USCIS launches toll-free military help line

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently launched a new Toll-Free telephone number available to help Military personnel and their families with Immigration Questions: 1-877-247-4645. Members of the U.S. military and their families stationed around the world are now able to call USCIS for help with immigration services and benefits using the dedicated, toll-free number. USCIS customer service center specialists are available to assist callers Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. The type of assistance which will be provided includes:

• Tracking Naturalization applications,
• Notifying USCIS of a new mailing address or duty station,
• Checking the status of an application or petition,
• Bringing a spouse, fiancé(e) or adopted child to the United States,
• Obtaining posthumous citizenship for a deceased member of the Armed Services,
• Submitting an application for expedited processing

Service members and their families stationed in the United States or overseas may access the help line using the toll-free number, through their base telephone operator or using the Defense Switched Network (DSN).

After hours callers will receive an e-mail address that they can use to contact USCIS for assistance. In addition to the help line, the USCIS has developed a web page, http://www.uscis.gov/military that contains information and links to services specifically for the military and their families.

October 2007 Employment-based Immigrant Visa availability projected

The State Department has projected that the Employment-Based Visa Availability for the October 2007 Visa Bulletin will show that the First Preference category will likely be 1/1/07 for all countries. The Second Preference category will likely be 1/1/07 for all countries except China, which will be 1/1/06 and India, which will be 4/1/04. The Third Preference category will remain at the regressed date of 8/1/02 for all countries except India and Mexico, which will be May of 2001. The category for “Other Workers” should be 10/01/01. The State Department does not yet have enough data to project visa availability for the Fourth category and Certain Religious Workers. It is expected that the Employment Fifth Preference will be current for all countries.

Immigration Q&A

Question: Hi, I have a question about my mom and if there is going to be a new law that is going to prevent her from getting her Green Card. She lives in Jamaica, but now that I got my citizenship, I want to have her come and live with me and get residency here. I was waiting until she could sell her house by the end of this year. Can you tell me anything about it? Should I file for her now?

Answer: That’s a good question. The recent immigration reform proposal which was withdrawn from consideration in the Senate did have a provision which would have affected family petitions filed by U.S. Citizens for a parent. The Bill proposed that the current category for parents of U.S. Citizens would be moved from its present place in “Immediate relatives” (Spouses, minor children under age 21 & parents of U.S. Citizens) to a new special 1^st preference category which would limit the number to 40,000 per year. Additionally, a new non-immigrant “Parent Visitor Visa” would also be created which would only allow parents to stay for 30 days per year, require a $1,000 bond, have a Permanent bar for overstaying, not permit adjustment or change of status while the parent was in the U.S. on a Parent Visitor Visa status and would have included a bar for U.S. Citizen sponsors whose beneficiary overstays an I-94, from sponsoring another immigrant.

These were very tough provisions, and while they did not become law because the Bill was withdrawn, experts predict that any new immigration reform or amnesty-type Law will include similar provisions. Due to this possibility the best recommendation is to take advantage of the current category for parents and file now, before any new more restrictive law passes.

*This column is published for the purposes of providing a general understanding of immigration legal issues, as a public service and is not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Consideration given to any immigration issue is not intended in any way to substitute for individual legal consultation with a licensed attorney. Readers should understood that this column and the foregoing illustrations are subject to different interpretations in each particular immigration case that may arise and no one reading this column should attempt to apply his own particular situation to the principles described herein. Readers with specific legal immigration issues should consult their attorney. If you have an immigration issue and do not know an attorney, you may call The Bar Association's Lawyer Referral Service at: 800-342-8011.