Do I Qualify for U Visa, and How to Change My Illegal Status to U-Status? Question: I am in U.S. illegally and a victim of crimes. Do I qualify for U visa, and how to change my illegal status to U-status? Answer: The U visa is set aside for victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse, and are helpful to law enforcement or government officials in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity. U.S. Congress was intended to strengthen the ability of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute cases of domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking of aliens and other crimes, while also protecting victims of crimes who have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse due to the crime and are willing to help law enforcement authorities in the investigation or prosecution of the criminal activity. Victims of certain serious crimes, who have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse as a result of criminal activity in the United States may be eligible to use this form of relief and apply for the U nonimmigrant status, or U visa. Victims must cooperate in the criminal investigations or prosecutions. They can then be granted U status and, after 3 years, if humanitarian need, public interest, or family unity reasons can be proven, they can apply for lawful permanent residency. http://www.greencardfamily.com/question/question2018/U_Visa_102818.htm http://www.greencardfamily.com

Question: For the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) for family and employment preference, how to calculate the CSPA age? Answer: The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) defines a child as a person who is both unmarried and under 21 years old. If someone applies for lawful permanent resident (Green Card) status as a child but turns 21 before being approved for a Green Card, that person can no longer be considered a child for immigration purposes. This situation is commonly referred to as “aging out”, and often means that these applicants would have to file a new petition or application, wait even longer to get a Green Card, or may no longer be eligible for a Green Card. U.S. Congress recognized that many children were aging out due to large USCIS processing backlogs, so it enacted the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) to protect certain children from aging out. The CSPA went into effect on August 6, 2002. CSPA does not change the definition of a child. Instead, CSPA provides a method for calculating a person’s age to see if they meet the definition of a child for immigration purposes. The calculated age is the child’s “CSPA age.” This allows some people to remain classified as children beyond their 21st birthday. However, CSPA does not change the requirement that you must be unmarried in order to remain eligible for classification as a child. If you are a family preference, your CSPA age is calculated by subtracting the number of days your petition was pending (pending time) from your age on the date an immigrant visa becomes available to you - age at time of visa availability. However, you must remain unmarried in order to qualify. The formula for calculating CSPA age is as follows: Age at Time of Visa Availability - Pending Time = CSPA Age For example: If you are 21 years and 4 months old when an immigrant visa becomes available to you. Your petition was pending for 6 months. Your CSPA age is calculated as follows: 21 years and 4 months - 6 months = 20 years and 10 months http://www.greencardfamily.com/question/question2018/CSPA_Age_102918.htm http://www.greencardfamily.com

How the K-3 Visa Works? and Can We Apply for the K-3 Visa for My Wife? Question: I just married outside the U.S. Please let me know how to bring my foreign citizen wife into US as soon as possible. I have heard a K-3 visa. How the K-3 visa works? and can we apply for the K-3 visa for my wife? Answer: The K-3 Visa is a non-immigrant temporary visiting visa for a spouse of a U.S. citizen to come to the U.S., while his/her permanent stay case is still pending. The K-3 visa must be filed and the visa must be issued in the country where the marriage took place. After the visa process has been completed, and the visa is issued, the spouse can travel to the United States to wait for the processing of the immigrant visa case. File for K-3 visa at nearest U.S. consulate ( unmarried children of spouse, age under 21 can get K-4 visa) After coming to U.S. file for Adjustment of Status (AOS) by filing Form I-485. File for EAD (Employment Authorization card). File for Social Security Number at the social security office. http://www.greencardfamily.com/question/question2018/K3_Visa_Wife_121618.htm http://www.greencardfamily.com

Date For Filing vs. Final Action Date, the Two-Tiered Visa Bulletin Question: In the U.S. Department of State’s monthly visa bulletin, how to understand the "Date For Filing" and "Final Action Date"? Answer: To provide those who are stuck in immigrant visa quota backlog with the benefits of a pending adjustment, and to reduce waiting time where possible, U.S. Department of State’s monthly visa bulletin provides "Date For Filing" and "Final Action Date" Previously, the monthly visa bulletin has served to update one date for each category of permanent residence applicant - the priority date cutoff. This one date determined whether you were eligible to submit your permanent residence application, and whether it was expected that there would be a visa number available, allowing your application to be approved. Now, the “Date for Filing” determines whether or not you can submit the final immigrant visa application, and the “Final Action Date” indicates whether or not it is expected that an immigrant visa number will be available. In many cases, the Date for Filing will be well before the Final Action Date, meaning that the alien applicants will be eligible to submit an application for permanent residence well before it is even possible for the government to approve that application. Therefore, those stuck in a backlog can get benefits of a pending adjustment - apply for a combined EAD/AP card, which provides employment and travel authorization. Immigrants holding an EAD can work for any U.S. employer, which provides significantly more security and flexibility than the employer-specific H-1B petitions that serve as the basis for many immigrant’s employment authorization. For family-based applicants, the EAD may be their first-ever work authorization in the U.S., so getting that earlier is a great benefit. Also, earlier filing of the final application means that employment-based permanent residence applicants will be eligible for AC21 portability earlier, meaning they can change employers, under certain circumstances, without being forced to re-start their permanent residence application from the beginning. http://www.greencardfamily.com/question/question2018/Final_Action_Date_121718.htm http://www.greencardfamily.com

The Employer's Ability to Pay for EB-1C Green Card Application Question, I am in L1A visa now, and my employer will help me to apply for the EB-1 Multinational Manager or Executive Green Card (EB-1C). My salary on the L1A visa application form is very high, but the company may have problem to pay me the number on the visa application form in the future. Do you think this will affect my EB-1C Green Card application? Answer, For empoyer-sponsored Green Card application, USCIS requires documentation that the employer can afford the employee's proffered wage and will be able to continue doing so in the foreseeable future. Employers must prove that: 1) the employer’s taxable income is equal to or greater than the proffered wage; or 2) the employer's net current assets are equal to or greater than the proffered wage; or 3) credible verifiable evidence that the employer is not only employing the beneficiary but also has paid, or is currently paying, the proffered wage. USCIS requires strict compliance with these rules. USCIS will reject the petition if the employer lacked the ability to pay from the date of filing. There are no exceptions to this rule. The U.S. Employer must prove that it has the “ability to pay” the applicant at the time the EB-1 Multinational Manager or Executive Green Card application is filed, and also at the time the application is approved. The U.S. employer must provide its tax return at the time the green card application is filed. It may also have to provide its tax return later, while the application is being processed. The tax returns must show that EITHER the U.S. employer’s net income (profit) OR net assets are greater than the salary offered to the applicant. In the alternative, the U.S. employer can provide evidence that the applicant is already on its payroll and already receives the wage offered in the green card application. http://www.greencardapply.com/question/question18/Employer_Ability_Pay_102118.htm http://www.greencardapply.com

Filing Another ETA Form 9089 Application after the First One Was Rejected Question, My employer filed ETA Form 9089 for me, and it was rejected by Department of Labor. I am near my 6-year of H-1B visa, and my employer wants to file an appeal - Request for Reconsideration. Do you think it is good idea? Answer, The Department of Labor (DOL) may take a year to review the Request for Reconsideration. In the meantime, your employer can file another ETA Form 9089 for you. However, this second ETA Form 9089 can not be for the same position as the position that is listed on the ETA Form 9089 that is undergoing review. For example, let’s say your employer filed an ETA Form 9089 for you for the position of Financial Researcher. The DOL rejected that ETA Form 9089, and your employer appealed the rejection. While this first ETA Form 9089 appeal is pending, your employer can not file another one for you for the same position. Your employer would have to use a different position such as Manager, or Financial Analyst. Additionally, if you are nearing the sixth year of your time on an H-1B visa, you may be able to extend your H-1B status beyond the sixth year if your ETA Form 9089 was rejected and is now pending appeal. To be eligible for this extension, your employer must have filed the ETA Form 9089 sometime before you began your sixth year of H-1B status. http://www.greencardapply.com/question/question18/ETA_Form_9089_Application_102218.htm http://www.greencardapply.com

Stay in the Same or Similar Field after EB1-Extraordinary Ability Approval Question, After I get my Green Card in self-petition EB1-Extraordinary Ability, do I still have to stay in the same or similar field? Also, as a derivative beneficiary, if my wife wants to change her job, does she has to stay in the same or similar field? Answer, For self-petition or employer-petition EB1-Extraordinary Ability petition, if you were granted a Permanent Resident status because of your extraordinary ability in a field, you may want to work in the field at least for a while after your Green Card petition approval. It is not recommended that you change job quickly. For your wife, since she is not the direct beneficiary of the EB1-EA I-140 petition, she is not subject to the requirement of any specific employment. Before obtaining her Green Card and with a valid EAD, she can work for any job and anywhere. After receiving the Green Card, she can also change job at any time. http://www.greencardapply.com/question/question18/EB1A_Same_Field_110418.htm http://www.greencardapply.com