired on December 31, 2020, was further extended to March 31, 2021 and allowed for DOS to waive in-person interviews for applicants whose visa expired within 24 months. This has now been increased to 48 months until December 31, 2021.

The policy change will allow DOS to continue processing certain non-immigrant visa applications while maintaining health and safety protocols reducing the spread of COVID-19 transmission.

For more information, contact us at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.

Enterline Immigration Consulting Ltd. President David Enterline has obtained approval from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) Investor Program Office (“IPO”) to expedite the review of Hong Kong EB-5 investors I-525 Immigrant Petition by Alien Investor (“I-526 Petition”).  An approval of an expedite request is not an approval or a denial of the I-526 Petition, but with an approval, the IPO will take the I-526 Petition out of the regular processing queue and assign it to an officer.  In our experience, decisions can be obtained in as little as 6 to 8 weeks, although the processing time will vary.

USCIS may consider an expedite request if it meets one or more of the following criteria:

• Severe financial loss to a company or person, provided that the need for urgent action is not the result of the petitioner’s or applicant’s failure to:
  1. File the benefit request or the expedite request in a reasonable time frame, or
  2. Respond to any requests for additional evidence in a reasonably timely manner;
• Urgent humanitarian reasons;
• Compelling U.S. government interests (such as urgent cases for the Department of Defense or DHS, or other public safety or national security interests); or
• Clear USCIS error.

In the case of our Hong Kong clients, we demonstrated that recent events in Hong Kong have created a personal and urgent humanitarian situation to which the IPO agreed.

If you are a Hong Kong EB-5 investor with a pending I-526 Petition and would like to consider our filing an expedite request in your case, please contact us at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.

The United States Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) has announced that the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) will no longer appeal judicial decisions invalidating or enforcing the 2019 Public Charge rule. Noting that litigating inadmissibility based on public charge is neither in the public interest or an efficient use of limited government resources, once the previously entered judicial invalidation of the public charge rule becomes final, the previous rules that were in effect from 1999 until 2019 will apply.

“The 2019 public charge rule was not in keeping with our nation’s values” commented DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. “It penalized those who access health benefits and other government services available to them.”

The 2019 regulations, which apply to foreign nationals  inside the United States and who are adjusting status from a non-immigrant visa category to permanent residence are much more detailed and complex than the 1999  rules to those who have received public benefits for more than 12 out of 36 months.

While DHS reverting to the 1999 interim guidance rules is certain to have positive effects, it is unclear how this will impact the Department of State.

For more information on past public charge rule litigation and how visa applicants abroad may be affected, contact us today at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.

Good news for Vietnam EB-5 Investors, as the “Final Action Date” priority date on the Department of State’s April visa bulletin leaped forward by almost two months, from October 22, 2017 to December 15, 2017.  The priority date indicates that any Vietnamese investors who filed their I-526 Petitions on or before December 15, 2017 now have visas available. If you are such an investor, you should contact the National Visa Center to begin your visa application process (if you have not already done so because of current Dates for Filing). See here.

The Final Action Date for Chinese investors remains unchanged since last October on August 15, 2015.  No EB-5 visas have been issued by the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou since early 2020 and only a handful of Chinese applicants were eligible to adjust their status in the United States.

The Vietnam priority date movement is mostly due to the U.S. Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City having resumed limited capacity.

The Final Action Date for the rest of the world remains current.

The Dates for Filing (Table B) remains current as has been the norm for Vietnam investors who will be classified under “All Chargeability Areas except those listed”.

What do the Final Action Date and Dates for Filing Applications mean?

If you have any questions about the visa bulletin, priority dates, the EB-5 visa or other U.S. visas, contact us at   info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney based in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.

The “Final Action Date” priority date for Vietnamese EB-5 investors moved forward three weeks in the Department of State March 2021 visa bulletin, from October 1, 2017 to October 22, 2017.  The priority date indicates that any Vietnamese investors who filed their I-526 Petitions on or before October 22, 2017 now have visas available. If you are such an investor, you should be sure to contact the National Visa Center to begin your visa application process (if you have not already done so because of current Dates for Filing). See here.

The Final Action Date for Chinese investors has been stuck on August 15, 2015 since October.  This is because no visas have been issued by the U.S. Consulate since early 2020 and only a handful of Chinese applicants were eligible to adjust their status in the United States.

The Final Action Date for the rest of the world are current.

The Dates for Filing (Table B) remains current as has been the norm for Vietnam investors who will be classified under “All Chargeability Areas except those listed”.

What do the Final Action Date and Dates for Filing Applications mean?

If you have any questions about the visa bulletin, priority dates, the EB-5 visa or other U.S. visas, contact us at   info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney based in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Enterline Immigration only.

United States President Joseph Biden has revoked former President Donald Trump’s Executive Order (“EO”) restricting certain immigrant and non-immigrant applicants from visa processing.

Intended to protect U.S. jobs at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump issued an EO on April 23, 2020 suspending selected immigrant visa applicants which was scheduled to be effective for 60 days. On June 23, 2020, Trump extended the EO through December 31, 2020 and expanded it to include certain non-immigrant visa applicants. Trump further extended the EO to March 31, 2021.

While Biden’s revocation of Trump’s EO will allow affected immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicant’s the ability to apply for visas,  such processing may still be restricted due to lack of manpower at U.S. Embassies and Consulates abroad or posts that have not resumed operations because local COVID-19 restrictions. Furthermore, certain immigrant visa applicants such as children petitioned by family members and are considered to have aged-out may be unable to receive their immigrant visas.

For more information on Trump’s EO revocation for immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicants and how it might affect you, contact us today at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of Enterline and Partners only.

Enterline Immigration Consultants Ltd., is pleased to share that its affiliate Enterline and Partners were able to overcome a refusal for one of its clients who was successfully issued an EB-2 Immigrant Visa in the Philippines. [Click HERE]

Its client, a healthcare provider, was petitioned by a U.S. employer as a physical therapist. After the Form I-140 Petition for Alien Employment was approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services through expedited processing, the case was immediately forwarded to the National Visa Center (“NVC”).  While at the NVC, the COVID-19 pandemic was declared which resulted in the client’s case being delayed. Our attorneys worked closely with the NVC and the U.S. Embassy in Manila to expedite the case for consular processing.

During the client’s immigrant visa interview, the consular officer misinterpreted a few key points of the law which resulted in the client’s application being denied and placed in administrative processing. One of those legal points was that the client was subjected to the President Proclamation restricting certain immigrant visa applicants from being issued immigrant visas.

Our attorneys quickly drafted a robust response to the consular officer’s findings and requesting that our client’s matter be further reviewed on a supervisory level at the Immigrant Visa Unit. A copy of our response was also forwarded to the Legal Adviser for Consular Affairs in Washington, District of Columbia also known as LegalNet. A few days later it received an email from the U.S. Embassy acknowledging its legal position. Less than 48 hours later, the client’s EB-2 immigrant visa was issued.

We are happy to report that the client is now in the United States treating patients in the battle against COVID-19.

For more information, contact us at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of Enterline and Partners only.

United States President Donald Trump has extended an earlier Presidential Proclamation restricting certain immigrant and nonimmigrant visa categories from consular processing in response to the growing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Executive Order (“EO”), which was first issued in April 2020, restricted certain immigrant visa applicants from receiving their visas for at least sixty (60 days).  The EO was then extended until December 31, 2020 to certain nonimmigrant visa applicants  that were not listed in the previous EO in an effort to protect American jobs.

The extension is extended to the end of March 2021, almost two months after the Trump administration ends on January 20.

“The effects of COVID-19 on the United States labor market and on the health of the American communities is a matter of ongoing national concern,” Trump wrote on New Year’s Eve, citing the unemployment rate, pandemic related restrictions on businesses issued by states and the rise of COVID-19 infections since June.

Although President-elect Joseph Biden has pledged to overturn some of the centerpieces of the Trump administration immigration agenda, Biden has not announced whether he intends to rescind visa restrictions through a new executive order.

Immigrant and nonimmigrant visa applicants in Asia who have been adversely affected by the ongoing restrictions are encouraged to contact us at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney based in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of Enterline and Partners only.

The United States Department of State (“DOS”) has temporarily expanded the ability of DOS consular officers to waive in-person interview requirements for individuals applying for an expired nonimmigrant visa within the same category. Previously, in-person interview requirements were eligible for a waiver if the nonimmigrant visa applicant applied for a new visa within 12 months of the expiration of the visa. This has now been extended to 24 months until March 31, 2020. The extension will allow consular officers to process nonimmigrant visas while limiting the number of applicants inside U.S. consular sections thereby reducing the threat of COVID-19 transmission.

Nonimmigrant visa applicants in Asia who may be eligible for a visa interview waiver are encouraged to contact us at info@enterimmi.com and speak with a U.S. immigration attorney based in Ho Chi Minh City, Manila and Taipei.

Copyright 2021. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. This article may be changed with or without notice. The opinions expressed in this article are those of Enterline and Partners only.