After brief correspondence with a colleague who travels to China frequently, it became apparent that the U.S. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Travel Card (“ABT Card”) Program is not as well-known as it ought to be. Since DHS will stop issuing these cards on September 18, 2018 people who travel to China regularly for business, such… Read More
What can CBP see? Brief Notes and Comments on DHS Border Crossing Information (BCI) System of Records – 81 FR 89957
On December 13, 2016 the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) published notice in the Federal Register regarding updates to its Border Crossing Information (“BCI”) System of Records, as required by the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 USC 552a). Comments may be submitted until January 12, 2017. Brief note on what Customs and Border Protection can… Read More
Statute to FAM Map for E Visas
The illustration linked below maps INA 101(a)(15)(E)(i) and (ii) to useful quotes from the Foreign Affairs Manual. e-visa-statute-fam-map This document may be a useful guide to use when preparing an E visa application (but it’s no substitute for reviewing the FAM and the regs).
A template for DHS rulemaking petitions
On November 28, 2016 the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule defining the process for submitting a rulemaking petition to this agency. This rule adopts the changes to 6 CFR Part 3 published in DHS’s interim rule on July 21, 2016. Except for petitions to the Coast Guard and FEMA, any rulemaking petition… Read More
A brief history of fee increases for Canadians seeking I-192 waivers
The fee increases for Canadians filing Form I-192 seeking a non-immigrant waiver are summarized in the chart below. Note that the “Comments” column refers to the total comments submitted in response to the proposed rule, not comments specifically targeted to Form I-192. For anyone interested in researching the regulatory history of INS/USCIS fee increases (as… Read More
USCIS Fee Increases
On October 24, 2016 USCIS announced a final rule increasing fees for most immigration benefit requests. We wrote about this change while USCIS was accepting comments on the proposed rule, and submitted part of this post as a comment. In response to our comments, USCIS decided not to increase the fees for filing Form I-192 when… Read More
E Visa Power Rankings
The existence of a treaty is the first requirement for obtaining an E visa. Below are the power rankings for E visa treaty countries based on duration of visa validity. The rankings are organized along the ROYGBV scale as follows: 60-month validity 48-month validity 24 to 36-month validity 12-month validity Less than 12-month validity 0-month validity (but still… Read More
The Beauty of Treaty Trader and Treaty Investor Visas
A Treaty Trader (E-1) or Treaty Investor (E-2) visa is available to any national of a country that has a treaty of commerce and navigation with the United States, and seeks to enter the United States solely to: E-1 – carry on substantial trade, including trade in services or trade in technology, principally between the… Read More
Brief Notes and Comments on Proposed Changes to 8 CFR
On May 4, 2016 the Department of Homeland Security published proposed changes to Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations. While the greatest focus on these proposed changes has been on the fee increase, there are some other areas that may be important and warrant comment. The point of this post is not to… Read More
Update re: E Visas at the US Consulate in Vancouver – April 22, 2016
On March 8, 2016, we noted changes to E visa processing at the US Consulate in Vancouver. One question left open was the duration of visa validity for companies whose registration was close to expiring. During last week’s visit to the US Consulate in Vancouver, we got the answer we were hoping for. Per the… Read More