The U.S. Department of State (DOS) implemented a policy on November 5, 2015 that requires consular officers to revoke the nonimmigrant visas of individuals arrested for, or convicted of driving under the influence (DUI), driving while intoxicated (DWI), or similar alcohol-related crimes. The DOS has...
USTraveldocs.com, which handles visa appointment services for U.S. embassies and consulates, has issued a public notice, advising stakeholders of a large, temporary increase in visa appointment availability. The notice states: The U.S. embassy and the four U.S. consulates in India have made thousands of extra visa...
Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a stopgap bill to fund the federal government through Friday, December 9, 2016. This bill also serves to extend the employment-based, fifth preference (EB5) regional center program for the same time period. This stopgap bill was also...
In order to assist MurthyDotCom readers in their navigation of the complex immigration maze, this brief outline describes the main government entities involved in the immigration process of foreign nationals coming to the United States. The immigration process includes the granting of immigration benefits, as...
The Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) issued final policy guidance on July 13, 2016, regarding foreign national students admitted on a tentative or conditional basis. In short, the guidance indicates that universities and schools are not permitted to issue I-20s for conditional students. Background In order...
The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) annual conference is a valuable source of up-to-date immigration information, often directly from key government officials. This year the AILA Annual Conference is in Las Vegas from June 22-25, 2016. The Murthy Law Firm lawyers attending the conference are...
There is a small, but growing trend of U.S. citizens electing to relinquish their U.S. citizenship. The motivations for expatriation vary, ranging from concerns over U.S. tax obligations to a desire for family unity. Regardless of the reasons, however, the most common voluntary renunciation of...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the U.S. Department of State (DOS) have special, expedited procedures for active duty U.S. military personnel stationed overseas who are petitioning for immigration benefits for their family members. These procedures help to greatly reduce the paperwork processing...
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a final rule that became effective on February 16, 2016, which provides a few revisions to several nonimmigrant visa categories and one immigrant visa category. More specifically, the revisions impact the H1B1 (specialty occupation professionals who are citizens...
Murthy Law Firm founder and president, Sheela Murthy, was in India in January 2016. A meeting was scheduled for the 22nd. Accompanied by team members from the firm's liaison office in Chennai, Murthy met with the Chief of the Nonimmigrant Visa Section, Lindsey L. Rothenberg,...
