I am sure that many of you do not want to hear this. But it is the actual truth. There still is no special schedule for nurses, and the Schedule A is not included in the Visa Bulletin.
That the dates are current for the month of July does not state that it is over. There is a huge number of applicants waiting for the green card, in addition to nurses, and they have been waiting as well. Remember that most that came to the US under the H1-B visa, are also included with the EB-3 caseload. And many of their attorneys are much faster at getting things done. Example: When the window opened for petitions to be submitted in April for the October 2007 H1-B visas, there were more than a 150,000 submitted in less than one day. And they were gone.
Not trying to burst any bubble, but trying to be honest on this. There are only so many visas available per year, never unlimited number. And this Bulletin does not go into effect until July 1, 2007. And those dates are only for that month and if you notice there is also mention that if the visas get used up that are there, then the dates will not remain in effect all month.
For those of you that got stopped in the processing just before your interview, this will be very beneficial for you. If your DS-230 has been approved and accepted, then this can be beneficial to you. For those that are just starting the process, remember you at the mercy of your agency and attorney and how fast that they will do things. We have seen multiple posts over the years of mistakes made with petitions that delayed things for quite a period of time. There is also a considerable raise in immigration fees going into affect at the end of July that will delay things for some people as the agencies are going to be holding back on paying of fees.
Those that have been paying their own way will find that they may get thru faster.
So please, do not make final plans to leave for the US until you actually have an interview date given to you. We saw what happened last fall to quite a few of you here.
Until there is another Schedule in place for nurses, the retrogression will not be over. Just an open window in the scheme of things, but definitely not over. Look at what happened even last month when the dates were moved up for the PD, you did not see a significant movement of anything. When money is needed to be paid by the agencies, everything drops to a crawl.
Not at all, you still must have a SSN# and be in the US to apply for it. You cannot even start the process of applying for it until you have the EAD in hand, or a visa that will permit you to work.
And you must be in the US for a full 90 days before you could even have a petition submitted on your behalf. And about a five month wait before you could begin working, it is not an instant thing as the poster above would have you think. And seriously doubt that they have even gone thru the process, there has been a retrogression in effect since October 31 of last year, and no I-485 petitions have been accepted since then. And they are not aware of the other requirements that need to be submitted with the I-140 in the first place.
Thanks for making this clear, Suzanne. Your posts are very informative actually (unlike the irksome doomsday scenarios some sap-drainers love to spread around without providing factual basis). Thanks for the patience! :balloons:
ok. RKM has a point, I am no longer excited of what's goin on because the case here is the number of visas to be issued. By July 1, I am sure NVC will be drowned with truckloads of mail couriers from all over the world. I bet it.
Then these DS230's will be consumed into smokes.
It's okey to be excited, it's free and legitimate! Don't let doomsday presenters drain you of hope. Just be grounded on your strategies (many helpful posts that can guide you here).
I've beeen wondering. Is there any chance that schedule A will be re-introduced this year? This really disturbing. It's hard to be in limbo as to when one would get his green card. It's scary to consider the possiblity of completing a contract and without a green card. Are we being taken advantage of?
You are not being taken advantage of at all. Remember that most that do their training in the US for most professions only get the OPT for one year and then have to leave. The RN has the luxury of being able to get the green card. But the issue is that there are more nurses applying for a visa for the US then there are visas. Call it supply and demand.
If you already have an EAD based on the I-485, then with the visas opening up, you have a chance at getting a green card in the near future. Will be dependent on where you are in the processing.
To answer what you kept repeating in your post to who am I and what is my status.
I am a licensed neonatologist in the Phillipines and currently in my 2nd year pediatric residency in New Jersey. I am married to a beautiful Filipina who is a US citizen whom I met during my Med-proper.I am now in the Philippines for a vacation.
My sister is a nurse,( completed all the necessary requirements including the visa screen certificate) is now in the US as per advise of our family friend immigration lawyer who handled countless cases especially nurses some of them are my friends and now working in the same hospital.
Now we can blog and quote immigration laws all we want which I'm sure that some of the readers are already well aware as I am.
What you have posted are approaches during conventional times.The lawyers use that approach so as to be sure for the petitions not to be denied.
It is not absolute.
Some cases are different from the other even if there are some similarities. We can not generalized all the cases.
I dont know where you got the idea that if you come from the Phillippines you should wait 90 days and if other nationality its 60 days.
Please enlighten my ignorance.
I am a witness to some of my med-proper colleagues who took up nursing as a 2nd course and now in the US working in the same Hospital as I am. They filed their application before the Schedule A visas were exhausted. Some received their green cards as early as 3 months, others longer. Some unfortunate ones filed their application September 2006 but at least received EAD in December 2006 and travel documents the following month however their green card are still pending.
In these unconventional times certain tact is necessary. Hey we all don't know what will happen in the coming weeks.
Medicine is not an exact science as law is ambiguous in certain aspects.
Hope you are okay. Just stay cool. Like what you said, everyone here (newbie or old timer) is entitled to his/her own opinion. It's a forum alright. Just keep it tight and civil.
You were right in saying that this coming July (visa numbers becoming current) CAN BE a different scenario from what happened in H1B category last April. There is some credit to that even if you base your assumptions on NVC's guidance itself which says, "All Employment Preference categories ......have been made Current for July.... in an effort to generate increased demand by USCIS for AOS cases, and to maximize number use." It further states that retrogression may be expected by September. Remember, NVC's guidance with regards to visa numbers tend to be conservative but also correct in terms of dates.
However, there is also some credit in what Ms. Suzanne posted above. We are truly seeing significant movements and preparations with regards to companies vying to "adjust" the status their current and qualified H1B workers and those hospitals who want to hire via i-140 plus AOS. We can expect them to use special couriers to even hand deliver the documents. But to predict that the "window" will open and close within a blink of an eye is a bit of a stretch; it is purely anecdotal but possible. However, there is a good chance that you will have at least one month to file whatever that you are filing for.
Again, to keep it simple, cases are not adjudicated based on what you said. You can always refer to USCIS and State Department's guidelines on how they decide on cases. Ms. Suzanne was right about the 60 day rule on AOS though we usually see lawyers logging their cases 90 days to increase the chance of approval. Nonetheless, please take note that this 30-day leeway is not unique to applicants coming off from the Philippines. We see it being done to other nationalities. Lastly, the 30-day add on is not a rule. It's just "the practice". We have seen cases being logged and filed routinely at 60 days and 60 days + X number of days. So your experience about that "someone" being filed after one month stay can be PLAUSIBLE. Just check your numbers coz that particular case may have been in fact filed at least after 60 days.
Marie
US Immgration procedures actually state 60 days before submitting the AOS petitions. Anything earlier than that is purely up to the discretion of the USCIS, and many are denied. It is in violation of the US Immigration code to come to the US for a dual intent, and they are refusing petitions over that. That is why you will see most attorneys wait for the 90 day period to file, the best chance of getting approval on the petition. The next issue is that if you need to be in the US for that amount of time and then add on another 8 weeks or so until the nurse can actually begin work, most are unable to support themselves in the US for that length of time and begin to work illegally, and then they are getting deported. There have not been any I-485 petitions accepted since last October 31; anyone that came after that cannot be working in the US legally, yet we hear of it here all of the time, they are working illegal, without a SSN#, and are getting paid in cash and under the table as we call it.
The next issue is the time that it takes to get the documents together for the I-140 petition to be submitted by the attorney, it is usually four weeks if not longer, that is why if the nurse does not already have the process going, it will be hard to get it done in time. No one should be coming over to the US now with the idea that they can go thru the AOS procedure. Who this is going to help are those that are already in the US under other legal visas and have been here for sometime and they have an attorney that has the documents completed and is just waiting for a day in July to get them submitted. If the nurse is going thru CP, then the only chance that they have of getting a visa is if they have approval on everything already and were just waiting for an interview before the retrogression hit.
Remember that there is still a retrogression for nurses in place. Opening things up for the EB-3 does not mean that for nurses the retrogression is over. Never stated anywhere, only that the nurses no longer have their own category and are with everyone else waiting, that is where the bigger problem lies.
Just because someone has come to the US on a tourist visa and stayed and got thru on that, it is actually in violation of US immigration law to come to the US with dual intent. And that is where we are seeing many get denied. Especially if they do not have a job back home that they just took a leave from. Many that come to the US from the Philippines, do not have jobs at home, or any intention of returning home, and this is what is catching them up.
I happen to work in an area that is largely Filipino, more than 40% of the population; and in CA and we are seeing it all of the time now. Just because an immigration attorney told someone to circumvent the law, that does not mean that it is correct to do it that way. And most cannot afford to be in the US for months before they can begin to work legally. And yes, I do consult with a number of Filipino attorneys and not one of them will even consider submitting the petitions before the 90 days are up. Not worth getting the denial and having to leave the US. Remember that a denial is not subject to appeal.
I have been helping foreign nurses for too many years to count and stand by my experience and with my discussions with immigration attorneys all over the US, not just a family friend. Never rely on only one source in this at all. I still stand by what I have posted. And sure I know quite a few that have gone thru the AOS process, but it still does not mean that it was the legal way of doing things, and this is my point. We are seeing more and more Filipina nurses coming to CA and working illegally and getting deported based on information that their wonderful attorney gave them, they still get deported, USCIS and the immigration judges tell them that it is there responsibility to know the law and not rely solely on what their attorney told them.
You are speaking of one facility and one attorney, that does not come into play with the rest of the US, nor the fact that no I-485 petitions have been accepted since last year, and the whole immigration issue has changes dramatically in the past six months.
You are not being taken advantage of at all. Remember that most that do their training in the US for most professions only get the OPT for one year and then have to leave. The RN has the luxury of being able to get the green card. But the issue is that there are more nurses applying for a visa for the US then there are visas. Call it supply and demand.
If you already have an EAD based on the I-485, then with the visas opening up, you have a chance at getting a green card in the near future. Will be dependent on where you are in the processing.
Hi Suzanne,
I've been reading your replies to most individuals here which concerns their Green Card Application you seem to be the most straight forward, knowledgeable and honest. It shows you are very Americanized which is good.
Anyway, my story is that I'm a Canadian Citizen by naturalization but I am a Philippine born person. I am currently living in Michigan since October of 2005 and working as a staff nurse for this huge hospital since 2003. I used to cross the border since 2002 under my TN Visa. My lawyer is currently working for my AOS. My application was filed at the Nebraska Service Center in May 25, 2006. We got my approval on my I-140 which they sent on their I-797, Notice of Action on Nov. 22, 2006. They also sent a Notice of Action on my I-485 dated June 13, 2006 but on the space Priority Date it was blank that does mean my PD was not current on the Visa Bulletin for that month. We just got my second EAD for the second time which expires in May 2008. I had my Biometrics done in July 5, 2006. The USCIS priority date for this month under Nebraska Service Center is September 2006. And under the Visa Bulletin it's current for EB3 although I'm fully aware it's not only for nurses I know other health care professionals are under it.Do you think I will be issued the most coveted Green Card this July?
Also, I got married in May of this year her papers was interfiled together with my petition under my employer which was sent May 30 and they received it on June 1 through DHL. Will her application for a I-485 be forwarded in the US embassy in Manila if my Green Card be ever issued this July?
I apologize if I have so many inquiries. Please tell me your straight forward answer and I will be very happy what ever your response is. I know that your response are very constructive in nature which most of us here appreciates.
Just because someone has come to the US on a tourist visa and stayed and got thru on that, it is actually in violation of US immigration law to come to the US with dual intent. And that is where we are seeing many get denied. Especially if they do not have a job back home that they just took a leave from. Many that come to the US from the Philippines, do not have jobs at home, or any intention of returning home, and this is what is catching them up.
I happen to work in an area that is largely Filipino, more than 40% of the population; and in CA and we are seeing it all of the time now. Just because an immigration attorney told someone to circumvent the law, that does not mean that it is correct to do it that way. And most cannot afford to be in the US for months before they can begin to work legally. And yes, I do consult with a number of Filipino attorneys and not one of them will even consider submitting the petitions before the 90 days are up. Not worth getting the denial and having to leave the US. Remember that a denial is not subject to appeal.
I have been helping foreign nurses for too many years to count and stand by my experience and with my discussions with immigration attorneys all over the US, not just a family friend. Never rely on only one source in this at all. I still stand by what I have posted. And sure I know quite a few that have gone thru the AOS process, but it still does not mean that it was the legal way of doing things, and this is my point. We are seeing more and more Filipina nurses coming to CA and working illegally and getting deported based on information that their wonderful attorney gave them, they still get deported, USCIS and the immigration judges tell them that it is there responsibility to know the law and not rely solely on what their attorney told them.
You are speaking of one facility and one attorney, that does not come into play with the rest of the US, nor the fact that no I-485 petitions have been accepted since last year, and the whole immigration issue has changes dramatically in the past six months.
Suzenna, Wonder how can you go through all these posts and reply repeatedly with accuracy and patience!!
US Immgration procedures actually state 60 days before submitting the AOS petitions. Anything earlier than that is purely up to the discretion of the USCIS, and many are denied. It is in violation of the US Immigration code to come to the US for a dual intent, and they are refusing petitions over that. That is why you will see most attorneys wait for the 90 day period to file, the best chance of getting approval on the petition. The next issue is that if you need to be in the US for that amount of time and then add on another 8 weeks or so until the nurse can actually begin work, most are unable to support themselves in the US for that length of time and begin to work illegally, and then they are getting deported. There have not been any I-485 petitions accepted since last October 31; anyone that came after that cannot be working in the US legally, yet we hear of it here all of the time, they are working illegal, without a SSN#, and are getting paid in cash and under the table as we call it.
The next issue is the time that it takes to get the documents together for the I-140 petition to be submitted by the attorney, it is usually four weeks if not longer, that is why if the nurse does not already have the process going, it will be hard to get it done in time. No one should be coming over to the US now with the idea that they can go thru the AOS procedure. Who this is going to help are those that are already in the US under other legal visas and have been here for sometime and they have an attorney that has the documents completed and is just waiting for a day in July to get them submitted. If the nurse is going thru CP, then the only chance that they have of getting a visa is if they have approval on everything already and were just waiting for an interview before the retrogression hit.
Remember that there is still a retrogression for nurses in place. Opening things up for the EB-3 does not mean that for nurses the retrogression is over. Never stated anywhere, only that the nurses no longer have their own category and are with everyone else waiting, that is where the bigger problem lies.
Suzanne
There is no reason for you to be uptight on what Ma’am Marie had said. Her post was to clarify what respawn claimed. I don’t see any reasons for you to quote marie and say entirely different thing. It do not make sense at all. Her comments are welcome since this forum has been too hypercritical for a while. Just let fresh air come in.
"Just because someone has come to the US on a tourist visa and stayed and got thru on that, it is actually in violation of US immigration law to come to the US with dual intent. And that is where we are seeing many get denied. Especially if they do not have a job back home that they just took a leave from. Many that come to the US from the Philippines, do not have jobs at home, or any intention of returning home, and this is what is catching them up".
The USCIS granted them immigrant visas right?
What is their criteria for deciding who to deny and who to approve?
All of the persons I know who went with the AOS while on tourist visa got approved, I guess its few compared to your experience.
Let's be reallistic here most if not all those nurses who go to the US on tourist visas has in the back of their mind dual intent. But they got approved eventually.
My question is why?
And if I may correct you those that I know who come to the US to adjust status are rich enough to support themselves for several months without doing or accepting work without permit. Just to remind you its not that easy to get a tourist visa in the Philippines, they are that strict, and most of them who was granted visa do have financial capabilities otherwise they would opt to process their papers through recruitment agencies.
Now if you ask me why are they going to the US if they are already financially stable in the Philippines. That I can not answer, each has I guess their personal reasons.
Bottomline is let us not generalized the situation every case is different from another.
"You are speaking of one facility and one attorney, that does not come into play with the rest of the US, nor the fact that no I-485 petitions have been accepted since last year, and the whole immigration issue has changes dramatically in the past six months."
just giving a friendly reminder that all discussions should be kept friendly and civil and we should just be debating the issues rather than the person. we are in a forum in the first place so everyone is entitled to their own opinions.
I've been reading your replies to most individuals here which concerns their Green Card Application you seem to be the most straight forward, knowledgeable and honest. It shows you are very Americanized which is good.
Anyway, my story is that I'm a Canadian Citizen by naturalization but I am a Philippine born person. I am currently living in Michigan since October of 2005 and working as a staff nurse for this huge hospital since 2003. I used to cross the border since 2002 under my TN Visa. My lawyer is currently working for my AOS. My application was filed at the Nebraska Service Center in May 25, 2006. We got my approval on my I-140 which they sent on their I-797, Notice of Action on Nov. 22, 2006. They also sent a Notice of Action on my I-485 dated June 13, 2006 but on the space Priority Date it was blank that does mean my PD was not current on the Visa Bulletin for that month. We just got my second EAD for the second time which expires in May 2008. I had my Biometrics done in July 5, 2006. The USCIS priority date for this month under Nebraska Service Center is September 2006. And under the Visa Bulletin it's current for EB3 although I'm fully aware it's not only for nurses I know other health care professionals are under it.Do you think I will be issued the most coveted Green Card this July?
Also, I got married in May of this year her papers was interfiled together with my petition under my employer which was sent May 30 and they received it on June 1 through DHL. Will her application for a I-485 be forwarded in the US embassy in Manila if my Green Card be ever issued this July?
I apologize if I have so many inquiries. Please tell me your straight forward answer and I will be very happy what ever your response is. I know that your response are very constructive in nature which most of us here appreciates.
Thank you very much!
Thank you for the very nice note. You have an excellent chance of getting the green card at this time. Doubt if your wife will get a visa at the same time as you as she was not included in your original petitioning. USCIS will be making the final determination on this, each case is looked at individually. The issue is that your I-485 was submitted a year ago, and that you just got married recently.
But if you look at the fact that in CP processing, if the dependent is not on the DS-230 when it is submitted, then they are not added as a dependent to that visa when it is issued. This is going to be a hard one to call.
Aquarian
199 Posts
Thanks for making this clear, Suzanne. Your posts are very informative actually (unlike the irksome doomsday scenarios some sap-drainers love to spread around without providing factual basis). Thanks for the patience! :balloons: