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Michael Steele Talks about His Adoption Story

Who doesn't need an inspiring adoption story during this time of year? We just listened to The Ax Files Podcast of Michael Steele talking about his adoption. Michael Steele is an American politician who served as the first African-American chairperson of the Republican National Committee. If you read Steele's Biography , you will see many of his accomplishments.  Although he has a tremendous resume, it wasn't smooth sailing for him to get there. Michael Steele's biological mother got pregnant with him back in the 50's while she was attending a Catholic University. She was on her way to "deal" with her pregnancy when she came across a nun that ended up changing her mind and instead, helped her to make an adoption plan. On  another side of the adoption triad, we have Mr. Steele's adoptive mother.  She and her husband wanted to have childen, but they were told they were infertile.  Mrs. Steele said this is when she knew that there was something bigger and...
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SIJS PROCESSING TIMES UPDATE

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SIJS Processing Times Updates I've filed a number of SIJS cases since May 2017 with no action.  Under TVPRA 2008, those cases are supposed to be decided within 6 months and that is what we used to see.  However, a number of factors have created the perfect storm to slow down decisions by USCIS. SIJS cases are now all routed to the National Benefits Center, instead of decided at local Field Offices.  There was a huge influx of children from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador fleeing gang violence and unsafe conditions beginning in 2014:  https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/07/15/us/questions-about-the-border-kids.html .  Many of those children applied for this pathway to a  law ful permanent resident card.  This pathway differs from asylum in that it is limited to children who have been abandoned, abused or neglected by one or more of their birth parents.  They also have to be under the age of 18 (unless their state court extends eligibility...
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SIJS Alert: May 1 Deadline to file for Green Card for Unaccompanied Kids from El Salvador, Guatemala,Honduras

USCIS has just released the following announcement.   The best course of action is to file for the child's green card before May 1.  Please see your immigration attorney right away if you have a pending case of SIJS: Employment-Based Fourth Preference (EB-4) Visa Limits Reached for Special Immigrants From El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras The Department of State’s Visa Bulletin for May 2016 reflects a final action date  of January 1, 2010, for EB-4 visas for special immigrants from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. This means that starting in May, applicants from these countries who filed Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant on or after January 1, 2010, will not be able to obtain an immigrant visa or adjust status until new visas become available. These three countries have reached their EB-4 visa limits as congressionally mandated for fiscal year 2016, which ends September 30. Information on EB-4 visa availability for fiscal year 2017 ...
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