04 November

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New Immigration Court location in Sacramento

The Executive Office for Immigration Review recently announced that on September 3, 2019, they will be opening an immigration court in Sacramento, California. The contact information for the new immigration court is: LOCATION: Sacramento Immigration Court John Moss Federal Building 650 Capitol Mall, Suite 4-200 Sacramento, CA 95814 TELEPHONE: 916-447-9301 This opening is welcome news for residents surrounding Sacramento counties. There has been confirmation that the Sacramento Immigration Court’s jurisdiction will include counties of Sacramento, Yuba, Placer, El Dorado, Amador, and Nevada. Our immigration law firm in Sacramento is starting to file a change of venue motions for our clients in order to avoid having to travel...

19 October

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Helpful Interview Tips at the U.S. Consulate

Posted by Jesse S. Atwal

in Immigration Law

Lately, the biggest complaint we are getting from our marriage and fiancé-based visas is that the visa interview is turning into an interrogation. It is likely because immigration officials cite to India as one of the leading countries where they detect and prosecute individuals for marriage fraud. Of course, a well-documented marriage generally allows for an easier interview process; however, the general tips below are a quick observation of some of the methods or questions interviewing officers use to potentially deny a case based on the lack of bona fides of a marriage: New Questions that seem to be reoccurring at...

10 August

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How to deal with and ICE I-9 Compliance Audit

Posted by Jesse S. Atwal

in Immigration Law

One of the scariest moments for a business owner (besides being served with a lawsuit) is when you receive a certified Notice of Inspection (NOI) letter from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office about an upcoming I-9 Compliance audit. An I-9 is a government form that your employees must fill out immediately after being hired and prove to the U.S. government they have a legal right to work in the United States. The government’s website contains specific rules on when the employers must fill out the I-9 and obtain proof of work authorization. Our immigration law firm in Sacramento always recommends...

18 April

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What to Expect At The I-751 Interview After Separation?

Posted by Jesse S. Atwal

in Immigration Law

One of the most typical scenarios for our immigration law firm in Sacramento is when a spouse immigrates to the United States on a marriage visa but then gets a divorce from the spouse. Due to difficulties in the marriage, the couple separate and divorce before the Beneficiary gets the ten-year green card. They don’t have any children together, no major assets, and sometimes they haven’t even lived together for a very long time. All of a sudden, a simple filing of the I-751 Removal of conditions form, turns into a full-blown marriage fraud interview. To the unsuspecting individual, there is...

13 September

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The Ugly Truth About Asylum

Posted by Jesse S. Atwal

in Immigration Law

Let me start off by saying that I have never filed an asylum application in my entire legal career. I have always had an issue with taking money from a potential client to know that their story was identical to the thousands before and likely over-exaggerated. This is not to say there are not tens of thousands of Indian nationals who suffered atrocities inflicted by the government and police in the same manner many refugee-seekers claim, however, this article isn’t for them. I suppose my reluctance in taking an asylum case stemmed from the fact that I knew there were attorneys...

01 September

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What is an Immigration Bond?

Posted by Jesse S. Atwal

in Immigration Law

An immigration bond is an amount set by Immigration agents or an Immigration Judge that a person must pay before being released from immigration detention. The bond helps guarantee that the person released from detention will show up for all of his or her immigration court hearings, report to Immigration if asked to do so, and leave the United States if the Immigration Judge orders deportation at the end of the case. If the person bonded out fails to do these things, the bond money is forfeited and the government keeps it. An immigration bail bond, technically a “surety bond”, the...

01 September

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How Much Insurance Coverage Do You Really Need?

Posted by Jesse S. Atwal

in Accident lawyer, Wrongful death lawyer

One of the worst conversations I have in my personal injury practice is when my client is liable for an accident but does not have enough insurance coverage to pay for the damages. The two stories go like this: Personal Injury & Civil litigation Law Firm in Sacramento, we are here to help you through the traumatic experience of a personal injury. We will explain the legal process to you in terms of procedure, typical settlement times, costs and the value of your case so you can make informed decisions. The Two Stories go like this: Scenario 1. “I was involved in a major...

24 May

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Getting a Waiver of the Requirements to File a Joint Petition

Posted by AtwalCompany

in Immigration Law

If you are unable to file a joint petition with your U.S. spouse to remove the condition of your residency after getting your green card through adjustment; either because of divorce or because he or she died or refuses to cooperate, you must then file for a waiver of the requirement to file the joint petition. This waiver will be granted in only three circumstances: You entered into a good faith marriage but the marriage is legally terminated (death or divorce) Your deportation will cause you extreme hardship and the marriage was originally entered into in good faith, or You...

24 May

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The N-336 And The Dreaded Marriage Fraud Allegation

Posted by AtwalCompany

in Immigration Law

This blog is written for those who obtained their permanent green card after the conditional period and then filed for divorce. Every month our immigration law firm in Sacramento, CA gets the following fact pattern from our potential clients: I was going in for my Naturalization interview and after passing my test the interviewing officer started asking me about my prior marriage. I did not know why they started asking detailed questions about my ex-spouse and the day I separated from them. The officer asked detailed questions about my divorce and whether we had any children or assets together. After the interview,...

24 May

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I-601A Provisional Waiver

Posted by AtwalCompany

in Immigration Law

The absolute number one question I receive as an immigration attorney from my Mexican clientele is: “I am a U.S. Citizen but my spouse came here illegally several years ago. How do I get them legal?” The answer always was: you can apply for the family member now but they would have to go back to Ciudad Juarez, file a hardship waiver, and then wait for approximately six to eight months for approval. However, if that hardship waiver is denied in Mexico, then the family member is stuck there and cannot sneak back or they will face a permanent bar. Usually this quick...