July
2007 Newsletter
continuing stalemate to adjustment filings
July 17, 2007
By Robert D. Aronson
DEAR CLIENTS AND FRIENDS:
Roughly 10 days ago, I sent an e-mail notification
(or perhaps lament) on the startling and unprecedented withdrawal
on July 2, 2007, of immigrant visa numbers that had previously been
promised as being available, effective in July. As a consequence
of this withdrawal, all foreign nationals pursuing permanent residence
based on their employment in this country became ineligible to file
their adjustment of status applications. This situation profoundly
affects foreign nationals from India and China, as well as Professional
and Skilled Workers under the Third Preference Classification who
now face great uncertainty and delay as to when they might be able
to move to the final stage of their immigration case.
We have reports from multiple sources, including the Wall Street
Journal, on efforts to figure out a "fix" to this untenable
situation. The proposals range from having U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) simply accept and then hold adjustment applications
filed in July to implementing Congressionally mandated increases
in the immigrant visa quota allotments. And then there is always
the possibility that the immigration bureaucracy will simply get
bogged down in its own inertia so as to leave a resolution of this
severe bottleneck in an ongoing unsettled situation.
We will certainly inform you promptly if and when any movement is
made to rectify this situation.
What recently came to mind, though, is that this situation of an
oversubscription of the immigrant visa numbers is not a new or unforeseeable
phenomenon. On September 16, 2005 - nearly two years ago - my colleague
in the firm, Dinesh Shenoy, published an extraordinarily relevant
and prophetic article that not only addresses the current situation,
but also offers a suggested solution that would enable foreign nationals
to file their adjustment of status applications regardless of the
availability of immigrant visa numbers. In short, this article addresses
precisely the situation that we are currently witnessing. While this
article is somewhat technical in that it was authored for a readership
of lawyers, it is highly relevant and prescient, and as such, deserves
attention.
In addition, it appears that various Congressional offices have putatively
been referring to Dinesh's article as providing a blueprint for revising
the Immigration and Nationality Act to alleviate precisely the delay,
uncertainty, and chaos that we are currently witnessing. Were Dinesh's
observations and proposals indeed to be enacted into law, they would
without question restore a level of integrity and predictability
to our immigration system. This would certainly be a very welcome
outcome to the recent travails that have been experienced by many
of our clients and, more broadly, the literally thousands of foreign
nationals whose quests for permanent residence have been derailed
for reasons still not fully known.
As always, I would welcome your comments on the information presented
in this message to you.
Cordially,
ROBERT D. ARONSON
This memorandum is one of a series of communications
prepared as a general public service to our clients and friends.
The information herein presented is not intended nor should it be
utilized as legal advice on any specific situation. Furthermore,
given the rapid pace of change, the veracity of this information
is constantly subject to modification and/or reversal. Rather, this
piece represents a good faith attempt to orient clients and other
interested parties served byAronson& Associates to current
immigration developments. This piece in no manner supercedes the
need to seek
competent legal advice when engaged in activities carrying possible
immigration-related consequences.
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