Clients are asking me about how their cases are affected by the government shutdown. For now, clients with appointments for fingerprints and interviews with immigration officers, should continue to present for these scheduled events. People in deportation proceedings who are not detained, will have their hearings rescheduled for a later date. Immigration judges are only adjudicating deportation cases that involve immigrants that are detained in immigration jail.

I will try to post more updates as I get them. 

Post 2013-election, immigration became a hot topic once again. The polls showed that more Hispanics came out to vote, and that immigration was a topic they cared about. Since then, the Gang of Eight proposed new legislation to address the current US immigration problems. This includes an attempt to resolve the fact that we have millions of people living in the country without lawful immigration status.

After approval in the Senate, the bill is now waiting for Congressional approval. In the meantime, our country and world face other issues of interest including the war in Syria and national debt.

Immigration reform activists are trying to heighten the interest and awareness about the changes needed in our immigration laws. For now, the push for change is a little stagnant. But it doesn't mean that things cannot change. I think that there is still hope, and activists are reviving the hype that immigration had earlier this year.

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/outside-groups-try-to-revive-immigration-reform-96950.html

One part of immigration that many Americans have dealt with  is the Form I-9. A new employee typically completes this form when
starting a new job. The Form I-9 may look simple. However, it can bring
many woes to an employer if not handled properly. The reason is because under
the Obama administration, more employers are receiving audits inquiring into the
employee I-9 forms resuling in fines that cost employers thousands of dollars.


BeginningTODAY employers will need to start using the new Form
I-9. Below is a link with the new document. This form can get very complicated. Therefore, it is a good idea to discuss Form I-9 with an experienced attorney and learn about Best Practices in dealing with the form.


http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-9.pdf

 Last year, the Obama administration spent almost $18 billion on immigration enforcement. This is more than the amount spent on all other federal enforcement agencies combined (that total is $14  billion)!
 
That is a lot of taxpayer money going towards enforcement of our
government’s immigration laws. One thing to note is that under the Obama  administration, he has deported more immigrants in his first term than  President W. Bush did in his two terms in
office.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/08/us/huge-amounts-spent-on-immigration-study-finds.html?smid=fb-share

 According to the US State Department, the Russian government  passed a new law called the Yakovlev Act. This law ends inter-country adoptions between America and Russia. It is unknown what will happen with families that  are currently under the adoption process. Over the past 20 years, Americans  have adopted over 60,000 children from Russia.



http://www.aila.org/content/default.aspx?docid=42623&utm_source=Recent%20Postings%20Alert&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=RP%20Daily
 

The Goldberg Law Office PLLC wishes you a very happy 2013. At the  end of each year, we look back at big events that happened to us, our clients,  and our community. Our attorneys are proud of the work we have been able to accomplish for our clients, and we look forward to even bigger successes in 2013. This year also brought us to our new office location, which has given us more space to grow. 

We appreciate the support and loyalty of clients, friends, and our community. The Goldberg Law Office PLLC wishes each of you a happy,  successful, and great 2013! Have a nice and safe  holiday.

 House Judiciary Committee Chair, Lamar Smith, introduced a new
immigration bill this week. The focus of the bill is to replace one program with
a new program.

Currently, we have an immigration program called Diversity Lottery. The diversity lottery is basically a lottery for citizens of particular countries which are not substantially represented in the United States. Folks from that country specific list enter the lottery, and if their number is picked, they could have the opportunity of obtaining permanent residence in the U.S.  There has been some controversy regarding the diversity lottery in the past because  critics argue that it can give people a free pass of obtaining a U.S. Green Card, which can been seen as “not
fair.”

 The GOP Bill will get rid of the diversity lottery program and give more visas to people with advanced high-tech degrees. The proposed bill would allow 55,000 of these visas. My question is whether this bill will cure the immigration issues raised by others about our immigration problem.

 What do you think?

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/nov/26/gop-immigration-bill-keeps-the-well-educated/?utm_source=AILA+Mailing&utm_campaign=dfa8249839-AILA8_11_28_12&utm_medium=email

The Goldberg Law Office, PLLC wishes each of you a very happy Thanksgiving holiday. This time of the year, we are reminded of all of the wonderful opportunities we have living in the United States.

We are thankful for the clients we have and the people in our community that support our firm.

May this holiday bring you and your family a lot of joy and appreciation.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

The Pentagon now has a program available for legal immigrants in
the US that can lead toward obtaining US citizenship. The program started in
2009, but was stopped in 2010.

 Recruiters are pleased with the Pentagon reinitiating the  program. It will allow for folks who are in the US on temporary visas such as  student visas, the chance to obtain U.S. citizenship at a faster pace than the  current times available. Sometimes people who come to the U.S. to study, and then have an employer sponsor them for permanent residence, must still wait several years before obtaining the actual permanent residence. Once a person is  a permanent resident, the typical wait-time to apply for citizenship is five  years. Under this program, immigrants may get citizenship right after basic  training, which in itself is a mere 10 weeks.


Opening the army to immigrants has become more of an issue since  Major Nidal Malik Hasan opened fire on soldiers in Ft. Hood, Texas back in 2009.  However, he was American born.


Immigrants that have been a part of the program have excelled, and the Pentagon is looking forward to the new recruits that will enlist in the program.

 
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/us/pentagon-reopens-program-allowing-immigrants-with-special-skills-to-enlist.html?_r=0

Mississippi is the first state to join a lawsuit against the  Obama administration immigration policy. The case Mississippi joins is one in  which 10 ICE (Immigration Customs and Enforcement) officials sue the administration on its handling of immigration affairs. Click here to read our  blog post back in August 2012 regarding the existing lawsuit.

 The governor of Mississippi believes that the administration is asking that states turn a blind eye to illegal immigration. 
 
As a Houston immigration lawyer, I work with immigrants and  immigration officials constantly. This area of the law is quite complicated,  and there are many different groups involved in the adjudication and  enforcement of the laws. Each group has its own interests in the immigration debate. This news of Mississippi shows how not only an immigration agency disagrees with the president’s policies, but some states also  disagree.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/10/mississippi-joins-lawsuit_n_1956059.html?utm_hp_ref=politics&utm_source=AILA+Mailing&utm_campaign=d816a95211-AILA8_10_12_12&utm_medium=email