Illegal Immigrants Seeking Asylum Face a Higher Bar

Immigrants who enter the country illegally are becoming less likely to be deemed eligible for asylum, as federal authorities tighten standards amid an increase in Central American migrants this year.

As an initial step to request asylum, apprehended migrants who say they are scared to go back to their home country are screened to determine if they have "credible fear" of persecution or torture. In July, the most recent month available, 63% of those who claimed they were afraid to return were found to have met that criterion, down from 83% six months earlier, according to a report released to immigrant-rights groups by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Read more:http://online.wsj.com/articles/illegal-immigrants-seeking-asylum-face-a-higher-bar-1411945370

US: Immigrant Families Fail to Report to Agents

Tens of thousands of young families caught crossing the border illegally earlier this year subsequently failed to meet with federal immigration agents, as they were instructed, the Homeland Security Department has acknowledged privately.

An official with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement revealed that about 70 percent of immigrant families the Obama administration had released into the U.S. never showed up weeks later for follow up appointments.

The ICE official made the disclosure in a confidential meeting at its Washington headquarters with immigration advocates participating in a federal working group on detention and enforcement policies. The Associated Press obtained an audio recording of Wednesday's meeting and separately interviewed participants. Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/apnewsbreak-immigrant-families-ignore-follow-25758067

What Happened to U.S. Plans to Raise the H-1B Visa Ceiling?

A long-anticipated increase in the number of H-1B visas issued to work in the United States has been delayed indefinitely, experts said, as the debate about immigration has turned toxic in Washington.
United States President Barack Obama said last week that he would put off executive action on immigration until after the midterm elections. Earlier he had said he would act to revamp the immigration system by the end of the summer. Now, White House officials say the president will act by the end of the year.
The executive action had been widely expected to ratchet back deportations and possibly offer work permits to people in the U.S. illegally. It might have also included administrative changes pushed by companies that would produce more legal visas for people seeking to work in the U.S. Read more: http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2014/09/12/what-happened-to-u-s-plans-to-raise-the-h-1b-work-visa-ceiling/

Quick route to US green cards: After Chinese & Koreans, HNIs go for EB5 permanent visas

For the first time since it was created 24 years ago, employment-based fifth preference (EB5), the American government's fast-track permanent residence programme for people willing to invest half a million dollars and create 10 jobs in the US, has hit its annual cap for the 2014 fiscal year as far as Chinese nationals are concerned. 
And it's not just the Chinese. Rich Indians, too, are increasingly looking at EB5, under which up to 10,000 visas are issued a year to immigrant investors to help stimulate the US economy. Investments are routed through designated regional centres in the US, which are authorised by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services. Read more: http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-09-08/news/53691391_1_rich-indians-green-card-eb5-programme

October Visa Bulletin – Some Gains in the EB-3 Category, but Near Future Bleak for EB-2 India

The Department of State released its October Visa Bulletin today.  On a positive note, the EB-2 category for Chinese nationals has made a five week gain, from October 8, 2009 to November 15, 2009; and the EB-3 category for skilled workers/professionals for Chinese nationals has jumped five months, from November 1, 2008 to April 1, 2009.  The EB-3 category will advance six months for nationals of “all other countries” from April 1, 2011 to October 1, 2011; whereas it will only move forward a week for Indian nationals from November 8, 2003 to November 15, 2003. Read more: http://www.natlawreview.com/article/october-visa-bulletin-some-gains-eb-3-category-near-future-bleak-eb-2-india

US lines up Russia sanctions, opposes Crimea secession

Washington, U.S.A: The United States on Thursday imposed visa bans and set the stage for wider sanctions against Russia, warning any move to split the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine would break international law.
President Barack Obama spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin to explain the measures, which he said were in response to Russia's "violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity." Obama further stiffened the US response to Russia's incursion into Ukraine as his Secretary of State John Kerry worked in Europe for a diplomatic way out of the worst East-West crisis in decades.
The visa ban targets Russians and Ukrainians blamed for threatening the sovereignty or territorial integrity of Ukraine, where pro-Moscow president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted after mass protests last month. - Pressuring Putin - They were also merely a first step. Obama also signed an executive order paving the way for economic sanctions against individuals or entities in Russia. Read more: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/ureport/story/2000133724/us-lines-up-russia-sanctions-opposes-crimea-secession/

Why putting off immigration reform won’t make it any easier

By Washington Post: President Obama's decision to delay executive action on immigration reform until after the midterms in November might not save the Democratic party its majority in the Senate, or lead to the sort of inclusive and robust overhaul the president promised earlier this summer.

The fear among immigration advocates is that reform has taken a back seat. “It’s just really, really ridiculous to see that they’re basically once again throwing the Latino community under the bus when it comes to politics,” Erika Andiola, co-director of the Dream Action Coalition, told The Washington Post on Saturday. "Why are we being thrown under the bus just to keep the Senate, when they can’t even prove that it’s going to hurt the Senate?" Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/09/09/why-putting-off-immigration-reform-wont-make-it-any-easier/

EB-5 US visa runs out of Chinese places

For the first time in 24 years, the EB-5 US investor visa has run out of places for Chinese applicants. Demand is set to be high in future, says leading immigration consultancy, EB5 Select.com.
The EB-5 US investor visa scheme has run out of places for Chinese applicants after a surge in demand.
Charles Oppenheimer, Chief of Visa Control, for the US Department of State‘s Immigrant Visa Control and Reporting Division,  told an industry conference that no more places are available to Chinese up until 30 September, the end of the present financial year, but a new annual allocation starts on 1 October. Read more: http://www.opp-connect.com/03/09/2014/eb-5-us-visa-runs-out-of-chinese-places/

U.S. runs out of investor visas as Chinese overwhelm program

The United States has exhausted its annual supply of EB-5 immigrant investor visas for the first time in the program's history following a surge of applications from Chinese nationals.

The State Department's chief of visa control, Charles Oppenheimer, told lawyers at an industry conference earlier this week that no more spots will be available to Chinese for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. Several attendees confirmed his comments to CNNMoney. Read more: http://money.cnn.com/2014/08/27/news/economy/china-us-visa/

U.S. Fee to Drop Citizenship Is Raised Fivefold

The fee for individuals to renounce U.S. citizenship is jumping to $2,350 as of Sept. 12—more than five times the current charge of $450.
The U.S. State Department, in its explanation for the increase, said that documenting a renunciation is “extremely costly” and requires a minimum of two intensive interviews with the applicant as well as other procedures.
The fees charged for a number of other services, such as “fiance(e) visas” and employment-based visa applications,  increased far less than those for renunciation and in some cases declined.
The large increase in the renunciation fee comes at a time when record numbers of Americans living abroad are cutting ties with the U.S. Last year, 2,999 U.S. citizens and green-card holders renounced their allegiance to the U.S., a record number, andrenunciations in 2014 are on track to exceed that. The State Department estimates that 7.6 million Americans live abroad. Read more: http://blogs.wsj.com/totalreturn/2014/08/30/government-fee-to-give-up-u-s-citizenship-is-raised-fivefold/