The U.S. Embassy announced it was suspending all nonimmigrant visa services in all U.S. diplomatic posts in Turkey. Turkey responded within a few hours of the U.S. Embassy’s announcement by saying it would no longer issue visas to U.S. citizens, including the physical “sticker” visas at border posts as well as the online Turkish electronic visa (e-visa).
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Rebecca B. Schechter ‡
Rebecca Schechter focuses her practice on business immigration and compliance, representing multi-national corporations midsized companies, and startups, as well as individual clients. She has experience with all areas of employment-based immigration, particularly H-1B, L-1, O-1 and E-2 petitions, as well as outstanding researcher petitions and labor certification applications. Rebecca regularly assists GT clients with global immigration matters, including business and work visas to countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America. She also works on state and federal I-9 and E-Verify audits. Rebecca has a thorough understanding of third party contractor issues and experience handling complex naturalization, deportation defense, family and employment-based adjustment applications.
Greenberg Traurig Post-Election Immigration Update
On November 10, 2016, Laura Foote Reiff, Bob Maples, and Rebecca Schechter presented an Immigration Post-Election Update webinar highlighting some of the anticipated key changes to U.S. immigration policy (…
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USCIS Performance Data Released for I-526 and I-829 Petitions
Today USCIS released performance data on I-526 and I-829 petitions. The data provides an overview across several segments for case status (received/approved/denied/pending) for FY 2008 through FY 2015. Data for…
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Summer Update: USCIS Processing Time for I-526, I-829, and I-924 Petitions
On August 31, 2015, USCIS released updated processing times for EB-5 related petitions. The following chart provides the average processing times for cases being adjudicated by the Immigrant Investor Program…
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USCIS Discontinues Electronic Processing of EB-5 Petitions
On June 16, 2015, USCIS announced the suspension of the USCIS Electronic Immigration System (ELIS) for Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur. Due to challenges with ELIS and in…
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U.S. Immigration Visa Options for Entrepreneurs and Investors in the Emerging Technology Space
Immigrant entrepreneurs and investors have always been at the core of the American economy. Immigrant-founded companies have generated billions of dollars in revenues and contributed intellectual property leading to significant socio-economic advancements within the United States. Foreign-born entrepreneurs are a critical component to the advancement of the U.S. emerging technology space and it is important to note the variety of visa options available. This initial post will provide an overview of the nonimmigrant and immigrant visa options available to entrepreneurs and investors in the emerging tech space with future posts focusing on the visa specifics.
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Legislation Needed to Make EB-5 Program Permanent
The EB-5 program is currently at risk of expiring Sept. 30, 2015. Congress needs to act immediately to reauthorize this program which has a proven record for stimulating the economy and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. On March 23, 2015, Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) released a statement explaining the merits of the EB-5 program and the reasons why this program should not be further delayed in partisan debate.
On Jan. 28, 2015, Congressmen Jared Polis and Mark Amodei (R-NV) introduced The American Entrepreneurship & Investment Act of 2015 [HR 616] in a push to permanently authorize the EB-5 Immigrant Investor program. The bill has received strong support from the real estate, business, and tourism industries, also evidenced by the EB-5 Coalition’s final letter supporting HR 616 released earlier this month. The legislation makes the following proposals:…
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Holiday Update on USCIS Processing Time for I-526, I-829, and I-924 Petitions
Earlier this month, USCIS released updated processing times for EB-5 related petitions. The following chart provides the average processing times for cases being adjudicated by the Immigrant Investor Program Office…
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USCIS Schedules Quarterly EB-5 Stakeholder Teleconference for September 10th
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will hold a Quarterly EB-5 Stakeholder Teleconference Wednesday, September 10, 2014, from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. (EST). Stakeholders are invited to participate telephonically…
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USCIS Schedules EB-5 Stakeholder Webinar for July 30th
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will hold a stakeholder webinar Wednesday, July 30, 2014, from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (EST). This is an opportunity for stakeholders to learn more about the functionality of the new USCIS Electronic Immigration System (ELIS) Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Entrepreneur, and the corresponding document library.
During the webinar, USCIS will demonstrate usability of the USCIS ELIS Form I-526 for both I-526 petitioners and regional centers.…
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