Becoming a Permanent Resident of the United States

When people immigrate to the United States, they are often coming from war-torn or poverty stricken countries. Although these may be their homelands, there is often no desire to return in their lifetime, or a reasonable assessment that returning would not be safe. They often have to leave family members behind in order to establish themselves in a safe place, where they will then be able to send for them to live their days in peace.

The United States has a very strict and complicated naturalization process. One missed deadline or mistake can mean deportation, often with restrictions on re-entry that make the dream of citizenship a lost cause.

Do yourself and your loved ones the greatest possible service by assuring that your paperwork and filing is handled by an experienced Immigration Attorney.

Immigration Attorney John E. MacDonald has handled hundreds of green card applications, helping immigrants legally attain permanent residence and adjustments of status.

If you are confused by the Immigration process and need some help with your green card or permanent residence application, contact the Law Office of John E. MacDonald now at (401) 421-1440 for more information or a free consultation.

To learn more about John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Green Cards

Rhode Island Green Card Lawyers

One of the most highly sought opportunities for immigrants visiting the United States is the that of obtaining legal residency in the form of a green card. With few exceptions, an immigrant may be eligible for permanent residence in the United States five years after obtaining a green card. The process of acquiring a green card is most easily achieved with a "Fiance Visa"; which makes any immigrant that legally marries a U.S. citizen eligible to apply for citizenship after three years.

That does not make the 'Fiance Visa' the easiest to get however. The USCIS frowns on the practice of getting married simply for the chance to obtain a green card however and has built special provisions into the process that make it impossible to 'fake' your marriage and betrothal. Both parties must have extensive knowledge of the life of their partner including familial history and intimate information only someone with a long standing relationship, or who was a true wife or husband would know.

Benefits of a Green Card

Green cards come with many benefits, including the opportunity to seek employement or education within the United States. For many people around the world employment opportunities, education, and even physical safety are difficult to attain. For those who prove eligible and meet the criteria mandated by the United States government this kind of visa will provide them the chance to remain in the country legally and become a US Citizen.

A challenging process

While there may be more than a few ways to obtain a green card it is still a daunting and often confusing process filled with many obstacles and confusing loopholes. Factors such as a criminal history in an immigrant's native country, entering the United States illegally, or attempting to deceive the US department of Immigration will decrease your chances of qualifying for a visa.

The following seven categories may increase your chances if they apply to you:

• You are considered an alien of extraordinary ability and are capable of petitioning for yourself.
• A close family member of substantial status sponsors you.
• You are facing deportation that may result in extreme or unusual hardship such as physical harm to your person.
• You have been found eligible for Asylum or Refugee status.
• You have invested a considerable amount of currency to the United States.
• Your employer has sponsored you by providing labor certification.
• You have resided in the United States for more than ten years, and have demonstrated that you are a person of good moral character.

If you need assistance, an experienced Immigration Attorney will make the process of applying for a green card much easier and is essential to your success in many cases.

If you or anyone you know needs help applying for a green card contact RI Immigration Attorney John E. Macdonald now at (401) 421-1440 for a free consultation or more information.

To learn more about The Law Office of John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Supreme Court to Rule on Arizona’s Immigration Law

High court to look at state immigration laws

By MARK SHERMAN

The Supreme Court has agreed to rule on Arizona's controversial law targeting illegal immigrants.
The justices said Monday they will review a federal appeals court ruling that blocked several tough provisions in the Arizona law. One of those requires that police, while enforcing other laws, question a person's immigration status if officers suspect he is in the country illegally.

The Obama administration challenged the Arizona law by arguing that regulating immigration is the job of the federal government, not states. Similar laws in Alabama, South Carolina and Utah also are facing administration lawsuits.

The court now has three politically charged cases on its election-year calendar. The other two are President Barack Obama's health care overhaul and new electoral maps for Texas' legislature and congressional delegation.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

The Obama administration is waging a furious legal fight against a patchwork of state laws targeting illegal immigrants, and on Monday the Supreme Court has its first chance to jump into the fray.
Read more HERE
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If you have questions about this posting or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce, or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Lawyer John E. MacDonald at 401-421-1440.

To learn more about The Law Office of John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

What is TPS or Temporary Protected Status?

Temporary Protection Status

In many countries there is unrest and war. The United States Government and USCIS take considerable notice of these situations and extends temporary protection status to any individuals coming from a country with this designation.

When TPS is applied to an individual, they are afforded a temporary status in the United States to protect them from being deported back to a country where there is war, natural disaster, or another occurrence that prevents the country from caring for its nationals. Although the US Government may choose to revoke a country's temporary protection status at any time through the US Citizenship and Immigration Services offices, in most cases the individual under this protection is safe within the US for as long as they need to remain.

One thing that TPS will not afford however, is permanent residence status. The Government continues to renew TPS in most cases however, until everyone involved has obtained a green card. A government cancellation of temporary protection status means that those people who were once under its protection, would then be considered illegal aliens.

If you are under TPS and would like to obtain an adjustment of status, you need the help of an experience Immigration Attorney like John MacDonald at Aggressive Legal Services.

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If you have questions about this posting or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce, or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Lawyer John E. MacDonald at 401-421-1440.

To learn more about The Law Office of John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Same Sex Marriage and Green Cards

Same Sex Marriage and Green Cards

An omission in the provisions of the Defense of Marriage Act, serves as an opening to deny same sex couples the right to sponsor their partner for a green card. This omission conveys, in effect, that if you are a US citizen who happens to be in a same sex marriage, you must leave the country to maintain your togetherness with your partner. The omission denies same sex couples the ability to petition for their partner, and therefore subjects them to the risk of being in the country illegally.

The article below proposes not a change to the immigration laws, merely an executive order from the President that directs the executive branch of the government, not the citizens of the country, to rectify the omission by allowing same sex partners to sponsor their spouses for green card and legal immigration status in America.

A portion of the article follows below.

Same-Sex Green Cards: The Case for a Presidential Executive Order 2011

Melanie Nathan
Dec 30, 2010

At the federal level of government in the United States, laws are made almost exclusively by legislation. Legislation originates as an Act of Congress passed by the Congress of the United States; such acts were either signed into law by the President or passed by Congress after a presidential veto.

Legislation is not the only source of regulations which have the force of law. There is also judge-made common law and constitutional law. The President can issue executive orders pursuant to a grant of discretion from Congress, or under the inherent powers that office holds to deal with certain matters of foreign policy.

When it comes to immigration matters, the standing law is that covered by the Immigration and Naturalization Act of the USA. This law cannot be changed, without the involvement of Congress through an amendment process. However I believe that when it comes to the regulations to effect the intent behind the law or something that unexpectedly and detrimentally impacts the law, the President of the USA can provide an executive order to adjust the circumstances, so impacted.

I do not believe that it was ever the intention of the Defense of Marriage Act to deny the de facto relationships of same-sex couples. I believe President Clinton who signed it into law would attest that it was never his intention to cause American citizens and Residents in same-sex relationships to have to exile the USA to pursue their Constitutional right to happiness. However Americans in the USA, in same sex relationships are denied the possibility to sponsor a partner for a green card.

Accordingly I believe that President Obama has the power to effect an Executive Order on behalf of same-sex couples who are specifically excluded by DOMA, from participating in the US Immigration laws. This quest would specifically denote a right by way of process to an American (citizen or resident) and not a right to an immigrant; the right of the American to Petition for a same-sex partner to reside in the USA, that is currently excluded via laws that simply fail to include the de facto situation, thereby causing extreme hardship to American Families.

I do not believe the Immigration law needs to change for this to happen in the short term; I do not believe that this reflects in any way shape or form on the marriage equality debate. It does not seek to change DOMA and nor does it impact the Immigration Act as we know it, at all.

There have been many early executive orders during all Presidencies; the State Department began numbering executive orders in the early 20th century, starting retroactively from President Abraham Lincoln’s Executive Order Establishing a Provisional Court in Louisiana issued in 1862. An executive order is an order issued by the President, the head of the executive branch of the federal government, generally to staff of the executive branch and not to the citizens of the country. Article I, Section 1 of the US Constitution specifically reserves all federal legislative authority to Congress, not the president.

However here what would occur would be the President ordering the inclusion of same-sex partners under existing law, based on the de facto existence of relationships, the anomaly caused by State law that endorse such relationships, while the Federal government fails to secure the right of the American to remain at home in a relationship of their choice.

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If you have questions about this posting or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce, or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Lawyer John E. MacDonald at 401-421-1440.

To learn more about The Law Office of John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.

Vote against DREAM act unfair and misunderstood

In a recent article dealing with the immigration related DREAM act, the entire process was outlined for what would be faced by anyone seeking citizenship in the United States. It seems that as usual, many have misunderstood the language of the act, and have voted unfairly against it in perpetuation of ideologies that need to be reviewed and revisited in favor of the overall desire that people be unified, rather than divided.

The current DREAM act states that children who were brought here by their parents, and who are currently either enlisting in the armed forces, or are students, be allowed to stay under certain strict guidelines only.

The students or soldiers would be allowed to remain in the country either to serve or attend college for two years under a ten year conditional non-immigrant, temporary, status. At the end of the ten year term, they would be eligible to apply for permanent residency, green card, status. And then, after some 13 odd years, would they be allowed to begin applying for naturalization; which can take years on top of that.

The general consensus is that these children would be a bridge somehow for their parents to gain access, or petition for citizenship on their behalf. This is sadly not the case, as any parent who was found to have unlawfully entered the United States would be barred from the US for ten additional years, while required to go back to their own country.

The laws in this area are strict and difficult to understand, and require the assistance of someone well versed in immigration law. If you are facing an immigration situation in the United States, contact an experienced immigration attorney immediately for help.

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If you have questions about this posting or are interested in Criminal Defense, Divorce, or Immigration Law in RI contact Rhode Island Criminal Defense Lawyer John E. MacDonald at 401-421-1440.

To learn more about The Law Office of John MacDonald, please visit his website at AggressiveLegalServices.com.