Visa and More

Immigration terminology from A-Z (Part II) In our newsletter and on (US) websites, you will quite frequently find a number of terms that you don't know immediately, when you are looking for visa information. Today, the second part of our series, that will introduce you to a few basic terminologies that will hopefully give you a better understanding of the subject.

ALIEN LABOR CERTIFICATION This is a written confirmation from the US Department of Labor, stating that there is not a sufficient number of US workers both qualified and willing to fill the position you are interested in are immediately available. This certification also confirms that the wage and working conditions of US Americans in similar occupations will not be adversely affected.

ALIEN REGISTRATION RECEIPT CARD The official name for the US green card, often also called Resident Alien Card.

I-94 CARD The card that all non-immigrants must fill out prior to admission, in order to prove that they are entering the country legally. Before the official of US Citizenship and Immigration Services will hand you this at the US border, your granted period of stay will be noted on it. This - and not the validity of your visa - is the time you, as a non-immigrant, may stay in the US. You will receive such a card every time you are entering the US.

Please note: Make sure to hand the card back in to your airline upon departure. Otherwise, there is no way of determining how long exactly you have stayed in the US and you might run into trouble upon the next admission.

By the way: should you ever forget to turn in your card - no problem. We will be glad to help you take all necessary steps.

INADMISSIBLE Potential immigrants who, in general, do not qualify for a stay in the US on a visa or a green card, because the US government, according to the regulations of US immigration law, does not want them in the country. The legal term is inadmissible. Most inadmissible persons are determined to be inadmissible for the US because they have a criminal background, have certain diseases, are seen as subversive, or are not capable of financing their own stay.

PAROLE A so-called Advanced Parole is for persons who are already in the US and who have a pending adjustment of status application (e.g. in case they got married to a US citizen). With this document, they can leave the US and re-enter it legally. These paroles will usually be granted for family emergencies or important business affairs.

PERMANENT RESIDENT Someone who is liven in the US permanently, and who has been granted an unlimited period of stay. In case you are granted this right, you will receive a green card. Therefore, the terms "permanent resident" and "green card" essentially mean the same. As a holder of such a document, you have the right to leave the US as often as you like, provided you can prove that your life is permanently centered in the US.

PRIORITY DATE That is the date you will you will enter the immigration process. Since only a limited number of permanent residence permits can be issued every year, in some categories you have to wait quite a long time, until all those who have applied before you have received their status. So your priority date, in a way, marks your place in line. Every month, the US Department of State publishes the numbers of those people who are before or on their priority date. So, you can only receive a visa number if your date appears on that list. You can also find the priority dates for all the usual categories in the last chapter of our newsletter.

QUOTA Related to the above-mentioned point is the annual quota. Some categories do not have one, e.g. foreign spouses of US citizens. However, some other categories do have one. There are approximately 400,000 waiting numbers available each year, but no more than 25,000 for each country. If there are more visa applications than there are visa numbers available for that year, a waiting line is created. That's how it comes to the well-known waiting times of up to several years, (e.g. for foreign siblings of US citizens, currently ca. 12 years).

VISA WAIVER PROGRAM The visa-free entry program of the US government allows certain nationalities entry into the US without a visa under certain conditions and for a limited period of time (a maximum of 90 days). Visa-free only means that you don't have to submit a formal application to a US consulate abroad. This is being replaced by filling out the arrival/departure record I-94 and having it approved. However, it is not unconditional where the purpose of the stay is concerned. That means that, for example, internships do not fall under the Visa Waiver Program, not even if they only take up to 90 days or less. The Visa Waiver Program may only be used for short tourist trips or certain kinds of business travel. All German, Austrian and Swiss nationals qualify for this program, provided they are traveling as tourists for less than 90 days and are not intending to extend there stay in the US.

Immigration Service hotline: service not good enough In one of our last issues we reported about the introduction of a central hotline for all service centers of US Immigration Services. The numbers are 1-800-375-5283 or 1-800-767-1833, both can also be called from Europe, but in that case are not free of charge. You can reach the hotline Monday to Friday between 8am and 6pm (local time). Find more information on http://www.bcis.gov/graphics/services/NCSC.htm.

Not really surprising, a report by the American Immigration Lawyers Association has been published in September, examining the quality of the services offered. It says that 79% of all callers get no or insufficient information about their pending applications. 67 organizations have then written to the authority's director, Eduardo Aguirre, and demanded to reintroduce the service hotlines at the local service centers. The biggest problem is that the urgency of some enquiries are simply being ignored or enquiries are not being forwarded to the appropriate service center.

J-1 Visa: only one training program allowed On October 1, the US State Department has issued a memorandum pointing out to all US employers that training programs on the basis of a J-1 can only be authorized once. The memorandum only applies to those kinds of programs, not, however, to au pair programs, research programs and exchange programs for physicians. The memorandum does not change the legal regulations, it merely explains them to potential US employers who have recently applied for a second training for J-1 holders recently.

The memorandum also refers to the possible length of stay. According to it, interns can stay for a maximum of 18 months in the US. In case the training program only lasts 12 months but the trainee wants to do 18 months, a special permit can be obtained. Here it is better to apply at a program sponsor who is authorized to offer training programs over 1 ½ years, even if the specific program is offered for 12 months, because then it is easier to get an extension. In this case it is easier to prove that the extension is necessary for training purposes. The additional six months have to be with the same training program in order to get the necessary permit.