Blogs – Usimmigrationadvisor

Eb-5 Visa Investment Level Increase

EB5 Visa Remains at $500,000 as US Government Appeals

The minimum investment level for the EB-5 visa remains at $500,000 for now, but the appeal is a clear signal the Biden administration is intent on increasing the price. The US government filed a last-minute appeal against a federal court ruling that reversed Trump-era changes to the EB-5 Visa investment thresholds. A federal judge in California ruled in June that a decision to increase the minimum investment level from $500,000 to $900,000 in November 2019 was unlawful because the head ...
EB5 Immigrant Investor Visa

Preparing for the Return of the EB-5 Investor Regional Center Program

We are anticipating the potential return of the EB-5 Visa Regional Center program at the end of September. It has been suspended since the end of June when the program lapsed. Congress was unable to agree to a reform and reauthorization bill. So the expectation is that it may be rolled back into the consolidated spending bill due by September 30. The EB-5 visa program had been deliberately separated from this must-pass spending legislation last year in the hope that ...
Italy Reopens to Travel – Options for Immigration

Here’s How to Renovate Your Home in Italy for Free

UPDATE: NOVEMBER 1, 2021: THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT HAS EXTENDED THE SUPERBONUS PROGRAM TO THE END OF 2022. Italy’s government is offering a 110% tax credit on certain renovation projects, which essentially means getting to improve your home for free. The so-called "Super Bonus" is available until the end of the year with a chance of it being extended. Renovations projects eligible for the Italian tax Super Bonus include: Home insulationCentralized heating systems in a condominium Single home heating systems Seismic ...
USCIS Streamlines Social Security Process for Green Card

USCIS Streamlines Social Security Process for those Adjusting Status to a Green Card

Applicants filing an adjusting of status for their US permanent residency will no longer need to apply separately for a Social Security number or a replacement card. This seemingly small victory marks a big win over unnecessary bureaucracy in the immigration system. Under the current system, an applicant would need to go separately to a Social Security office to apply for their Social Security number (SSN) or a new card. Under the new system, announced by the United States Citizenship ...
Special Consideration for UK E-2 treaty Investor Visa Applicants

Special Considerations for E2 Treaty Investor Visa Applicants from the United Kingdom

Did you know the United Kingdom holds the oldest E-2 Treaty with the United States of any country in the world. It dates back more than 200 years and highlights how the USA E2 Visa transcends the ever-changing political winds in Washington. Yet, unlike other countries, Britain's E-2 Treaty contains a quirk - applicants must be an "inhabitant" of the British Isles. This is taken to mean that you should be permanent residents of the UK and domicile there in ...
E-2 Treaty Invetsor Visa for Business Investor, Family & Employee

The E-2 Treaty Investor Visa – Why is it a Good Option for you?

By Tishita Agarwal If you are looking for a visa that will allow not only you, as an investor in an US business, but also your family and employees to enter the US, the E-2 Treaty Investor Visa might be the right fit for you. The E-2 visa is a long term non-immigrant visa that allows foreign nationals investing in an US business to direct and develop the business while living and working in the US.  Financial investment One of ...
Apply for Portugals Golden Visa

7 Reasons you should apply for Portugal’s Golden Visa

Portugal offers a Golden Visa (residency through investment) program and recently dropped the amount of time you need to hold residency before applying for citizenship from six years to five. Property is an acceptable form of investment for the Golden Visa program The minimum investment requirement in a Portuguese property depends upon where the property is located and how old it is. This ranges from €280,000 for a property over thirty years old in a low-density area up to €500,000 ...
EB-5 Investor Visa

Direct EB-5 Visa at USD 500,000 – OPEN TO NEW INVESTORS

Did you know that the Direct EB-5 Program remains open to new investors at the $500,000 minimum investment amount? But hurry. The time to file at this lower rate is likely to be limited. The EB-5 Regional Center program has lapsed because Congress was unable to agree a unanimous vote to reauthorize before the July 4th recess. We expect Congress will reauthorize the program, although the exact timing of this is uncertain.Unlike the Regional Center program, Direct EB-5 is permanently authorized and remains open ...
EB-1, E-2 Visa for NIEs during Covid

Travelling to the United States During Covid: Extension to National Interest Exception (NIEs)

Life in America is returning to something resembling normality following a successful roll out of Covid-19 vaccines. However, disruption continues at the border with travelers from Europe (Schengen area), the UK, Ireland, China, India, Iran, Brazil and South Africa still banned unless you can obtain a National Interest Exception (NIE). While restrictions may soon lift on the UK and Europe, the entry restrictions on the other countries show not sign of abating in the short term. Consequently, the State Department ...
TN Visa to E-2 Visa for Green Card

TN Visa to E-2 Visa to Green Card: Our Surgeon Client’s Journey

Davies & Associates just secured approval of an EB-NIW (National Interest Waiver) petition for a doctor of plastic and reconstructive surgery from Canada. We initially helped him move to the US on a TN Visa, then switch to an E-2 Visa, and now he finally has a Green Card approval through the NIW route. Immigration is an ongoing process, and obtaining a visa is often just the start of that process. Our client's require continuing support from our firm with ...
EB-5 petitions visa

Direct EB5: Fresh and Faster Routes to the US

By Mark I. Davies, Global Chairman, Davis & Associates On June 30th, 2021 the EB5 Regional Center Program expired and USCIS stopped accepting new I526 Petitions for processing. At the same time USCIS continued to accept EB5 petitions for Direct EB5 applications at the USD 500,000 level.While USCIS have stopped processing EB5 Regional Center Petitions and related I485 Petitions the processing of Direct EB5 and related Petitions continues. With work having stopped on EB5 Regional Center files it seems a ...
EB-5 Investor Visa

How does Sunset of EB-5 Regional Center Program Affect New & Existing Investors?

The EB-5 Regional Center Program expired at midnight last night. We expect this to be a temporary lapse as Congress negotiates how to reform the program. What does this mean for EB-5 investors in the Regional Center Program?It depends where you are in the process... 1. Anyone applying for EB-5 through Regional Center Program from today: Your application will be rejected 2. Anyone who has filed form I-526 prior to the deadline but not yet received an adjudication: Your application ...
Eb-5 Visa Investment Level Increase

EB5 trở lại với 500.000$

Tối ngày 22/06, một thẩm phán liên bang đã ra phán quyết rằng một trong những người đứng đầu Bộ An ninh Nội địa dưới thời Tổng thống Trump không được bổ nhiệm đúng cách, do đó làm mất hiệu lực của việc tăng giá chương trình EB-5 từ 500.000 USD lên 900.000 USD vào tháng 11 năm 2019. Trong vòng vài giờ sau quyết định của tòa án, công ty của chúng tôi đã nhận được rất nhiều câu ...
EB-5 Regional Center Program faces reauthorization in the US

Biden Reverses Trump-era Policy on Visa Rejection Procedure

Immigration officers can no longer reject visa applications without first issuing a Notice of Intent to Deny By Tishita Agarwal In 2018, the Trump administration set a policy that would allow immigration officers to reject visa applications for visas such as the H1-B Visas, L-1 Visas, H-2B, J-1, J-2, I, F and O-1 visas, without issuing a Notice of Intent to Deny. This Trump-era policy invalidated the principle of a June 2013 USCIS memo that required immigration officers to issue ...
Asylum cases and Deportation for LGBTQ & Clients

LGBTQ+ Asylum in the United States: Munisha & Shivjot’s Stories

Davies & Associates proudly represents LGBTQ+ clients in asylum cases and with deportation defense. While huge strides have been made in the United States, same sex relationships remain criminalized in dozens of countries worldwide. Even in countries where same sex relationships are not outlawed, LGBTQ+ individuals also face discrimination or persecution. In some countries members of the LGBTQ+ community face the Death Penalty. Grounds for Asylum in United States The United States has five categories as grounds for asylum claims: ...