mbartosik
02-13 04:45 PM
The level of commitment for those that would be plaintiffs, unlike the MI DL case would be a lot more, because USCIS could attempt to adjudicate their cases aggressively. The level of money would be significant. Think $200 per hour, for many man months of work. Without at least $50K in the pot with plenty more available I wouldn't even entertain it.
The level of time commitment is probably equivalent to obtaining 500 letters to the president.
So how about we have a pole.
First question is how much you are willing to contribute?
Are you willing to be a plaintiff with a $10K penalty for withdrawing?
Let's make that last question only open to those who have obtained or will obtain at least a 100 letters, and have already demonstrated willingness to travel to court hearings and depositions (like attending the DC rally and meeting law makers etc.).
I suspect that less than 10 people are qualified to vote to be plaintiffs, based on my commitment criteria and some of them already have GC or will likely have soon.
To put the effort into context both Walking_Dude and myself put a lot of effort into MI DL issue. We needed people with legal standing to sue. The two we had dropped out late, one on the day before filing complaint. I had put at least 40 hours working on this (but being in NY I don't have legal standing).
I've done litigation before, and done some Pro Se (latin on behalf of self - no attorney), believe me the litigation that you are talking of requires considerable time and commitment (unlike the MI DL issue which only required a few hours of the plaintiffs).
It would cut us off from USCIS. Once litigation starts you are burning your bridges. I can see only one practical way to do litigation, that is for an small group with no clear IV affiliation to do it, that instantly eliminates any committed members.
So let's stop talking about this and invest in letters.
The level of time commitment is probably equivalent to obtaining 500 letters to the president.
So how about we have a pole.
First question is how much you are willing to contribute?
Are you willing to be a plaintiff with a $10K penalty for withdrawing?
Let's make that last question only open to those who have obtained or will obtain at least a 100 letters, and have already demonstrated willingness to travel to court hearings and depositions (like attending the DC rally and meeting law makers etc.).
I suspect that less than 10 people are qualified to vote to be plaintiffs, based on my commitment criteria and some of them already have GC or will likely have soon.
To put the effort into context both Walking_Dude and myself put a lot of effort into MI DL issue. We needed people with legal standing to sue. The two we had dropped out late, one on the day before filing complaint. I had put at least 40 hours working on this (but being in NY I don't have legal standing).
I've done litigation before, and done some Pro Se (latin on behalf of self - no attorney), believe me the litigation that you are talking of requires considerable time and commitment (unlike the MI DL issue which only required a few hours of the plaintiffs).
It would cut us off from USCIS. Once litigation starts you are burning your bridges. I can see only one practical way to do litigation, that is for an small group with no clear IV affiliation to do it, that instantly eliminates any committed members.
So let's stop talking about this and invest in letters.
wallpaper %IMG_DESC_1%
sunny1000
01-05 04:55 PM
^^^^^
WTF? why are you bumping this useless thread?
WTF? why are you bumping this useless thread?
leoindiano
08-16 06:06 PM
guys,
why are you behind balls? Someday, if someone reads these posts, one may think, SRK was frisked to see if he really got balls.....:):o:confused:
why are you behind balls? Someday, if someone reads these posts, one may think, SRK was frisked to see if he really got balls.....:):o:confused:
2011 %IMG_DESC_2%
hpandey
02-12 12:10 PM
are you dreaming ... India EB3 is 01AUG01
He is talking about ROW EB3 and not India. EB3- ROW is at 1 Jan 05
He is talking about ROW EB3 and not India. EB3- ROW is at 1 Jan 05
more...
krishmunn
06-15 06:37 PM
H1b cap is 65k+ 20K for US master degree and remaining are exemptions. Total approimately 125K were issued on 2007.
You mean the cap-exempt made up 50K ? That appears too high. What is your source of info.
When you say total 125K were issued in 2007, did you exclude
the transfer (basically a new H1 not subject to cap) ?
You mean the cap-exempt made up 50K ? That appears too high. What is your source of info.
When you say total 125K were issued in 2007, did you exclude
the transfer (basically a new H1 not subject to cap) ?
thomachan72
03-27 03:16 PM
Even now I cannot understand how this happened:
Lalu P Yadav is taken to jail on some corruption charges and while going he asks his wife who was baking chapathis in a tandoori to sit on the CM chair till he gets back. WOW!! man... that is what is called real democracy.
Lalu P Yadav is taken to jail on some corruption charges and while going he asks his wife who was baking chapathis in a tandoori to sit on the CM chair till he gets back. WOW!! man... that is what is called real democracy.
more...
fairman
08-18 11:25 PM
And which part of india are you from?
Secret.
Secret.
2010 %IMG_DESC_3%
GC_ki_daud
07-11 04:07 PM
I have
EB3 140 approved for June 2004
and
EB2 140 approved for May 2006
My lawyer said that they will file a petiton to apply my EB2 status to my EB3 dates as soon as dates for EB2 cross June 2004
But now, In this August VB , My EB2 became current .
What I did not anticipate was the huge 2 year+ jump in EB2 dates
My 485 was filed in July 2007 and shows the status pending since then.
I asked my lawyer which 140 did he use to apply my 485 and he says "Both"
I am confused with a couple of things
1. Is it possible to file 485 by sending in both 140s. I asked the lawyer and he said that NOW since the date has jumped more than 2 years it is not advisable to file petiton to move dates .
2. If I call USCIS , will they be able to tell me which 140 was used to file my 485
EB3 140 approved for June 2004
and
EB2 140 approved for May 2006
My lawyer said that they will file a petiton to apply my EB2 status to my EB3 dates as soon as dates for EB2 cross June 2004
But now, In this August VB , My EB2 became current .
What I did not anticipate was the huge 2 year+ jump in EB2 dates
My 485 was filed in July 2007 and shows the status pending since then.
I asked my lawyer which 140 did he use to apply my 485 and he says "Both"
I am confused with a couple of things
1. Is it possible to file 485 by sending in both 140s. I asked the lawyer and he said that NOW since the date has jumped more than 2 years it is not advisable to file petiton to move dates .
2. If I call USCIS , will they be able to tell me which 140 was used to file my 485
more...
dealsnet
09-04 12:26 PM
If this is true, it is serious. If a donors information is compromised, it is like selling the credit card info the cheats. It is high time to clear bad elements from IV.
Yup, it is a religious fanatic. Also it must be an insider.
I am still wondering how the full name of "Jayapaul Reddy Vadicherla" is known.
One thing is that the Vadicherla is a Donor and must have given all his details while donating. The insider have access to this information and posted it.
_TrueFact, can you post my full name?
Yup, it is a religious fanatic. Also it must be an insider.
I am still wondering how the full name of "Jayapaul Reddy Vadicherla" is known.
One thing is that the Vadicherla is a Donor and must have given all his details while donating. The insider have access to this information and posted it.
_TrueFact, can you post my full name?
hair %IMG_DESC_4%
Sunx_2004
07-29 11:56 AM
Here is my case, Company A filed Labor GC for me, Labor filed 04/2004, I-140 approved 06/07, I485 filed 07/07.
Company A got aquired by company B in 11/07, Company B filed 3 year extension on H1B based on approved I-140 approved H1B.
Now company B filed amendment to approved I 140- My questions-
Is my I 140 still aproved or it will start all over?
I am planning to change the company coming October, Can I change the company at this stage. Will it affect my AOS in adverse way.
What
I need to take care of if I want to switch the job.
Company A got aquired by company B in 11/07, Company B filed 3 year extension on H1B based on approved I-140 approved H1B.
Now company B filed amendment to approved I 140- My questions-
Is my I 140 still aproved or it will start all over?
I am planning to change the company coming October, Can I change the company at this stage. Will it affect my AOS in adverse way.
What
I need to take care of if I want to switch the job.
more...
rick_rajvanshi
05-25 11:21 AM
Is there a site that gives step by step instructions to filing for canadian PR? Like what sort of documents you need and when?
Go to CIC web site and download all the forms and instruction book you need in pdf - Fill them yourself - Pay fees - Follow instructions which come after filing - Simple process.
start here http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/index.html
Go to CIC web site and download all the forms and instruction book you need in pdf - Fill them yourself - Pay fees - Follow instructions which come after filing - Simple process.
start here http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/index.html
hot %IMG_DESC_5%
alisa
02-18 11:49 PM
I think we can make some very credible and good arguments for ourselves.
a) The changing demographics require an increased level of immigration. It is upto this country to decide if it wants semi-skilled immigrants (Indian cooks and gardeners) and their siblings/parents, or high-skilled immigrants.
b) It is not really the smartest thing in the world to bring people here from foreign lands, let them work here in high-tech fields, and then send them back after 6-10 years so that they can compete against Americans from OUTSIDE America.
c) A lot of EB-based immigrants have been to American colleges and have graduate degrees. Again, see (b) above. Not the brightest idea to have this American-educated and trained high-skilled manpower forced to go back to India and China, the two main US competitors.
Atleast, not if you are America.
Bottomline is this. If there have been abuses of the system, and any system will be abused, then those need to be fixed. If there are loopholes, they need to be plugged (and people will come up with more loopholes.) But the USCIS should not throw the baby out with the bath water. Either this country values high-skilled immigrants, or it doesn't. The high-skilled immigrants need to know this, so that they can make decisions in their life. The incompetence of USCIS can't be the instrument of public policy making.
a) The changing demographics require an increased level of immigration. It is upto this country to decide if it wants semi-skilled immigrants (Indian cooks and gardeners) and their siblings/parents, or high-skilled immigrants.
b) It is not really the smartest thing in the world to bring people here from foreign lands, let them work here in high-tech fields, and then send them back after 6-10 years so that they can compete against Americans from OUTSIDE America.
c) A lot of EB-based immigrants have been to American colleges and have graduate degrees. Again, see (b) above. Not the brightest idea to have this American-educated and trained high-skilled manpower forced to go back to India and China, the two main US competitors.
Atleast, not if you are America.
Bottomline is this. If there have been abuses of the system, and any system will be abused, then those need to be fixed. If there are loopholes, they need to be plugged (and people will come up with more loopholes.) But the USCIS should not throw the baby out with the bath water. Either this country values high-skilled immigrants, or it doesn't. The high-skilled immigrants need to know this, so that they can make decisions in their life. The incompetence of USCIS can't be the instrument of public policy making.
more...
house %IMG_DESC_17%
BharatPremi
12-13 02:07 PM
Discrimination in employment based on nationality is not allowed. However, can we extend the argument to the employment based immigration? We can always choose to take that promotion though we will lose our place in the queue.
Leaving the question of fairness aside, under the current legal framework my guess is we do not have a case.
Then fight for changing that constitutinality. Who made it? Why did they make it the way the made it? Slavery was supported legally way back.. If black community might have thought " They do not have a case" as somebody has created the constitution to suit their own need and "within the framework of that legality" "they do not have a case"... then still we may be seeing slaves around.
I understand your point that we are not yet "citizens"... but for many fair practices society must not differentiate.
Leaving the question of fairness aside, under the current legal framework my guess is we do not have a case.
Then fight for changing that constitutinality. Who made it? Why did they make it the way the made it? Slavery was supported legally way back.. If black community might have thought " They do not have a case" as somebody has created the constitution to suit their own need and "within the framework of that legality" "they do not have a case"... then still we may be seeing slaves around.
I understand your point that we are not yet "citizens"... but for many fair practices society must not differentiate.
tattoo %IMG_DESC_6%
eastindia
01-15 12:07 PM
Is IV fighting for all of us on this?
People are just discussing and discussing but nobody is doing anything. Are any lawyers doing anything?
People are just discussing and discussing but nobody is doing anything. Are any lawyers doing anything?
more...
pictures %IMG_DESC_7%
greyhair
01-13 09:21 PM
actaccord: I also want to see civilized discussion. But that is not possible with people like PlainSpeak/GCPerm. I know this person. He has always tried to create Eb2/Eb3 divide. The problem is not with language of some of the posts you referred as "uncivilized", the problem is that for every post there are hundreds of people silently reading each posts. Each post influences those silent readers. If unanswered snakes like GCPerm can cause a lot of damage.
In an open anonymous forum you need to develop a thick skin. Person of every strip and belief can post anything. If you cannot handle this, it is better for you to resign from accessing any or all websites.For a period of time, I felt the same way as you did but it does not work that way. Stop this nonsense of political correctness when snakes like GCPerm spit venom to divide everyone.
A forum is a combination of all sorts of ideas and expression. You may like some and you may not like some. If you or your friends find it so difficult to stand this expression, then please sit quietly in your home because you cannot join hands with anyone in this real and rough world. How long are we going to " try to gain confidence" of more members? How long? I do not want to gain confidence of anyone anymore. If I was to make a decision, I would say that I don't need those members who cannot stand a little bit of rough reality. I am not going to do anything to "gain confidence" of others. If you want to work then good for you. If you don't want to work on the issue affecting your family, then so be it. You are doing a favor to no one but yourself when you speak with your Congressman. So Good luck and Good bye. But don't preach civility to everyone if you cannot first respond to PlainSpeak. I hate this Eb2/Eb3 fight.
at least one person could respond in more civilized and matured way. These kind of response will give good impression about a forum.
Guys please keep your comments in more civilized way to keep/gain good public image of the forum.
I do read most of the threads in this forum (whenever I feel free) i feel some of members who are donors/senior members feel they can get to fight (in abusive way) with any one on any thread no matter whether it spoils the image of forum or their response adds no value to the thread. These kind of attitude can be expected from new members as they may have wrong intentions (or to just vent their frustrations) to join in a forum. But people who are very senior and donors responding in uncivilized manner is not good for them as well as the forum.
I don't see anything wrong PlainSpeak's suggestion but I can't comment on if her suggestion is workable or not. But we can just explain what is right or wrong instead of getting into fight mode.
I would like to see some kind of administration control (removing the response, warning the members) on those threads with abusive/uncivilized response. I know it is tedious job but once we have senior/donors under civilized conversation controlling new members will be of easier as seniors/donors can report those unwanted conversations.
It would be great place to share ideas (good, bad, right, wrong) if those uncivilized response is reduced. The lesser the uncivilized response more the people willing to join hands.
I wanted to join hands but those uncivilized comments keeping me away from participating. I do have friends who joined after me referring felt the same, some even stopped visiting this forum after seeing uncivilized fightings.
There are great people like amitjoey who convey the message in more civilized way (as far as I have seen) and help others (its not easy to post 1100+ posts....). I am new to this country and have very less experience and knowledge to share. But I hope one day I can guide/help some people like amitjoey.
Reason for me to share my thought is amitjoey, otherwise I would have just gone through the thread and felt bad about this forum for uncivilized comments. I am not into any group yet (Eb2/3) as my comp is not going to sponsor gc as per new policy, so I don't belong to any group (or we can say group who's gc never filed). When I read PlainSpeak's comment I thought she was right and after reading amitjoey's comment I learned another view for this issue. After reading those two comments I understand the issue and why IV took different direction or direction different from PlainSpeak's. But when I continued reading this thread I felt why some educated people with good intentions have bad thoughts and respond to others in uncivilized way. In the whole thread only two comments make's sense to me rest doesn't belong/fit to this forum.
Lets get more new members and be civilized to gain confident which will gain more strength to the forum.
In an open anonymous forum you need to develop a thick skin. Person of every strip and belief can post anything. If you cannot handle this, it is better for you to resign from accessing any or all websites.For a period of time, I felt the same way as you did but it does not work that way. Stop this nonsense of political correctness when snakes like GCPerm spit venom to divide everyone.
A forum is a combination of all sorts of ideas and expression. You may like some and you may not like some. If you or your friends find it so difficult to stand this expression, then please sit quietly in your home because you cannot join hands with anyone in this real and rough world. How long are we going to " try to gain confidence" of more members? How long? I do not want to gain confidence of anyone anymore. If I was to make a decision, I would say that I don't need those members who cannot stand a little bit of rough reality. I am not going to do anything to "gain confidence" of others. If you want to work then good for you. If you don't want to work on the issue affecting your family, then so be it. You are doing a favor to no one but yourself when you speak with your Congressman. So Good luck and Good bye. But don't preach civility to everyone if you cannot first respond to PlainSpeak. I hate this Eb2/Eb3 fight.
at least one person could respond in more civilized and matured way. These kind of response will give good impression about a forum.
Guys please keep your comments in more civilized way to keep/gain good public image of the forum.
I do read most of the threads in this forum (whenever I feel free) i feel some of members who are donors/senior members feel they can get to fight (in abusive way) with any one on any thread no matter whether it spoils the image of forum or their response adds no value to the thread. These kind of attitude can be expected from new members as they may have wrong intentions (or to just vent their frustrations) to join in a forum. But people who are very senior and donors responding in uncivilized manner is not good for them as well as the forum.
I don't see anything wrong PlainSpeak's suggestion but I can't comment on if her suggestion is workable or not. But we can just explain what is right or wrong instead of getting into fight mode.
I would like to see some kind of administration control (removing the response, warning the members) on those threads with abusive/uncivilized response. I know it is tedious job but once we have senior/donors under civilized conversation controlling new members will be of easier as seniors/donors can report those unwanted conversations.
It would be great place to share ideas (good, bad, right, wrong) if those uncivilized response is reduced. The lesser the uncivilized response more the people willing to join hands.
I wanted to join hands but those uncivilized comments keeping me away from participating. I do have friends who joined after me referring felt the same, some even stopped visiting this forum after seeing uncivilized fightings.
There are great people like amitjoey who convey the message in more civilized way (as far as I have seen) and help others (its not easy to post 1100+ posts....). I am new to this country and have very less experience and knowledge to share. But I hope one day I can guide/help some people like amitjoey.
Reason for me to share my thought is amitjoey, otherwise I would have just gone through the thread and felt bad about this forum for uncivilized comments. I am not into any group yet (Eb2/3) as my comp is not going to sponsor gc as per new policy, so I don't belong to any group (or we can say group who's gc never filed). When I read PlainSpeak's comment I thought she was right and after reading amitjoey's comment I learned another view for this issue. After reading those two comments I understand the issue and why IV took different direction or direction different from PlainSpeak's. But when I continued reading this thread I felt why some educated people with good intentions have bad thoughts and respond to others in uncivilized way. In the whole thread only two comments make's sense to me rest doesn't belong/fit to this forum.
Lets get more new members and be civilized to gain confident which will gain more strength to the forum.
dresses %IMG_DESC_12%
Macaca
07-03 09:01 PM
I will need everyone's input since I don't know all issues.
Titles
"Immigration scandal goes unnoticed" or "USCIS drama and tantrum to lessen workload" or "Is this legal?" or "Resignations due at USCIS" or "Foul Play synonym USCIS Play" or GOVT "AGENCIES SHORT CIRCUIT A MILLION HOPES" or "The US govt. does a number on High Skilled Immigrants" or "Legal immigrants and the prison of USCIS" or "Door slams shut for highly skilled LEGAL immigrants in the US" or "US closes the door for highly skilled LEGAL immigrants" or "US isolates highly skilled legal immigrants" or "Broken Legal immigration system harmful to US competitiveness" or "Legal Immigration system in shambles" or "Flip-Flop: DOS & USCIS in cahoots?" or "USCIS betrays thousands of hopeful"
Retrogression in employment based (EB) legal permanent resident (= GC) process
Skilled tax paying immigrants
Adjustment of Status (AOS) is last stage in EB GC process
AOS application requirements
Application requires
Medical
increase in (hard to get) appointments across United States
Some had to take MMR vaccine and hence postpone their plans to have kids by 3-6 months as recommended by NIH. (newbee7)
Birth certificate
request for documentation in country of origin
Requires applicant and dependents (spouse + children) to be in country.
Some applicants and/or dependents had to fly in to be able to apply. (chanduv23)
2-3 days to prepare forms
Applicants changed their schedules to submit forms
Cost of applying
Application Fee
I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization) $180
I-485 (Application for Adjustment of Status to register as Permanent Resident)
($225 for applicaiton below 14 and over 80 (Should check on this)) $ 325
I-131 (Application for Advance Parole / Travel Document) $170 -
Biometric Recording Fees (Finger Printing, etc) $70
Total $745
Lawyer Fee $1000+
Others
Medical $250+
Pictures $30-40
Postage $50
Misc $50
2 Days off Work
Overseas travel to fill form
Looks like only $380+ is lost per applicant.
Need good estimate on #dependents!
Benefits of AOS application
provides Employment Authorization (EAD) that
allows applicant to change employers 180 days after filing AOS, if the new job is the same as the one they based their positions/original GC applications on. This is very important for applicants, who are bound to a particular employer for 6+ years due to GC processing delays.
allows spouse to get out of the house and contribute to American economy.
eliminates the need for continually renewing temporary skilled visa
A 21+ year old child can not be filed with primary applicant. However, once AOS is filed the child is "safe" regardless of how long USCIS takes to approve AOS. (My son turn 21 in mid-January 2008: darslee)
provides Advanced Parole (AP) for travel without visa -> saves Embassy overhead
application processing, which includes name checking that can take 1+ year, can be done while waiting for GC #.
USCIS gets a better load estimate for load balancing.
What happened
Applicants started filling forms on June 13th
Some applicants mailed forms on June 29th
USCIS announced on July 2 that it will not accept forms recieved on or after July 2
Why does it hurt
Waiting in line for 6+ years due to previous GC processing delays
Very little chance of legislative relief for a long time.
Rejected June filers can not re-file.
Some applicants did not file in June (due to prior engagements) because they had the option of filing in July.
$'s lost on re-applying
Lawyers who charged $1000+ for filing will not refund service fee and charge for additional processing
Medical will not be valid after 1 year and photos will not be valid after 6 months.
estimated expenses for at least 100,000 applicants is $6,000+ million in filing fees, medical examination expenses, incidental expenses such as travel, photocopying, phone calls, courier, etc., not including the 2-3 days of preparation time expended by each family as well as lost productivity experienced by applicants’ businesses due to absence from work
Fees increasing 66% starting Aug 1 2007; should consider July applicants under old rate
USCIS which is supported 90% by application fee should pay some attention to applicants
Special cases
I applied for H1B extension when my PD was current. Since my PD was current, I got 1 year extension. However, I could not apply for AOS. Now, I have to re-apply for H1B extension after 1 year. (??)
I could not apply in July. I had planned overseas trip on July 8th. What happens if my date becomes current before I return? (andyny73)
Individual trauma and stress
Thousands of individuals and businesses rely on the monthly bulletins to prepare and plan for the submission of applications. This update sets a terrible precedent, and undermines this nation’s efforts to foster legal and orderly immigration.
Patience is not just a virtue but a way of life for millions of legal immigrants who have been living in US for 6+ years. Besides everyday stress of job, mortgage, health and education of their children, they live with the added suspense of their GC application. (from vasa)
We are raising families here, our everyday life is no different from any other AMERICAN middle class family with same expectations and hopes. So it is not easy to presume that we can pull out or get out of this situation and return to our home countries. (from vasa)
The biggest loss is trust: Can we trust and rely on visa bulletin to prepare AOS application?
Applicants will always live in fear untill they receive receipt #
USCIS history
376, 345 GCs went unused from 1992-2006 mainly due to USCIS inefficiency
According to page 35 of ombudsman report, This loss of visas is due to:
gaps in USCIS’ accounting of cases;
USCIS not processing enough pending applications in a timely manner; and
the imprecise art of predicting workflows and demand surges at three federal agencies:
Department of Labor (DOL) (approves labor certifications);
USCIS (processes immigration petitions after completion of labor certifications and processes green card applications for applicants in the United States); and
DOS (establishes priority dates and processes immigrant visas from applicants outside the United States).
Comparison with Undocumented
Titles
"Immigration scandal goes unnoticed" or "USCIS drama and tantrum to lessen workload" or "Is this legal?" or "Resignations due at USCIS" or "Foul Play synonym USCIS Play" or GOVT "AGENCIES SHORT CIRCUIT A MILLION HOPES" or "The US govt. does a number on High Skilled Immigrants" or "Legal immigrants and the prison of USCIS" or "Door slams shut for highly skilled LEGAL immigrants in the US" or "US closes the door for highly skilled LEGAL immigrants" or "US isolates highly skilled legal immigrants" or "Broken Legal immigration system harmful to US competitiveness" or "Legal Immigration system in shambles" or "Flip-Flop: DOS & USCIS in cahoots?" or "USCIS betrays thousands of hopeful"
Retrogression in employment based (EB) legal permanent resident (= GC) process
Skilled tax paying immigrants
Adjustment of Status (AOS) is last stage in EB GC process
AOS application requirements
Application requires
Medical
increase in (hard to get) appointments across United States
Some had to take MMR vaccine and hence postpone their plans to have kids by 3-6 months as recommended by NIH. (newbee7)
Birth certificate
request for documentation in country of origin
Requires applicant and dependents (spouse + children) to be in country.
Some applicants and/or dependents had to fly in to be able to apply. (chanduv23)
2-3 days to prepare forms
Applicants changed their schedules to submit forms
Cost of applying
Application Fee
I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization) $180
I-485 (Application for Adjustment of Status to register as Permanent Resident)
($225 for applicaiton below 14 and over 80 (Should check on this)) $ 325
I-131 (Application for Advance Parole / Travel Document) $170 -
Biometric Recording Fees (Finger Printing, etc) $70
Total $745
Lawyer Fee $1000+
Others
Medical $250+
Pictures $30-40
Postage $50
Misc $50
2 Days off Work
Overseas travel to fill form
Looks like only $380+ is lost per applicant.
Need good estimate on #dependents!
Benefits of AOS application
provides Employment Authorization (EAD) that
allows applicant to change employers 180 days after filing AOS, if the new job is the same as the one they based their positions/original GC applications on. This is very important for applicants, who are bound to a particular employer for 6+ years due to GC processing delays.
allows spouse to get out of the house and contribute to American economy.
eliminates the need for continually renewing temporary skilled visa
A 21+ year old child can not be filed with primary applicant. However, once AOS is filed the child is "safe" regardless of how long USCIS takes to approve AOS. (My son turn 21 in mid-January 2008: darslee)
provides Advanced Parole (AP) for travel without visa -> saves Embassy overhead
application processing, which includes name checking that can take 1+ year, can be done while waiting for GC #.
USCIS gets a better load estimate for load balancing.
What happened
Applicants started filling forms on June 13th
Some applicants mailed forms on June 29th
USCIS announced on July 2 that it will not accept forms recieved on or after July 2
Why does it hurt
Waiting in line for 6+ years due to previous GC processing delays
Very little chance of legislative relief for a long time.
Rejected June filers can not re-file.
Some applicants did not file in June (due to prior engagements) because they had the option of filing in July.
$'s lost on re-applying
Lawyers who charged $1000+ for filing will not refund service fee and charge for additional processing
Medical will not be valid after 1 year and photos will not be valid after 6 months.
estimated expenses for at least 100,000 applicants is $6,000+ million in filing fees, medical examination expenses, incidental expenses such as travel, photocopying, phone calls, courier, etc., not including the 2-3 days of preparation time expended by each family as well as lost productivity experienced by applicants’ businesses due to absence from work
Fees increasing 66% starting Aug 1 2007; should consider July applicants under old rate
USCIS which is supported 90% by application fee should pay some attention to applicants
Special cases
I applied for H1B extension when my PD was current. Since my PD was current, I got 1 year extension. However, I could not apply for AOS. Now, I have to re-apply for H1B extension after 1 year. (??)
I could not apply in July. I had planned overseas trip on July 8th. What happens if my date becomes current before I return? (andyny73)
Individual trauma and stress
Thousands of individuals and businesses rely on the monthly bulletins to prepare and plan for the submission of applications. This update sets a terrible precedent, and undermines this nation’s efforts to foster legal and orderly immigration.
Patience is not just a virtue but a way of life for millions of legal immigrants who have been living in US for 6+ years. Besides everyday stress of job, mortgage, health and education of their children, they live with the added suspense of their GC application. (from vasa)
We are raising families here, our everyday life is no different from any other AMERICAN middle class family with same expectations and hopes. So it is not easy to presume that we can pull out or get out of this situation and return to our home countries. (from vasa)
The biggest loss is trust: Can we trust and rely on visa bulletin to prepare AOS application?
Applicants will always live in fear untill they receive receipt #
USCIS history
376, 345 GCs went unused from 1992-2006 mainly due to USCIS inefficiency
According to page 35 of ombudsman report, This loss of visas is due to:
gaps in USCIS’ accounting of cases;
USCIS not processing enough pending applications in a timely manner; and
the imprecise art of predicting workflows and demand surges at three federal agencies:
Department of Labor (DOL) (approves labor certifications);
USCIS (processes immigration petitions after completion of labor certifications and processes green card applications for applicants in the United States); and
DOS (establishes priority dates and processes immigrant visas from applicants outside the United States).
Comparison with Undocumented
more...
makeup %IMG_DESC_9%
villamonte6100
02-18 11:17 AM
(1) There was no shortage of laypeople and even attorneys who asserted that "USCIS isn't doing anything wrong they are just following the law" when it came to FBI name checks. Fortunately for all of us sharper legal brains and sharper judges prevailed, and brought us to this happy day.
(2) On Class Actions: Villamonte, have you read the Mocanu decision (http://www.bibdaily.com/pdfs/Mocanu%202-8-08%20LEXIS.pdf)? If not I encourage you to do so -- that was just individual cases being consolidated, but the situation is not very different -- you should pay particular attention to the part where Judge Baylson recommends a multi-district class action litigation to deal with all the other name check cases (see p. 16, para numbered 6).
The parallels between the those cases and the one being proposed are very strong.
Judge Baylson is not the only judge who has recommended a class action approach to these issues. IV members should also be aware that all we need are a few named plaintiffs, it isn't as though every IV member or even everyone wanting to sue needs to be a named plaintiff. All the judge needs to recognize is that there is a large group of applicants with same or similar grounds for suing USCIS/Emilio Gonzalez. Edit to add: IV the organization doesn't even need to be the primary plaintiff, since that will necessarily cutoff any parallel discussion with the agencies. The IV forums are just a place to organize this.
(3) Preliminary Ideas on the Grounds for Suing (courtesy lazycis):
The grounds for suing USCIS is the same as in Gonzalez v Howerton -- (a) interpreting the law incorrectly (b) not following the statutory requirement that they use up all the greencards available in a given year and therefore being guilty of affirmative misconduct. At the very least, a judge is within his rights to make them make amends -- by recapturing 2003-2004 EB greencards, since they wasted them as a result of their affirmative misconduct -- they waited for name checks or simply not processing applications - no one can say there wasn't an application backlog in 2003-2004.
(4) First Steps
What we need here is to get this matter before a good legal strategist who is familiar with (a) the two sources of affirmative misconduct (FBI name checks and cessation of processing in 2003-2004) (b) precedents and caselaw (note that most immigration law firms are good with filing paperwork, but not necessarily complex litigation, so forget about the usual suspects.) The perfect legal argument will not sprout up immediately. In the same way that the legal arguments in the name check cases were honed over time (lazycis can confirm this), this too will need some serious research and thinking.
Those of you who want everything about this case sorted out, signed, sealed, guaranteed and delivered this week will need a reality check. :)
As will those of you who think that the way to approach this is to discuss these issues without familiarizing yourself with facts and legal precedents in some detail (so arguments about slavery etc are not the ones that will win the day in court, it is arguments that can show that USCIS was not interpreting the law correctly and in doing so caused harm and that the harm can be remedied through recapture.) -- if you want to see how a case like this will work read Mocanu and Galvez. This case will not be a dramatic movie-style civil rights case about slavery, it will involve the most tedious sort of nitty gritty discussion of admin misconduct.
OTOH, for most of us, all we've got is time -- I do not foresee my Jan 2003 EB-2 India PD becoming current any time soon. I'm prepared for a long legal battle. I'd rather do something constructive** that will likely change the process than sit and wait and mope.
**: Yes, I've sent off my letters too. I think of these two things as complementary projects.
Neither of us are lawyers and I wouldn't even bother reading what you wrote. All I can say is, why don't you ask your immigration lawyer about this Class Action. Let's see what he says.
(2) On Class Actions: Villamonte, have you read the Mocanu decision (http://www.bibdaily.com/pdfs/Mocanu%202-8-08%20LEXIS.pdf)? If not I encourage you to do so -- that was just individual cases being consolidated, but the situation is not very different -- you should pay particular attention to the part where Judge Baylson recommends a multi-district class action litigation to deal with all the other name check cases (see p. 16, para numbered 6).
The parallels between the those cases and the one being proposed are very strong.
Judge Baylson is not the only judge who has recommended a class action approach to these issues. IV members should also be aware that all we need are a few named plaintiffs, it isn't as though every IV member or even everyone wanting to sue needs to be a named plaintiff. All the judge needs to recognize is that there is a large group of applicants with same or similar grounds for suing USCIS/Emilio Gonzalez. Edit to add: IV the organization doesn't even need to be the primary plaintiff, since that will necessarily cutoff any parallel discussion with the agencies. The IV forums are just a place to organize this.
(3) Preliminary Ideas on the Grounds for Suing (courtesy lazycis):
The grounds for suing USCIS is the same as in Gonzalez v Howerton -- (a) interpreting the law incorrectly (b) not following the statutory requirement that they use up all the greencards available in a given year and therefore being guilty of affirmative misconduct. At the very least, a judge is within his rights to make them make amends -- by recapturing 2003-2004 EB greencards, since they wasted them as a result of their affirmative misconduct -- they waited for name checks or simply not processing applications - no one can say there wasn't an application backlog in 2003-2004.
(4) First Steps
What we need here is to get this matter before a good legal strategist who is familiar with (a) the two sources of affirmative misconduct (FBI name checks and cessation of processing in 2003-2004) (b) precedents and caselaw (note that most immigration law firms are good with filing paperwork, but not necessarily complex litigation, so forget about the usual suspects.) The perfect legal argument will not sprout up immediately. In the same way that the legal arguments in the name check cases were honed over time (lazycis can confirm this), this too will need some serious research and thinking.
Those of you who want everything about this case sorted out, signed, sealed, guaranteed and delivered this week will need a reality check. :)
As will those of you who think that the way to approach this is to discuss these issues without familiarizing yourself with facts and legal precedents in some detail (so arguments about slavery etc are not the ones that will win the day in court, it is arguments that can show that USCIS was not interpreting the law correctly and in doing so caused harm and that the harm can be remedied through recapture.) -- if you want to see how a case like this will work read Mocanu and Galvez. This case will not be a dramatic movie-style civil rights case about slavery, it will involve the most tedious sort of nitty gritty discussion of admin misconduct.
OTOH, for most of us, all we've got is time -- I do not foresee my Jan 2003 EB-2 India PD becoming current any time soon. I'm prepared for a long legal battle. I'd rather do something constructive** that will likely change the process than sit and wait and mope.
**: Yes, I've sent off my letters too. I think of these two things as complementary projects.
Neither of us are lawyers and I wouldn't even bother reading what you wrote. All I can say is, why don't you ask your immigration lawyer about this Class Action. Let's see what he says.
girlfriend %IMG_DESC_14%
snathan
01-16 01:36 PM
And who is asking your advice ? This is usa and I have a right to express my views.If you don't like it please ignore my post.Who has forced you to read my post ? Who is stopping to go back to India ?
You are not expressing your views...You are just spewing your venom and hatred. You are an ideal fit for loser's guild. I am not the one talking all BS about my employer and claiming gladly will back to India. Its YOU... if you dont remember what you are talking..I pity you. Did anyone force you to work for your employer? It was your choice and why you whine now.
I dont want to waste my time with your garbage. Have fun.
You are not expressing your views...You are just spewing your venom and hatred. You are an ideal fit for loser's guild. I am not the one talking all BS about my employer and claiming gladly will back to India. Its YOU... if you dont remember what you are talking..I pity you. Did anyone force you to work for your employer? It was your choice and why you whine now.
I dont want to waste my time with your garbage. Have fun.
hairstyles %IMG_DESC_11%
gjoe
02-15 10:56 AM
You can pack your bags and leave. You are here by your own choice, and work within the legal framework of the country. You are free to leave when you please.
The slavery argument doesn't hold.
jazz
This country is against slavery of mankind in any form ( atleast that is what they preach to the rest of the world).Knowingly or unknowingly they have setup laws which virtually make us slaves. If you are inviting high skilled workers you better make sure you have the laws to protect your businesses (employers) and the workers (us) in a fair and balanced manner. The conditions should not be such that either one can exploit the other. But currently we are almost used as slaves due to loopholes in the law and ineffeciencies in the immgration agency which allow the employer to exploit the high skilled immigrants.
The slavery argument doesn't hold.
jazz
This country is against slavery of mankind in any form ( atleast that is what they preach to the rest of the world).Knowingly or unknowingly they have setup laws which virtually make us slaves. If you are inviting high skilled workers you better make sure you have the laws to protect your businesses (employers) and the workers (us) in a fair and balanced manner. The conditions should not be such that either one can exploit the other. But currently we are almost used as slaves due to loopholes in the law and ineffeciencies in the immgration agency which allow the employer to exploit the high skilled immigrants.
thepaew
12-13 04:24 PM
The US Constitution is a very concise document. Here is a link to it.
http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html
I don't think that per-country caps on immigration are unconstitutional. Please note that I am affected by this and would be very happy if the caps are lifted, but I do not think that this approach is viable and that this is the best use of our limited resources.
I also disagree with your premise that corporations want to see the caps lifted.
we, as non citizens, obviously do not have all the rights that the citizens possess. We don't know whether this rule is or is not constitutional (And as someone rightly pointed out that the expertise of a constitutional attorney is required).
However if it can be shown that certain citizens/corporations ( for example microsoft, google etc who also make efforts and lobby congress to change the law ) are unduly disadvantaged by this per country cap, then they can be plaintiff. So in a sense, we have allies in the corporate sector with tons of money (and who want to make more!) So they might be willing to support us,
if it is indeed found that the rule can be challenged.
http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html
I don't think that per-country caps on immigration are unconstitutional. Please note that I am affected by this and would be very happy if the caps are lifted, but I do not think that this approach is viable and that this is the best use of our limited resources.
I also disagree with your premise that corporations want to see the caps lifted.
we, as non citizens, obviously do not have all the rights that the citizens possess. We don't know whether this rule is or is not constitutional (And as someone rightly pointed out that the expertise of a constitutional attorney is required).
However if it can be shown that certain citizens/corporations ( for example microsoft, google etc who also make efforts and lobby congress to change the law ) are unduly disadvantaged by this per country cap, then they can be plaintiff. So in a sense, we have allies in the corporate sector with tons of money (and who want to make more!) So they might be willing to support us,
if it is indeed found that the rule can be challenged.
unseenguy
06-16 01:09 AM
Outsourcing is bad for not only for US citizens but also for future H1bs and GC aspirants also.
Still all the jobs cannot be outsourced. Also if that would have been the case I would have been out of job. But My salary was increasing steadily and in this tough economy also I was able to get a new job with 20% rise in pay after I lost job . There are many companies in USA who are only hiring USA citizens and discouraging outsourcing. Wherever I was working I discouraged those companies from outsourcing but encouraged them to hire h1bs ,GC holders or US citizens. Many start up companies in California cannot afford to do outsourcing because of tight release schedules.
Correct. So based on your post, skilled people need not worry about outsourcing. You can argue in favour of onshoring and that is a good argument. I support this kind of approach.
Still all the jobs cannot be outsourced. Also if that would have been the case I would have been out of job. But My salary was increasing steadily and in this tough economy also I was able to get a new job with 20% rise in pay after I lost job . There are many companies in USA who are only hiring USA citizens and discouraging outsourcing. Wherever I was working I discouraged those companies from outsourcing but encouraged them to hire h1bs ,GC holders or US citizens. Many start up companies in California cannot afford to do outsourcing because of tight release schedules.
Correct. So based on your post, skilled people need not worry about outsourcing. You can argue in favour of onshoring and that is a good argument. I support this kind of approach.
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