San Francisco Immigration Law Blog

Get a Green Card: Know if you're eligible

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Friday, June 21, 2019.

You want to stay in the United States and work. You know that there are opportunities for you, your family and your friends. Being able to work here is like a gift. With the right opportunities, everyone in your social circle benefits.

Getting a Green Card is one of the first things you need to do, but you have to be eligible for it. Your Green Card will give you official immigration status in the U.S., minus the risk of deportation without just cause. You'll be entitled to many of the same rights and responsibilities of the people born in the U.S. Additionally, a Green Card is a necessity if you plan to naturalize in the future and become a U.S. citizen.

Labor certification is required for some employment visas

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Friday, April 26, 2019.

Some individuals who come into the United States do so through an employer. The labor certification for which employers can apply enables them to bring people into the country to fill jobs. The program is overseen by the Department of Labor.

The DOL handles the labor certification process to ensure that the people coming into the U.S. aren't going to take jobs from citizens here. It also looks into whether hiring the foreign worker is going to have a negative impact on working conditions or wages. If it will, the labor certification won't be issued.

Green Card via PERM labor certification & employer sponsorship

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Thursday, April 4, 2019.

The most common form of green card sponsorship through employment is the PERM labor certification. Often, after obtaining a nonimmigrant employment visa. The most popular nonimmigrant employment visas are H-1B, E-1, E-2, L-1, and O-1. Although F-1, J-1, P, TN, and E-3 may be pathways to permanent residency as well.

Alternatively, employment-based immigrant visas not requiring labor certification are available, including EB-1A, EB-1B, EB-1C, EB-2 NIW, EB-4, and EB-5. These visas automatically provide an employment-based green card but have higher criteria to obtain and longer processing times than nonimmigrant visas.

Details of the H-1B visa application process

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Wednesday, March 6, 2019.

Applying for any of the three main types of H-1B visa is a detailed process that requires input and action from both the employer and employee. All H-1B visas are designed for foreign workers with special skills or those who work in a specialized industry.

While additional details are likely to come to light during the application process, here are the three primary steps required for an H-1B application:

Employer completes and files a Labor Conditional application with the Department of Labor: In this application, the employer agrees to comply with all labor requirements associated with bringing an employee to the United States on an H-1B visa. Any violation of these requirements can result in a fine, banning additional visa applications and other sanctions.
Employer completes and files a Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker with the U.S. Customer and Immigration Services: A Petition for Nonimmigrant Worker, also known as Form I-129, should be submitted to the proper U.S. Customer and Immigration Services center, based on location, and accompanied by a Labor Condition application.
The prospective worker applies for an H-1B visa before entering the United States: After the employer submits the necessary information and receives approval, the foreign worker, who at that point is still outside the United States, will apply for an H-1B visa.

Cinco cosas que todo indocumentado debe saber en EEUU

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation posted in Immigration Policy on Wednesday, January 16, 2019.

En estos últimos años, la situación para las personas que no se encuentran de manera legal en los Estados Unidos ha sido cada vez más difícil. Los controles migratorios se han vuelto mucho más estrictos y son cada día más frecuentes a lo largo del país, en especial en el Estado de California.

Esto ha hecho que muchas personas sin documentos hayan sido detenidas y en algunas ocasiones, las mismas; no han sabido cómo reaccionar ante tal situación.

A continuación, te presentamos 5 derechos que todo inmigrante indocumentado debe conocer:

Types of employment visas employers might find beneficial

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Friday, January 4, 2019.

Some individuals who come into the United States do so on an employment visa, which is sponsored by an employer. When employers want to get workers here via one of these visas, they must know a bit about the options that fall under this category.

As an employer, you have several things that you have to do in order to make it possible to bring talent in to work here from another country. All employment visas are categorized into five preferences, each denoted by E followed by a number. Some of these have subcategories within the preference.

The EB-5 visa program allows investors to come to the U.S.

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Thursday, November 8, 2018.

There are many different visa programs to help people immigrate to the United States, each of which can apply to different personal and career situations. Many people are familiar with the HB-1 visa, which allows for skilled workers to enter the United States. Others are also aware of the L group of visas, which help those with existing work relationships with a company to transfer to the United States.

However, exceptional professional careers do not always result in employment. Sometimes, the most exceptional professionals are actually job creators, as opposed to individuals accepting jobs from others. For many years, individuals who were job creators and not employees had a difficult time gaining legal entrance into the United States for work.

Does your company need an L-1A or L-1B visa for a transfer?

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Thursday, September 13, 2018.

For many businesses, it makes more financial sense to transfer internal employees when a position opens up. Whether you are taking an employee with years of experience and promoting them to a new position or having that person move into a similar position in a new location, it can be much easier then training someone new.

It is also more cost-effective, as you will not have to spend weeks or months familiarizing somebody with your company's standard practices.

I-9 Verification Places Employers at Risk of Severe Penalties for Failing to Notice Errors in Paperwork

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation on Sunday, August 12, 2018.

Employers are responsible for ensuring the employee completed section one of the I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form and for completing section two of the I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification form, as well as to verify that proper documentation has been provided to demonstrate an employee's eligibility to work in the U.S. Failing to properly verify their employees places employers at significant risk of civil and criminal penalties.

The Department of Homeland Security Has Twenty Days to Provide a Rational Explanation to Deny DACA to Dreamers

On behalf of Litwin & Smith, A Law Corporation posted in Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) on Tuesday, August 7, 2018.

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia again concludes that DHS's September 2017 decision to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was both subject to judicial review and arbitrary and capricious. However, the Court will continue the stay of its order of vacate for twenty days to permit the government to determine whether it intends to appeal the Court's decision and, if so, to seek a stay pending appeal.