Introduced in September 2013, the DS-260 online filing replaced the paper-based DS-230 Application for Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration for all immigrant visa applications. The National Visa Center in its guidance addressed this change as one that will streamline and expedite the immigrant visa process.  Recently however, in addition to extensive delays and other issues, National Visa Center, part of U.S. State Department responsible for visa processing prior to transfer to consular posts, has reported experiencing technical difficulties with their online system related to the access of electronic immigrant visa application (Form DS-260) as well as the Online Choice of Address and Agent form (DS-261), as well as the ability to make and process immigrant visa fee payments electronically. The State Department has released guidance indicating that it is aware of the issues and is working to fix these problems.
Continue Reading DS-260 Online System Experiencing Technical Difficulties

Following is the Chinese translation of a previously published blog post:

2015年4月13日,在华盛顿举行的“赴美投资”会议上,美国国务院签证控制和披露处负责人Charles Oppenheim宣布,自2015年5月1日开始,中国的EB-5申请人将面临排期。Oppenheim实际上在2014年10月的时候就已经暗示这一天会到来。2015年5月的签证公告进一步证实了这点。因此,这将意味着中国的EB-5移民签证类别会面临2年的排期,截止日期为2013年5月1日。截止日期将决定EB-5移民签证的发放顺序。截止日是由I-526申请提交的日期决定的。每个I-526申请的批准通知中的优先日一栏中都会列出一个日期。因此,根据2015年5月的签证公告,截止日划定在2013年5月1日,意味着在2015年5月,只有优先日早于2013年5月1日或者优先日是2013年5月1日的中国EB-5申请人(及其受益申请人)才能申请EB-5移民签证。签证公告中的日期或者向前推进,或者倒退,或者保持不变,这些变化每个月都回定期公布。因此,对于申请人来说,通过每个月查询国务院的签证公告来判断自己的优先日是否有效,至关重要。我们之前发表的博客文章详细的解释了怎样使用签证公告。Continue Reading 美国国务院宣布中国投资人EB-5申请将于2015年5月1日开始排期

On April 13, 2015, at the Invest In the USA (IIUSA) Conference in Washington D.C., Chief of the Visa Control and Reporting Division of the U.S. Department of State Charles Oppenheim reported that the EB-5 China immigrant visa category will retrogress beginning May 2015.  Oppenheim has indicated since October 2014 that this day would come. This was further confirmed upon the release of the May 2015 visa bulletin. Accordingly, this means that retrogression of the EB-5 China immigrant visa category will retrogress two years and have a cut-off date of May 1, 2013. The cut-off date has the effect of establishing a systematic line for the issuance of EB-5 immigrant visas. The cut-off date is determined based on the date an I-526 Petition was filed and is the date included on each I-526 Petition approval notice in the Priority Date box. Therefore, with the cut-off date set at May 1, 2013, based on the May 2015 visa bulletin, it means that during the month of May 2015, only those EB-5 investors (and their derivative beneficiaries) with a Priority Date of May 1, 2013, or earlier may apply for an EB-5 immigrant visa. The dates in the visa bulletin will either move forward, backward, or remain stagnant, and such changes will be reported monthly. Therefore, it is important that an applicant check the visa bulletin each month on the DOS website to see if their Priority Date has become current (i.e. if their Priority Date is earlier than the date listed on the visa bulletin). This is explained in even further detail in a previous post.
Continue Reading EB-5 Retrogression Announced for Chinese Nationals

shutterstock_74614888Immigrant entrepreneurs and investors have always been at the core of the American economy.  Immigrant-founded companies have generated billions of dollars in revenues and contributed intellectual property leading to significant socio-economic advancements within the United States.  Foreign-born entrepreneurs are a critical component to the advancement of the U.S. emerging technology space and it is important to note the variety of visa options available.  This initial post will provide an overview of the nonimmigrant and immigrant visa options available to entrepreneurs and investors in the emerging tech space with future posts focusing on the visa specifics.
Continue Reading U.S. Visa Options for Emerging Tech Entrepreneurs, Investors