BAGON LAW FIRM

    December 29, 2011 - Federal immigration officials Thursday announced the creation of a telephone hotline to ensure that detaineesheld by local police are informed of their rights.   The toll-free number, (855) 448-6903, will field queries from detainees held by state or local law enforcement agencies if the detainees "believe they may be U.S. citizens or victims of a crime," the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said in a statement . The hotline will be staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by ICE personnel, according to the statement, with interpreters available in several languages. "ICE personnel will collect information from the individual and refer it to the relevant ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations field office for immediate action," the statement said. As part of the new initiative, ICE officials plan to issue a form to all detainees informing them that ICE will assume their custody within 48 hours, acc...

Visa Bulletin For JANUARY 2012 FAMILY F1:  Forward movement for all chargeability areas, China and India ( 01 SEP 04 – 15 OCT 04); Slight forward movement for Mexico ( 08 APR 93 – 15 APR 93) and forward movement for the Philippines (01 MAR 97 – 15 APR 97). F2A: Same forward movement for all chargeability areas, China, India and the Philippines  (22 MAR 09 – 22 APR 09) and also forward movement for Mexico (08 FEB 09 – 22 MAR 09). F2B: Same forward movement for all chargeability areas, China and India (15 AUG 03 – 08 SEP 03); Slight forward movement for Mexico (22 NOV 92 – 1 DEC 92) and also a slight movement for the Philippines (15 AUG 01 – 01 SEP 01). F3: Same forward movement for all chargeability areas, China and India (08 OCT 01 – 01 NOV 01); A week of forward movement for both countries, Mexico ( 15 DEC 92 – 22 DEC 92) and Philippines ( 08 JUL 92 – 15 JUL 92). F4: A movement of one month applies for all chargeability areas, China and India (15 JUL 00 – 15 AUG 00),...

WASHINGTON - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap of 65,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2012. USCIS is notifying the public that yesterday, Nov. 22, 2011, was the final receipt date for new H-1B specialty occupation petitions requesting an employment start date in FY 2012. Properly filed cases will be considered received on the date that USCIS physically receives the petition; not the date that the petition was postmarked. USCIS will reject cap-subject petitions for new H-1B specialty occupation workers seeking an employment start date in FY 2012 that arrive after Nov. 22, 2011. As of Oct. 19, 2011, USCIS had also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the ‘advanced degree’ exemption. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. In addition, petitions filed on be...

Visa Bulletin For December 2011 FAMILY F1 : There is a forward movement for all chargeability areas, China, India and Philippines and a week of movement for Mexico (01APR93 to 08APR93). F2A:  Forward movement for MEXICO (01DEC08 to 08FEB09) and for all others (15FEB09 to 22MAR09). F2B: Same forward movement for all chargeability areas, China and India (01AUG03 to 15AUG03)and also forward movement for  the Philippines (15JUL01 to 15AUG01). No movement for Mexico.                F3: Same forward movement for all chargeability areas, China and India (22SEP01 to 08 OCT01), also forward movement for the Philippines (22JUN92 to 08JUL92) and slight movement for Mexico (08DEC92 to 15DEC92).         F4: Same forward movement for all chargeability areas, China and India (15JUN00 to 15JUL00), also slight forward movement for the Philippines (22AUG88 to 08SEP88) and Mexico (22APR96 t...

WASHINGTON - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Alejandro Mayorkas announced on October 25, 2011 the launch of an enhanced Employment Authorization Document (EAD) and a redesigned Certificate of Citizenship (Form N-560) with new features to strengthen security and deter fraud. As part of USCIS’s ongoing efforts to enhance the integrity of the immigration system, the state-of-the-art technology incorporated into the new documents will deter counterfeiting, obstruct tampering, and facilitate quick and accurate authentication. USCIS began issuing the new EADs today and will begin using the redesigned certificates on Oct. 30. The agency anticipates that more than 1 million people will receive the new documents over the next year. The new features of the EAD will better equip workers, employers and law enforcement officials to recognize the card as definitive proof of authorization to work in the United States. Additionally, USCIS employs a n...

NOVEMBER 2011 FAMILY-SPONSORED PREFERENCES Family- Sponsored All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA- mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES F1 22JUL04 22JUL04 22JUL04 01APR93 08FEB97 F2A * 15FEB09 15FEB09 15FEB09 01DEC08 15FEB09 F2B 01AUG03 01AUG03 01AUG03 22NOV92 15JUL01 F3 22SEP01 22SEP01 22SEP01 08DEC92 22JUN92 F4 15JUN00 15JUN00 15JUN00 22APR96 22AUG88 EMPLOYMENT-BASED PREFERENCES   Employment- Based All Charge-ability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA- mainland born INDIA MEXICO PHILIPPINES 1st  C C C C C    2nd  C 01NOV07 01NOV07 C C            3rd 22DEC05 22AUG04 22JUL02 22DEC05 22DEC05 Other Workers* 15NOV05 22APR03 15JUN02 15NOV05 15NOV05 4th C C C C C       Certain Religious Workers C C C C C       5th    Targeted Employment Areas/ Regional Centers   and Pilot Programs C C C C C S...

FY 2012 H-1B Cap Count Cap Type   Cap Amount  Cap Eligible Petitions    Date of Last Count H-1B Regular Cap   65,000     32,200    9/9/2011 H-1B Master’s Exemption   20,000    16,700    9/9/2011 Source:  USCIS For more information, please contact our office: Sharlene Mae Bagon, Esq. BAGON LAW FIRM 21550 Oxnard Street, 3rd Floor Woodland Hills, CA 91367 Main: (818) 224-6632 Direct: (818) 539-0120 Fax: (888) 589-0804 www.bagonlawfirm.com

September 19, 2011 Washington - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), marking a significant milestone in its efforts to provide relief to victims of crimes, has for the second straight year approved 10,000 petitions for U nonimmigrant status, also referred to as the U-visa. On an annual basis, 10,000 U-visas are set aside for victims of crime who have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse and are willing to help law enforcement authorities investigate or prosecute crime. “Providing immigration protection to victims of crime and their families while aiding law enforcement efforts to bring criminals to justice is of the utmost importance to the Agency and the public we serve,” said USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas. Due in large part to public education and partnerships forged with law enforcement agencies and service providers, USCIS reached the statutory maximum of 10,000 U-visas per fiscal year for the second year in a row since it began approving ...

USCIS is implementing the first phase in a series of proposed enhancements to the EB-5 program. Beginning today, Form I-924 applicants will be able to communicate directly with USCIS adjudicators via e-mail in an effort to streamline the process and quickly raise and resolve issues and questions that arise during the adjudication process. The Form I-924 is the Application for Regional Center Under the Immigrant Investor Pilot Program.  USCIS intends to monitor the progress of this new line of communication to assess whether changes are needed and to implement any required changes on a real-time basis.  USCIS is eager to implement all the proposed enhancements to the EB-5 program that is first announced on May 19, 2011. USCIS is currently exploring how it can accelerate the implementation of premium processing, which customarily takes months due to the need to revise the applicable forms. USCIS is currently hiring economists and other experts that will enhance and acceler...