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Beach-Oswald is a full-service law firm, concentrating
on immigration law. We have special expertise in work visas, family
based visas, visa waivers, green cards through family and employment
and asylum. We have staff members who speak many different languages
to assist you.
We succeed
when others don't!
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USCIS Plans To Go
Paperless
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 The Washington Post
recently reported that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Agency (USCIS) is planning to convert the
agency from a paper-based system into an electronic system in a $500
million dollar, five-year long project. The contract for
this exciting and massive project has been awarded to IBM.
The agency's hopes are that by having the immigration process go
paperless, they will be able to access immigration records faster and
more accurately, and will be able to reduce backlog delays by 20 to 50
percent. To read the full article, click here.
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Still Waiting to Hear
About your Naturalization Application?
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 For those who have
submitted naturalization applications to USCIS, and have been left
wondering when their applications will be processed, the US
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has posted a very
helpful resource on their website, which lists the expected
processing times for naturalization applicants. This list can be
found on the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov or by clicking here.
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Federal Contractors
Must Use E-Verify
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 The
USCIS announced on Nov. 13th that as of January 15, 2009 all federal
contractors and federal subcontractors will need to use the E-Verify
system to comply with a new law that was issued by President Bush last
summer. According to the USCIS website more than 90,000
employers are actively using E-Verify, which is an electronic system
that employers can use to verify whether the new employees that
they've hired are eligible to work in the U.S. Enrollment in
the E-Verify program is voluntary, but will become mandatory for all
federal contractors as of January of 2009. To learn more about
E-Verify, visit www.uscis.gov.
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Visa Waiver
Travelers Will Now Need Authorization Prior to Travel
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On November 13th DHS
issued a reminder to all eligible nationals of countries that
are part of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) that as of January 12,
2009, anyone from a VWP country wishing to travel to the U.S.
will need to obtain approval through the Electronic System for Travel
Authorization (ESTA) prior to travel. Australia is the only
other country that currently uses a similar system for travel
authorization. To find out how to get approval through the ESTA
system, visit www.cbp.gov/esta.
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Notable Immigration Cases
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Asylum Must be Filed
Within 1 Year of Most Recent Arrival
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A recent BIA
decision re-examined what it means to file an asylum application
within 1 year of an alien's "last arrival" in the United
States, as required by 8 CFR § 1208.4(a)(2)(ii). The case involved
a Mexican citizen who had been living in the U.S. illegally since 1989, and who
returned to Mexico
for a one month long visit in the summer of 2005. When he was
apprehended at the border on his way back from this short trip, he
immediately filed for asylum. Although the Immigration Judge found
the alien eligible for withholding of removal, he concluded that he
was not eligible for asylum because he did not file his application
for asylum within 1 year of his last arrival in the US.
The Judge reasoned that the 1 year clock should have started in 1989,
because "taking a short excursion abroad... would undermine the
[1 year] deadline's clear purpose of focusing the asylum process on
those who have recently fled persecution in their home countries."
On appeal, the BIA scrutinized the language of the statute, and
concluded that the words "last arrival" should be construed
literally to mean "the alien's most recent arrival from a trip
abroad." Therefore, the BIA concluded that the alien was in fact
eligible for asylum, despite the fact that he only left the US for a very brief period after being
present in the U.S.
for several years.
For more information, please refer to Matter of F-P-R, 24 I&N
Dec. 681 (BIA 2008)
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9th Circuit Says
Non-Aggravated Felony Can Be a Bar to Asylum
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A man from El Salvador
was denied asylum, withholding of removal, and withholding under the
Convention Against Torture, in part because of his three prior
driving under the influence (DUI) offenses. Having been
denied relief by the BIA, the man appealed to the 9th Circuit.
The Circuit Judges, however, agreed with the BIA that although the
DUI offenses were not aggravated felonies, the Attorney General is
permitted to classify these offenses as "particularly serious
crimes", which would thus render the alien ineligible for asylum
and withholding of removal.
To read the full decision, please see Delgado v. Mukasey,
No. 03-74442 (9th Circuit, Oct. 8, 2008)
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The
information contained on this email is for informational purposes
only and does not constitute legal advice. The transmission of
information to or from this email does not create an attorney-client
relationship between the sender and receiver. We take our privacy
policy seriously and will never sell, rent or share our email list.
View our Privacy Policy here. To schedule a consultation
with one of our immigration lawyers, please click here.
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Learn English Online for Free!
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On Nov. 7th the U.S. Department of Education launched
a new website, www.USAlearns.org, which provides free online English
lessons. The website is part of President Bush's immigration
reform, and it's aimed at helping immigrants learn English and
assimilate to life in the U.S.
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Julie Myers Resigns from ICE
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Julie Myers, who has been the Assistant Secretary of
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since March of this year,
has announced her resignation, which will become effective on
November 15, 2008.
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