September 28, 2010 Issue - Immigration News

Department of State Posts FY 2012 Diversity Visa Lottery Guidelines.

Sep 24, 2010: Rules and guidelines for the 2012 Diversity Immigrant Visa program have just been published by the U.S. Department of State. For Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, a total of 50,000 Diversity Visas will be made available to people from countries with low rates of immigration to the U.S. The annual DV Lottery program gives permanent visas to people that meet a few simple eligibility requirements. These requirements include: 1) Applicants must be natives of a country whose natives qualify. 2) Applicants must have either a high school education (or its equivalent) or two years of work experience within the past five years that requires at least two years of training or experience. For FY 2012, natives of the following countries are not eligible for the lottery program, because these countries have sent more than 50,000 immigrants to the U.S. in the past five years: BRAZIL, CANADA, CHINA (mainland-born), COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, ECUADOR, EL SALVADOR, GUATEMALA, HAITI, INDIA, JAMAICA, MEXICO, PAKISTAN, PERU, PHILIPPINES, POLAND, SOUTH KOREA, UNITED KINGDOM (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and VIETNAM. Please note that people born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible. Learn more online at: http://bit.ly/aoHduH

Department of State Issues Updated Travel Warning for US Citizens Traveling to Mexico.

Sep 22, 2010: Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of State issued an updated travel warning to U.S. citizens planning to travel to and live in Mexico. According to the Department of State, while most victims of criminal violence in Mexico are Mexican citizens associated with criminal activity, the current situation poses serious risks to U.S. citizens in the region as well. As of September 10, the U.S. Consulate in Monterrey has removed all minor dependents of U.S. government personnel and family members in other areas of northern Medico had also been previously authorized to depart. While millions of U.S. citizens do safely visit Mexico each year, the Department of State does strongly urge U.S. citizens to understand the risks involved in travel to Mexico, how to best avoid dangerous situations and who to contact if they become a victim of crime or violence.

ICE Serves Hundreds of Notices of Inspection to U.S. Companies.

Sep 17, 2010: This week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) served hundreds of Notices of Inspection (NOI) to...