Asylum Interview Times

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Asylum Interviews Times

 

An important aspect of the immigration apparatus in the United States is asylum. Although the number of people granted asylum each year is lower than the number entering through family-based or employment-based immigration (statistics), it is a pathway to Permanent Residence, Citizenship, and sponsoring family members. It is the humanitarian branch of immigration. Recognizing that conditions in many countries are impossible and that people face persecution from their governments or other people in their countries, the United States offers a chance at safety and a new life. There are many legal hurdles and statutory requirements for an applicant requesting asylum. Asylum is not granted just because someone’s country is experiencing turmoil or there are difficult circumstances. There must be past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution, on the basis of at least one of five statutorily enumerated grounds.

 

Political leaders are debating raising the asylum and refugee ceiling from its current 70,000 limit to a higher number to accommodate Syrians escaping war-torn Syria. Information released by the asylum offices across the United States indicates that they are backlogged on their interviews. Asylum applicants receive an interview at an asylum office. Current times are discouraging. Someone who lives in the jurisdiction for Arlington will not have an interview scheduled currently unless she filed her application in August 2013. That is a wait time of over two years. Hopefully the processing times speed up and more applicants have a quicker chance to present their cases.

Sanctuary Cities Bill Defeated

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Sanctuary Cities Bill Defeated

S. 2146: Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act did not pass the Senate yesterday. It received 54 votes in favor, 6 short of the 60 required. The bill was proposed over the summer but recently was brought to a vote after being stuck in committee. The purpose of the bill was to limit federal grants to cities that do not comply with detainers issued by the Department of Homeland Security. There were also provisions to stiffen penalties for individuals who reenter the United States without authorization.

Sanctuary cities, such as San Francisco, have been lambasted for not cooperating with DHS and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. S. 2146 is the federal action against sanctuary cities, but there are local actions that are gaining in popularity. North Carolina’s legislature voted to ban local governments from preventing local law enforcement from working with federal immigration agents. Michigan and Texas are preparing their own anti-sanctuary city bills.

Opposition to the bill has been pronounced, despite the public and Congressional popularity of it. A House version of the Senate bill passed in the House during the summer, but President Obama vetoed it. Two years ago, immigration reform held the promise of being comprehensive and bipartisan. Yesterday was the clearest political indication that it is currently partisan and divisive.

Diversity Visa Lottery Open

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Diversity Visa Is Available

 

Between October 1 and November 3, the Diversity Visa (also known as the Green Card lottery) is available. Each year, 50,000 applicants are randomly selected from the pool to become admissible for a Green Card. Selection in the lottery does not guarantee a Green Card. The applicant still needs to meet all of the standards for admissibility and process their Green Cards within the allotted time. Some of the benefits of the Diversity Visa is that it provides a pathway to Permanent Residence in the United States without employer or family sponsorship. It can also be a quick process.

The countries with the most immigrants to the United States are disqualified from participating in the lottery. The reason is that the purpose of the Diversity Visa is to expand the immigration process to individuals from countries who are not well represented in the overall immigration population in the United States. Natives of the following countries cannot apply for the Diversity Visa: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam. This list is subject to change each year, depending on immigration trends.

There are certain educational and work requirements that must be met to apply for and qualify for the visa. The country of “chargeability” is the applicant’s native country. A South Korean citizen living in Germany cannot claim Germany as the native country (there are possible exception based on spouses and parents). One of the hesitations about applying for the visa is whether it will have an adverse effect on future nonimmigrant visa applications to the United States. Nonimmigrant visas usually demand nonimmigrant intent, meaning no intention to stay in the United States. Applying for the diversity visa may belie that. Please consult with an immigration attorney if there are questions pertaining to the diversity visa and future consequences.

“High Skilled” Immigration Data

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NSF Releases “High-Skilled Immigration Data”

In the overall immigration rhetoric, one consistently positive aspect is the number of “high-skilled” immigrants in the science, engineering, and medicine fields. The debate often swirls about how to retain those immigrants, many of whom are at educated and trained in the United States. Hopefully that debate receives more substantive discussion and meritorious ideas as the presidential elections careen forward next year. The STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields dominate this discussion.

Last month, the National Science Foundation published information about the increased number of scientists and engineers in the workforce and immigrants’ role in that. In “Immigrants’ Growing Presence in the U.S. Science and Engineering Workforce: Education and Employment Characteristics in 2013,” the data break down immigrants and U.S. born citizens and where the immigrants originate.

The data also categorize by fields and level of degree attainment

STEM OPT Rule Underway

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STEM OPT Rule In Process

As per proper procedures, the Department of Homeland has sent its proposed regulations on STEM OPT to the Office of Management and Budget.

Optional Practical Training (OPT) is an important aspect of the immigration apparatus in the United States. There are over 4 million students in the United States who are present on student visas (F, M). For many of these foreign students, OPT enables them to receive job training and experience. The standard version allows for 12 months of post degree training in the field of the student’s degree. The STEM (science, technology, engineer, mathematics) OPT grants an additional 17 months to a foreign student worker if the employer uses E-Verify. E-Verify is a controversial program that helps determine whether an employer has hired unauthorized workers. Also, its existence is in doubt, as it has only been extended until December 11.

The reason that a new STEM Opt rule is needed is that the federal court in the Washtech case ruled that Department of Homeland Security did not properly follow the time frames and procedures for regulatory action that the Administrative Procedures Act requires. That ruling meant DHS had to undergo the proper procedure for publishing a proposed rule with a comment period, collecting comments, and publishing a final rule with those comments considered.

DHS is required to have this by February 12, 2015. There is a 60 day minimum period between final publication and effective date of the final rule. A final rule requires a proposed rule 60 days previous to its publication (30 days for comments, 30 days for analyzing comments). That means the draft rule should be published by Thursday (October 15) of this week. President Obama’s executive actions on immigration last year promised some reform on OPT and STEM OPT. One possibility is the extension of the 17 months to 24 months (for a total of 36 months instead of 29).