Category Archives: Immigration Law
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
In 2017, California legislators passed the California Values Act into law. Also known colloquially as California’s ‘sanctuary state law’, the law provides important legal protections to immigrants by restricting the cooperation between state/local law enforcement agencies and federal immigration authorities. According to a report from The Orange County Register, a 31-year-old Salvadoran immigrant has filed... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
According to a report from CNN, several thousand employees at United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) are facing furlough at the end of August. Due to the coronavirus, USCIS is dealing with a severe budget crisis. The agency needs immediate, dedicated funding to keep operations at its current levels. As many as two thirds... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
Recently, emails were obtained indicating that ICE deliberately limited COVID-19 testing at a Bakersfield, California immigration detention facility in order to avoid releasing immigrants. According to a shocking report from KTLA 5, COVID-19 testing was discouraged at the privately run Mesa Verde ICE Processing Facility because they did not want to deal with the fallout... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law, Immigration News
According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, San Diego-based U.S. District Judge Janis Sammartino has tentatively upheld California’s law banning private prisons and private immigration detention centers. In a preliminary ruling, Judge Sammartino suggested that she is likely to dismiss lawsuits filed by a private prison company and the Trump Administration. In doing... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage in the United States, prisoners and detainees are at heightened risk. This is not new information: In the early stages of the outbreak, a California federal judge ordered ICE to release vulnerable detainees. Sadly, unheeded warnings have caused irreparable harm, with many infections and even COVID-19 deaths in... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law, Immigration News
Recently, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced a new policy that all but strips F-1 student visas from international students whose schools have gone fully to online instruction in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. There has been widespread outrage about this cruel, unnecessary, and disruptive policy change. As reported by The New York... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
Today, we’re going to talk about what it means when the consulate gives you your passport back at the time of your interview. Is that a good sign? Is it a bad sign? What does it mean? That’s the question I was just asked: “At the time of my husband’s interview, after he was... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
Will taking unemployment benefits mess up your chances of getting approved if you filed an application for naturalization or an N-400? In other words, let’s assume that you want to become a US citizen. You have a green card. And maybe you’re getting ready to file an N-400. You’re thinking about filing an... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
Today, I’m going to discuss a particular immigration case that involves a divorce and how that would impact somebody who is waiting for a visa to become current in the F-3 versus the F-1 preference category. Let me explain the situation and see if this interests you and connects with what’s going on in... READ MORE
Posted by Josh Goldstein | Immigration Law
Today, we are talking about the I-730. This is a visa petition that’s filed by someone who has asylum status on behalf of his or her spouse and children. These applications tend to get delayed. And I file mandamus lawsuits to resolve these delays. And the questions are, “Well, how would that work? And... READ MORE