Tag Archives: U visa

U Visa Cap Reached

Posted on by

U Visa Cap Reached for FY 2016

 

For the seventh consecutive year, USCIS has granted the statutory maximum of 10,000 U visas. That means until October 1, the beginning of the 2017 Fiscal Year, USCIS is unable to grant an applicant U visa status. In the alternative, USCIS will place applicants on a waiting list. The waiting list allows an applicant to apply for employment authorization. It basically means that the applications looks like it can be approved, but it cannot be approved at the present time because there are no more U visas available. There does not seem to be any congressional push to increase the statutory limit.

Quotas and statutory limits are a reality of immigration law. There are green card quotas, hence the Visa Bulletin, and there are statutory limits on the number of certain kinds of visas that can be granted. The H-1B statutory cap is one such prominent example.

The U visa is unique, in that it offers relief to a victim of a qualifying crime. It is also unique in the sense that it does not require prior legal status to execute a change of status. The standard is that switching to a visa requires the applicant to maintain status. For example, someone cannot change her status to an E-2 visa if she is out of status. That person must maintain a valid status in order to make that change.

Prevention of Slavery and Trafficking

Posted on by

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) celebrates January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Slavery and human trafficking continue to be persistent and deeply embedded problems across the globe, as many countries actively practice slavery and traffic human beings, often for sexual slavery. Slavery did not end with the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 or any other 19th century declaration or law. There are actual more slaves in the world today than there were in the 19th century. Slaves have played prominent roles in the building and maintenance of many empires, notably the Roman Empire, in which slaves vastly outnumbered citizens. Slavery should be an antique relic of history and utterly abolished. The international community has scorned against slavery and trafficking and multiple organizations have taken multifaceted approaches to combat these odious practices.

 

There are options in the United States for victims of trafficking, criminal activities, and domestic violence. The amended Trafficking Victims and Protection Act in 2008 created the U and T visas. Although there remain some issues with these visas, such as no work authorization during their pending periods and low cap numbers, the U and T visas provide an avenue for many non citizens to obtain non-immigrant status. For the U visa, a person must have been the victim of a qualifying crime. Three more qualifying crimes are expected to be added to the list as part of President Obama’s executive action, but Notario Fraud is not expected to be among them. T visas are for victims of human trafficking. These are not green cards but can lead to permanent residency.

 

As Martin Luther King Jr Day is celebrated this time of year and we remember his legacy, let us remember that all human beings are born with equal dignity and deserve the opportunity to live with that dignity.