Immigration News Briefs
Unlawful presence rules for students and visitors
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is changing the
way it calculates unlawful presence for foreign visitors in
the U.S. on student or exchange visas (F, J, or M status) who
fail to maintain their status, by starting the clock immediately
after their authorized activity concludes, instead of
when they are found in violation, which was the previous
1997 rule.
Starting on August 9, 2018 anyone in the U.S. as a "nonimmigrant status" foreign student, foreign vocational student, or foreign exchange visitor for a particular amount of time or until a particular date who fails to renew his or her status will immediately begin to accrue unlawful presence the day after either the individual drops out of his or her course of study or the individual's program concludes.
Any such individual who lets his or her nonimmigrant status lapse before Aug. 9 and has already dropped out of or completed his or her program will begin accruing unlawful presence days on Aug. 9, the agency said.
Immigrants who accrue more than 180 days of unlawful presence during a single stay and then depart the country may face a ban of up to 10 years before they are able to return, and anyone who accrues more than a year’s worth of unlawful presence—whether during one stay or multiple—could be permanently banned, USCIS said.
Incorrectly dated green cards recalled
USCIS is recalling approximately 8,543 Permanent
Resident Cards (“Green Cards”) due to a production error.
The cards were for approved Form I-751, Petition to Remove
Conditions of Residence for spouses of U.S. citizens, and
were printed with an incorrect “Resident Since” date and
mailed between February and April 2018.
USCIS will send notices to individuals who received the incorrect Green Cards and to their attorneys of record, if they have one. Affected individuals should return their incorrect card to USCIS in the provided prepaid envelope within 20 days of receiving the notice, or return their cards to USCIS field offices. USCIS will send replacement Green Cards within 15 days of receiving the incorrect card.
The recall does not affect these Green Card holders’ status as lawful permanent residents. If affected individuals need to travel internationally or prove their lawful permanent residence while they wait for a replacement card, they may contact the USCIS at 800-375-5283 to determine if they need additional proof.
Spouses of U.S. citizens may apply for naturalization after three years of permanent residency and must meet other requirements. The incorrect date on these cards could lead applicants to wait longer than necessary to apply to become U.S. citizens.
APPLICATION FINAL ACTION DATES FOR June 2018
|
FAMILY |
India |
Pakistan/Bangladesh |
|
1st |
08Apr11 |
08Apr11 |
|
2A |
08Jun16 |
08Jun16 |
|
2B |
22Jun11 |
22Jun11 |
|
3rd |
15Mar06 |
15Mar06 |
|
4th |
15Mar04 |
22Oct04 |
|
EMPLOYMENT |
India |
Pakistan/Bangladesh |
|
1st |
01Jan12 |
Current |
|
2nd |
26Dec08 |
Current |
|
3rd |
01May08 |
Current |
|
Other |
01May08 |
Current |
|
4th |
Current |
Current |
|
5th |
Current |
Current1B |
DATES FOR FILING VISA APPLICATIONS - June 2018
|
FAMILY |
India |
Pakistan/Bangladesh |
|
1st |
08Jan12 |
08Jan12 |
|
2A |
22Sep17 |
22Sep17 |
|
2B |
08Sep11 |
08Sep11 |
|
3rd |
08Sep06 |
08Sep06 |
|
4th |
01Dec04 |
01Apr05 |
|
EMPLOYMENT |
India |
Pakistan/Bangladesh |
|
1st |
Current |
Current |
|
2nd |
01Apr09 |
Current |
|
3rd |
01Sep08 |
Current |
|
Other |
01Sep08 |
Current |
|
4th |
Current |
Current |
|
5th |
Current |
Current1B |
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