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Starting December 1, 2010 some of the priority dates that were current in November 2010 will be retrogressing. Retrogression refers to the situation where previously current dates on the quota bulletin go backwards and become unavailable. The following preferences are going to be affected by the visa retrogression this December 2010: Family Category Third Preference (Married sons and daughters of U.S. Citizens) : July 1, 1992 priority date compared to March 1, 1995 in November 2010. Fourth Preference (Brothers and sisters of U.S. Citizens) : January 1, 1988 priority date compared to April 1, 1991 in November 2010. Below is the December 2010 Visa Bulletin as posted by the Department of State. Family All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA-mainland born DOMINICAN REPUBLIC INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES 1st 15FEB06 15FEB06 01JUN04 15FEB06 01JAN93 01APR97 2A 01AUG10 01AUG10 01AUG10 01AUG10 01MAR10 01AUG10 2B 01JUN05 01JUN05 01JAN02 01JUN05 22JUN92 01MAR00 3rd 01JUN02 01JUN02 01JUN02 0

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — An amendment to a federal immigration law geared to help U.S. servicemembers who marry foreigners passed the House of Representatives on Monday. The bill was crafted in response to the case of Hotaru Ferschke, a Japanese woman whose U.S. Marine husband was killed in Iraq. Ferschke has been unable to immigrate to the United States to raise their son. This bill would exempt those married to American troops from having to consummate their marriages to qualify for U.S. residency, the first step in gaining U.S. citizenship. Hotaru and Michael Ferschke met while he was stationed on Okinawa, and got married by phone in July 2008 after he deployed and the couple discovered they were expecting a child. A month later, the 22-year-old Marine was killed while conducting door-to-door searches in a town north of Baghdad. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the U.S. immigration process, denied Hotaru Ferschke’s paperwork to immigrate to the States, saying the co

Large and small businesses are lining up behind an immigration policy that would make it easier for entrepreneurs and high-tech professionals to come or stay in the United States. Congress did not move forward on comprehensive immigration reform before the midterm election. It has also failed to pass several of the more specific immigration proposals made in recent years. One of these, the DREAM Act , would have allowed alien students who graduate from college or served for two years in the military to stay in the US. Another, the Startup Visa Act, sought to give a visa to anyone who’s received $1 million in equity investment in their company and would create 10 US jobs. Expect a concerted push to reverse what’s seen as a brain drain from big business and the venture capital industry. Jim Turley, the CEO of Ernst and Young who serves on Obama’s National Export Council, advocates a policy of what he calls “staple diplomacy.” Explaining it he said: “Whenever there’s a student from a

LOS ANGELES — In a unanimous decision, the California Supreme Court ruled Monday that illegal immigrants can be eligible for the same reduced tuition at public colleges and universities as legal residents of the state. Currently, students who attend at least three years of high school in California and graduate are eligible for in-state tuition at public schools, which can save them as much as $12,000 a year compared with students who come from other states. Illegal immigrants remain ineligible for state or federal financial aid. The California court ruled that the 2001 state law does not conflict with a federal prohibition on education benefits for illegal immigrants based on residency, in part because United States citizens from other states who attend high school in California may also benefit. Source: NY Times

On November 5, 2010, Acting Deputy Attorney General Gary Grindler invested 23 new immigration judges during a ceremony held at the Executive Office for immigration Review's headquarters in Falls Church, VA bringing the judge corps of the 59 immigration courts to 262. Source: Executive Office for Immigration Review

FY 2011 H-1B Cap Count Cap Type Cap Amount Cap Eligible Petitions Petition Target Date of Last Count H-1B Regular Cap 65,000 45,600 10/29/2010 H-1B Master’s Exemption 20,000 16,700 10/29/2010 Source: USCIS If you have any questions relating to H-1B (working) visa or need help in filing a petition, please do not hesitate to contact our office. BAGON LAW FIRM 21550 Oxnard Street, 3rd Floor Woodland Hills, CA 91367 Tel: (818) 224-6632 Direct: (818) 539-0120 Fax: (888) 589-0804 www.bagonlawfirm.com