2012 News
December 2012
12/30/12	The New York Times has reported on the benefits of the EB-5 investor program in connection with Jay Peak Ski Resort in Vermont. Under the EB-5 program, foreigners must typically invest $500,000 to $1 million in exchange for a green card, depending on the location of the investment and the rate of unemployment in the area.
12/27/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that due to the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy, it has extended the reregistration deadline for Haitian nationals seeking renewal of Temporary Protected Status ("TPS") through January 29, 2013.
12/14/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has released statistics on their adjudication of applications for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA").
12/13/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that as of February 1, 2013, it will begin collecting a new USCIS Immigrant Fee of $165 from foreign nationals seeking permanent residence in the United States.
12/10/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for December 1, 2012.
12/05/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending October 30, 2012.
November 2012
11/21/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has launched a new online inquiry system, E-request.
11/19/12	According to the Boston Globe, Governor Deval Patrick will direct state colleges and universities to offer in-state tuition to those individuals granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA").
11/14/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for November 1, 2012.
11/07/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for November 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
11/01/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending September 30, 2012.
October 2012
10/22/12	Cayer Dyson Law, P.C. is proud to announce the selection of Attorney Stephanie Dyson as a 2012 Massachusetts Super Lawyers "Rising Star" for the 5th straight year in the field of immigration law. Attorney Dyson was previously selected as a "Rising Star" for immigration law in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 as well. Super Lawyers’ Rising Stars are selected as the up-and-coming attorneys in their respective practice areas by their peers and verified by the attorney-led research staff at Law & Politics magazine.
10/12/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for November 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
10/08/12	The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) has issued updated statistics on ICE's Prosecutorial Discretion Program. It has reported that 1,093 cases were closed under ICE's Prosecutorial Discretion program in September 2012, and 9,616 cases have been closed since the beginning of the program, representing only 3.2% of the overall case load.
10/08/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for October 1, 2012.
10/04/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has released statistics on their adjudication of applications for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA").
10/04/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending August 31, 2012.
10/01/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that it has extended Temporary Protected Status ("TPS") for eligible Haitians. The re-registration period will run from October 1, 2012 through November 30, 2012.
September 2012
09/28/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that it will begin accepting Form I-129 requesting TN classification for those outside the United States - these individuals will also have the option of applying to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for TN classification.
09/28/12	The U.S. Department of State has announced that registration for the DV-2014 Program will run from Tuesday, October 2, 2012 at 12:00 noon, Eastern Daylight Time, to Saturday, November 3, 2012 at 12:00 noon, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). Instructions are available on the Department of State website - also listed are the qualifying countries for the lottery.
09/21/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that it will extend Temporary Protected Status for eligible Haitians. Further information will be forthcoming.
09/18/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for September 1, 2012.
09/11/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has informed the American Immigration Lawyers Association ("AILA") that it has already finished adjudicating the first wave of applications filed under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA"), and that it will mail out approval notices shortly.
09/11/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for October 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
August 2012
08/20/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending June 30, 2012.
08/14/12	Please make an appointment as soon as possible if you are interested in applying for deferred action and a work permit through Obama's new program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ("DACA").
08/13/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for September 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
08/09/12	The U.S. Department of State has announced that online registration for the DV-2014 Program (Diversity Visa Lottery Program) will begin on Tuesday, October 2, 2012 at 12 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, and conclude on Saturday, November 3, 2012 at 12 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Instructions for the DV-2014 Program are not yet available.
08/09/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for August 1, 2012.
08/03/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") has issued further guidance regarding the application process for individuals applying for deferred action as childhood arrivals ("DREAMers"). USCIS will outline the formal application process in further detail beginning August 15, 2012. In order to be eligible for deferred action, an individual must prove that he or she: (1) is under the age of 31 as of June 15, 2012; (2) came to the United States before reaching his or her 16th birthday; (3) has continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007; (4) was physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making his or her request for consideration of deferred action with USCIS; (5) entered without inspection before June 15, 2012, or his or her lawful immigration status expired as of June 15, 2012; (6) is currently in school, has graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, has obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or is an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States; and (7) has not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors, and does not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.
July 2012
07/19/12	The USCIS Vermont Service Center has released its latest processing times report for the period ending May 31, 2012.
07/11/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for July 1, 2012.
07/10/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for August 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
June 2012
06/15/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending April 30, 2012.
06/15/12	DREAM Act Compromise: the Department of Homeland Security has announced that effective immediately, certain young people who were brought to the United States as young children, do not present a risk to national security or public safety, and meet several key criteria will be considered for relief from removal from the country or from entering into removal proceedings. Those who demonstrate that they meet the criteria will be eligible to receive deferred action for a period of two years, subject to renewal, and will be eligible to apply for work authorization. Deferred action will be available for those who apply affirmatively, as well as for those in removal proceedings. Applicants must demonstrate that they (1) came to the United States under the age of sixteen; (2) have continuously resided in the United States for a least five years preceding the date of this memorandum and are present in the United States on the date of this memorandum; (3) are currently in school, have graduated from high school, have obtained a general education development certificate, or are honorably discharged veterans of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States; (4) have not been convicted of a felony offense, a significant misdemeanor offense, multiple misdemeanor offenses, or otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety; and (5) are not above the age of thirty. The USCIS memorandum and FAQs handout provides additional details. The process will begin to be implemented within sixty days, and the application process will be announced at that time.
06/11/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for July 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
06/12/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") has announced that it has received a sufficient number of petitions to reach the statutory H-1B cap for Fiscal Year 2013.  On June 7, 2012, USCIS also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption.  USCIS will reject petitions subject to the cap for H-1B specialty occupation workers seeking an employment start date in Fiscal Year 2013 that are received after June 11, 2012. USCIS continues to accept petitions exempted from the cap and DOD cooperative research worker H-1B petitions and Chile/Singapore H-1B1 petitions requesting an employment start date in FY 2013.
06/11/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for July 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
06/07/12	The Department of Homeland Security has issued statistics concerning its prosecutorial discretion initiative.
06/07/12	According to the New York Times, President Obama's initiative on "prosecutorial discretion" has fallen "far short of expectations." Of the 288,361 cases which prosecutors had examined as of May 29, only 4,403 deportation cases have been closed (fewer than 2% of the pending 411,000 deportation cases).
06/06/12	At a meeting on May 8, 2012, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Asylum Office provided various statistics on asylum and credible fear interviews for the first quarter of 2012, including approval ratings for cases filed before the Asylum Office.
06/01/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has provided its latest count on cap-subject H-1B petitions.
May 2012
05/23/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that due to an increased volume of I-129 filings, applicants may experience a slight delay in receiving their I-129 receipt notices.
05/23/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced that beginning June 4, 2012, individuals overseas submitting I-601 waivers, I-212 applications and/or I-290B applications will file their applications directly with a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") Lockbox facility. The goal is to streamline the quality and speed of adjudication of these applications.
05/22/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced the launch of the first phase of an electronic immigration benefits system, known as USCIS ELIS (USCIS Electronic Immigration System). USCIS ELIS is available to file certain I-539 applications for changes of status.
05/10/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a processing times report for I-601 waivers filed overseas for March 2012.
05/09/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for June 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
05/01/12	The Department of Homeland Security has re-designated Somalia for Temporary Protected Status (“TPS”) by extending the existing TPS designation for Somalia from September 18, 2012 through March 17, 2014, allowing eligible nationals of Somalia to register or re-register for TPS. Applicants must re-register during the 60-day re-registration period which from May 1, 2012 through July 2, 2012.
April 2012
04/19/12	The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) has released a report detailing the latest data on ICE's prosecutorial discretion initiative.
04/13/12	The U.S. Department of State has adjusted certain visa processing fees.
04/06/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for May 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
04/03/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for April 1, 2012.
04/03/12	The Executive Office for Immigration Review has announced that it will suspend non-detained court hearings in several additional cities over the spring and summer months to allow the Department of Homeland Security sufficient time to review cases for prosecutorial discretion. The affected Immigration Courts include Detroit, New Orleans, Orlando, and Seattle from April 23 until May 4; New York from May 7 until May 18; San Francisco from June 4 until June 15; and Los Angeles from July 9 until July 20.
March 2012
03/29/12	The Department of Homeland Security has issued a Federal Register Notice regarding the designation of Syria for Temporary Protected Status ("TPS") for March 29, 2012 to September 30, 2013. The Federal Register Notice includes information regarding eligibility requirements and instructions for filing the TPS application.
03/23/12	The Department of Homeland Security has announced that it intends to grant Temporary Protected Status ("TPS") to eligible Syrians in the United States. Additional details will be announced next week.
03/21/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a processing times report for I-601 waivers filed overseas for February 2012.
03/20/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending January 31, 2012.
03/12/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for April 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
03/05/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for March 1, 2012.
February 2012
02/22/12	The Executive Office for Immigration Review has released its Fiscal Year 2011 Statistical Year Book. The data reflects that the Boston Immigration Court granted 54% of asylum cases in Fiscal Year 2011, compared to the national average of 52% of asylum cases. The national average grant rate for affirmative asylum cases is 66% and for defensive asylum cases is 34%.
02/21/12	The USCIS Service Centers have released their latest processing times reports for the period ending December 31, 2011.
02/13/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has released asylum statistics from its January 2012 meeting.
02/10/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has issued a processing times report for I-601 waivers filed overseas for October 2011 and December 2011.
02/08/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for March 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
02/07/12	A recent report from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) reflects that the total number of immigration cases resulting in deportation orders hit a record low of 50.8% for the period October 2011 to December 2011 (the start of Fiscal Year 2012).
02/06/12	The Administrative Appeals Office has released its latest processing times report for February 1, 2012.
January 2012
1/19/12	According to a New York Times article, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has completed its pilot project to review pending immigration cases at the Denver Immigration Court for prosecutorial discretion. It has determined that about 1,000 of the 7,000 cases should be administratively closed under the new policy.
1/10/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for eligible nationals of El Salvador for an additional 18 months, beginning March 10, 2012, and ending September 9, 2013. Re-registration applications must be submitted between January 9, 2012 and March 12, 2012. Current employment authorization documents bearing a March 9, 2012 expiration date will be automatically extended for an additional 6 months through September 9, 2012.
1/07/12	The U.S. Department of State has issued its Visa Bulletin for February 2012 which reflects visa availability for certain family-based and employment-based immigrant petitions.
01/06/12	The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is proposing to change its procedure for the processing of waiver applications for immigrants who must leave the United States to obtain green cards overseas. Under the proposal, immigrants will be able to obtain a provisional approval of the waiver application prior to leaving the United States, but only if the sole basis for inadmissibility is unlawful presence in the United States, and if the immigrant is the "immediate relative" of a U.S. citizen; immigrants who are subject to a 10-year bar for other grounds of inadmissibility will be unable to benefit from this new procedure. An advance copy of USCIS' Notice of Intent regarding this new procedure will be published in the Federal Register on Monday, 1/09/12. The final rule will be published sometime later this year. Additional information is available on the USCIS website.
01/06/12	The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts cannot prevent tens of thousands of legal immigrants from enrolling in Commonwealth Care, the state's subsidized health care program.
01/01/12	Happy New Year from Dyson Law, P.C.!
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