Immigration Blogs

What Is the USCIS?

The USCIS is the government organization that handles US-based immigration applications. Applications for citizenship, green cards and family-based immigration are all handled by the USCIS. However, the government forms are often complicated and can be difficult to complete accurately. But don’t worry—we are here to help! Dealing with the USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) can be a headache. Forms are complicated and expensive, and customer service agents may not be able to answer all your questions. USCitizenship.info is a online solution that provides an easy-to-use, self serve form wizard to help you complete your applications. Here’s an overview of what you get filing by yourself with the USCIS versus using USCitizenship.info. What you get USCitizenship.info USCIS Customized Filing Instructions

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Immigration Fact of the Week (April 2 – 8)

Where Can I Find the Expiration Date of My Green Card? You can find the expiration date of your green card on the front side of your card. The front side of the card will also have biographic information like your name, date of birth, sex, country of birth and your USCIS number. The green card expiration date will be printed just below your date of birth and sex. The date printed next to “Card Expires,” is the date on which your green card will expire. If you hold a green card that does not have an expiration date, it is probably an outdated version of the green card that needs to be renewed. You can apply to renew your

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Immigration Fact of the Week (January 8 – 14)

Can My Green Card be revoked? Yes, in some cases. A green card makes the holder of the card a permanent resident of the U.S. for life. This status is permanent but it can also be revoked in some cases. If you commit an immigration fraud or a criminal activity, you are more likely to lose your green card. For example, if you are found to have married a U.S. citizen just to get a green card, your card can be revoked if the immigration authorities find that out. Likewise, if you commit a serious crime or if you are found to have lied or omitted relevant information on your green card application, your green card may be revoked. If you

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2017 Year in Review — President Trump and Immigration

President Donald Trump promised to fix America’s broken immigration system in his election campaign. He said that a wall will be built between the U.S. and Mexico and reduce the flow of immigrants to the U.S. Though a wall has not yet been built, the administration issued several executive orders related to cutting down on the number of immigrants coming to the U.S. including the one banning citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from coming to the U.S. Here is a closer look at what happened in 2017. Travel Ban President Donald Trump initially issued an executive order banning nationals of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya from entering into the U.S. for 90 days. The executive order also banned

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Immigration Fact of the Week (December 18 – 24)

How much money can I take to the U.S. as a foreign visitor? You can take as much money as you wish to the U.S. You must be capable of proving to the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers that you have sufficient funds to cover your travel, lodging, food and other expenses while in the U.S. You can bring up to $10,000 and without reporting it to the CBP officers. If you bring more than that, you must report it by filling out the “Report of International Transportation of Currency and Monetary Instruments” to avoid fines or penalties. If you have limited funds, CBP officers will determine your admissibility based on the information you provide to travel to the U.S.

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Immigrants Wait Longer for US Citizenship

The road to U.S. citizenship is not an easy one. It could even become tougher as the average processing times for naturalization applications has now doubled. According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency takes around eight months on average to process U.S. citizenship applications. But many attorneys in New York claim that the wait time to process naturalization applications has doubled since last year. This causes immigrants to wait for a longer time period before they can sponsor their family members for a green card or to register to vote. Attorney Angela Fernandez, the executive director of the Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights, says that many applicants have been waiting for around a year to get

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Immigration Fact of the Week (November 20 – 26)

Can I Vote in Federal Elections as a Green Card Holder? As a green card holder, you cannot vote in federal elections like the presidential election as this right is limited only to U.S citizens. The right to choose elected officials by voting in elections is one of the most important privileges of the democracy of the U.S. Federal, state and local elections are the different types of elections in the U.S. Only a U.S. citizen can register to vote in a federal election and cast his or her vote. Non-citizens that include green card holders cannot vote in federal elections. Violating the terms of legal resident status and registering to vote or voting in a federal election can have

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Immigration Fact of the Week (October 23 – 29)

Can I Travel to Another Country While in the U.S. On a B1 or B2 Visa? Yes, you can visit Canada or Mexico while in the U.S. on a B-1 visa or a B-2 visa but not other countries. You may visit Canada or Mexico if the duration of your visit will not be longer than 30 days. If you travel to Mexico or Canada while in the U.S. on one of these visas, you will need to make sure that you re-enter the U.S. before the expiration of your authorized period of stay. Your Form I-94 will have the date on which your authorized period of stay will expire. You also need to remember that the visa expiration date

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New Registration Period for Green Card Lottery Program DV-2019

The U.S. government initially announced that it will accept Green Card Lottery 2019 (DV-2019) applications filed between the dates of Wednesday, October 3, 2017, and Wednesday, November 7, 2017. But due to a technical glitch, applications that were filed between October 3rd and 10th have been lost. Applicants who filed their DV lottery entries during those dates have been asked to reapply for the lottery. The U.S. Department of State (DOS) has revised the online registration period for the lottery. The new registration period will begin on Tuesday, October 18, 2017, and conclude on Wednesday, November 22, 2017. Applications that were received between the above-mentioned dates are invalid. Applicants can submit their lottery entries again and these entries will not be

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Green Card Lottery 2019

If you have been waiting to get a green card through the Diversity Visa lottery 2019, the time for you to submit your entry is here. You can file your entry between Wednesday, October 18, 2017 at 12:00 noon and Wednesday, November 22, 2017 at 12:00 noon. The requirements for the lottery program have not been changed. You can apply for the DV lottery 2019 if you belong to a green card lottery eligible country. The following is a list of ineligible countries: “Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam.” Unlike other green card categories like the

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