New immigration law coming with many changes

NEW IMMIGRATION LAW (CIR) WITH MANY CHANGES ESPECIALLY ELEMINATING MARRIED CHILDREN AND BROTHER/SISTER CATEGORY Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law, Dallas The immigration law in United States will be changed forever with the new bipartisan bill is approved by the Congress. The bipartisan bill will be introduced in to the Senate by next week, which will put a new focus on prospective immigrants' merit and employment potential, while seeking to end illegal immigration once and for all by creating legal avenues for workers to come here. It will also speed up the millions of prospective immigrants waiting outside

United States to legally immigrate to United States especially under family category. The new bipartisan bill is intended for the future of 11 million immigrants in the United States illegally on a 13 year road path leading ultimately to U.S. citizenship that would cost each person about $2,000 in fines plus additional filing fees, and would begin only after steps have been taken to secure the border, according to an outline of the measure available at present.

The new legislation will redo the United States ineffective legal immigration system, creating new immigration opportunities for tens of thousands of high and low-skilled workers, as well as a new "merit based visa" aimed at bringing people with high professional talents and skills to the U.S. The U. S. employers would have to face tough new requirements to check the legal status of all workers before they are being hired. If any U. S employer fails to check the legal status of any person being hired, they will be subject to severe penalties and fines including jail terms. The border security will be strictly implemented before those in United

States can dream about becoming U. S citizens.

They should pay heavy fines and should comply with all laws before being admitted to U. S citizenship and it may take about 10-15 years for them to attain their dream of becoming U. S citizens. The good thing is that million is people waiting outside to legally immigrate may see that their cases speeded up, but at this time it is not known how it is going to happen. Probably Congress may add more number of visas in each category in order to speed up the process, since at present there is about ten year waiting period for married children under F-3 category and about 10 year waiting period under the brothers

and sisters of F-4 . At present most of the family based category are back logged for about 10-12 years from all countries, while from Mexico and Philippines the waiting period is about 20 years when compared to all other countries.

Under the bill, immigrants here illegally could gain a provisional legal status six months after enactment as long as they meet certain criteria, and if the Homeland Security Department has moved forward on plans to secure the border.

They would remain in that provisional status for 10 years, able to work legally but barred from federal benefits like welfare or health care. After 10 years they could seek green cards conferring

permanent legal status, and three years after that they could petition for citizenship. They would have to pay a total of $2,000 in fines along the way, and at least hundreds more in fees, though that number has not been determined.

Immigrants would be barred from seeking citizenship if they'd been convicted of a felony or three or more misdemeanors, and no one who arrived in the country after Dec. 31, 2011, would be eligible. Hence, it is not advisable for anyone to enter United States illegally at present or those who entered after Dec. 31, 2011 to remain illegally thinking that they will be eligible to become citizens under this new law to be passed by the Congress.

People brought here illegally as youths would have a faster path: They could get green cards in five years and would become eligible for citizenship immediately thereafter. U.S. citizens no longer would be able to sponsor their siblings or married children for immigrant visas, eventually leading to U.S. citizenship. If you are a U. S citizen and would like to file petition for your married children or brothers and sisters you must do so immediately since once the new law which

may eliminate these two categories are passed, you will not be eligible for filing petitions for them. But those petitions already filed and pending for approval, those petitions already approved and pending for priority date to become current will be grandfathered, which means that they will be allowed to immigrate in the future. It is also anticipated that such people may not need to wait about 10-15 years to immigrate and they will be allowed to immigrate faster than normal

waiting period. These are the several changes aimed at rebalancing an immigration system that now awards only 15 percent of green cards to people under employment category while the majority percent of green cards to people with

family ties. The new law will change the system that awards 45 percent to 50 percent of green cards based on employment ties and only the balance percent to family category. brother or sister forever. Hence, it is very important that you should consult with an experience immigration attorney, especially a member of American Immigration Lawyers’ Association (AILA) for your immigration related legal matters. You should not fall a victim for immigration fraud by contacting notaries or agents who handles immigration matters.

There would be no limit in the number of green cards awarded to people of extraordinary ability in science, arts, education, business or athletics, or to outstanding professors, doctors and others.

A new startup visa would be created for foreign entrepreneurs trying to come here to start their own companies. Visas for highly skilled workers greatly in demand by technology companies would nearly double. Low-skilled workers would be able to come in for jobs in construction, long-term care and other industries, ultimately up to 200,000 a year. A new agriculture visa program would bring farm workers to the U.S.; farm workers already here illegally would get a faster path to citizenship than others here illegally, able to seek a green card in five years, an effort to create a stable agricultural workforce.

It is also very important that you consult with an experience immigration attorney about the options available for you including the scope for filing petitions for married children and brother and sisters. You should file the petitions with enough supporting documents and evidence so that they will be accepted for processing by the USCIS. If you file with insufficient evidence, your petition will be denied and you lose the opportunity to sponsor your married children or

Disclaimer: Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law, with more than 36 (about 21 years in U. S. Immigration Laws) years of experience as an Attorney, mainly practices in U. S. immigration law and is located in Dallas, Texas. He does not claim authorship for above referenced information since it is obtained from several sources including USCIS web site, AILA and other internet based legal sources, and published for the benefit of the general public. Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law or the publisher is not responsible or liable for anything stated above, since it is generalized information about the subject matter collected from various legal sources. For individual cases and specific questions you are advised to consult any attorney of your choice or contact your State Bar Organizations or local Bar Associations or American Immigration Lawyers’ Association (AILA) for finding an attorney or for any legal help. You can visit our website at: www.indiaimmigrationusa.com or www.indiaimmigrationusa.blogspot.com or www.facebook.com/groups/usattorney for information about U. S. immigration law related matters. Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law can be reached at (972) 788-0777 or at his e-mail: attylal@aol.com if you have any questions.

Law Offices of Lal Varghese, PLLC 1111 Kinwest Parkway, Suite 120 Irving (Dallas), Texas 75063 (972) 788-0777 E-Mai: attylal@aol.com