U.S. Immigration Law: An Overview

United States Immigration law is governed exclusively by federal law, most notably, the Immigration and Nationality Act (the “Act”). The Act regulates who can come to (or “enter”) the U.S. on a temporary or permanent basis.

Chicago based Immigration Lawyer Timothy Gambacorta of Gambacorta Law Office, LLC assists clients in obtaining visas to enter the United States on either a temporary (Non-Immigrant visa) or a permanent (Immigrant visa) basis. We also assist clients who are eligible to remain in the United States after legally entering to adjust their status to that of a permanent resident, assist family members in bringing other members of their family here for permanent residence, and prepare clients for the naturalization exam and interview.

The legal strategy includes frank consultations with the client as well as an ongoing effort to communicate with the United States Citizenship Immigration Services (“USCIS”) to facilitate the processing of the client’s application. The Act also provides for when the government can remove (or “deport”) individuals from the U.S. The Gambacorta Law Office, LLC represents clients who are in removal/deportation proceedings before an immigration judge. The representation of clients in removal proceedings frequently involves the application of criminal law since many offenses that might be trivial in nature could have adverse consequences in the area of immigration law. In light of these areas of immigration law, the Gambacorta Law Office, LLC assists clients by: - Petitioning the government to grant a foreign national either a Non-Immigrant Visa or Immigrant visa, the type of visa being dependent on the circumstances of the foreign national’s reason for staying/arriving in the United States; - Petitioning the government to allow a U.S. Citizen and/or legal permanent resident to sponsor family members for permanent residence; - Assisting clients with family and general immigration matters such as citizenship; and - Providing representation in removal/deportation proceedings on behalf of foreign nationals and appealing adverse decisions to higher courts.

In order to enter the U.S., a foreign national will need a visa, a document that is necessary when applying to enter the U.S on either a temporary (non-immigrant visas) or a permanent (immigrant visas) basis. Depending upon the type of visa, a person may be allowed to work, attend school, obtain specialized training, take a vacation, or remain indefinitely.

Non-immigrant visas

Non-immigrant visas are obtained at the US consulate in your country of origin, and allow you to live and/or work in the US for a limited period of time, depending on the type of visa. There are many non-immigrant visas, each is issued for a different purpose and each is known by a letter-number combination as well as a name. A list of various non-immigrant visas that are available include:

A-1 Visas: Ambassadors, public ministers, or career diplomats, and their immediate family members;
A-2 Visas: Other accredited officials or employees of foreign governments, and their immediate family members; and
A-3 Visas: Personal attendants, servants, or employees, and the immediate family members of A-1 and A-2 visa holders.

B-1 Visas: Business visitors; and
B-2 Visas: Tourist visitors.

E-1 Visas: Treaty traders, their spouses and children; and
E-2 Visas: Treaty investors, their spouses and children.

F-1 Visas: Academic or language students;
F-2 Visas: Immediate family members of F-1 visa holders; and
F-3 Visas: Citizens or residents of Mexico or Canada commuting to the U.S. as academic or language students.

G-1 Visas: Designated principal resident representatives of foreign governments coming to the U.S. to work for an international organization, their staff members and immediate family members;
G-2 Visas: Other accredited representatives of foreign governments coming to the U.S. to work for an international organization, and their immediate family members;
G-3 Visas: Representatives of foreign governments, and their immediate family members who would ordinary qualify for G-1 or G-2 visas except that their governments are not members of an international organization.
G-4 Visas: Officers or employees of international organizations and their immediate family members; and
G-5 Visas: Attendants, servants, and personal employees of G-1 through G-4 visa holders, and their immediate family members.

H-1B Visas: Professional workers with at least a bachelor's degree (or its equivalent work experience) may be eligible for a non-immigrant visa if their employers can demonstrate that they are to be paid at least the prevailing wage for the position;
H-2A Visas: Temporary agricultural workers coming to the U.S. to fill positions for which a temporary shortage of U.S. workers has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture;
H-2B Visas: Temporary workers of various kinds coming to the U.S. to perform temporary jobs for which there is a shortage of available qualified U.S. workers;
H-3 Visas: Temporary trainees; and
H-4 Visas: Immediate family members of H-1, H-2m or H-3 visa holders.

J-1 Visas: Exchange visitors coming to the U.S. to study, work, or train as part of an exchange program officially recognized by the U.S. Information Agency; and
J-2 Visas: Immediate family members of J-2 visa holders.

K-1 Visas: Fiancé’(e)s of U.S. citizens coming to the U.S. for the purpose of getting married;
K-2 Visas: Minor, unmarried children of K-1 visa holders;
K-3 Visas: Spouses of U.S. citizens who have filed both a fiancé visa petition and a separate application to enter the U.S.; and
K-4 Visas: Minor, unmarried children of K-3 visa holders.

L-1 Visas: Available to executives, managers and specialized knowledge employees transferring to their employer's U.S. affiliate. Executives and managers holding L-1 visas may be eligible for permanent residency without the need of a labor certification; and
L-2 Visas: Immediate family members of L-1 visa holders.

M-1 Visas: Vocational or other nonacademic students, other than language students;
M-2 Visas: Immediate families of M-1 visa holders; and
M-3 Visas: Citizens or residents of Mexico or Canada commuting to the U.S. to attend a vocational program.

O-1 Visas: Persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics;
O-2 Visas: Essential support staff of O-1 visa holders; and
O-3 Visas: Immediate family members of O-1 and O-2 visa holders.

P-1 Visas: Internationally recognized athletes and entertainers, and their essential support staff;
P-2 Visas: Entertainers coming to perform in the U.S. through a government-recognized exchange program;
P-3 Visas: Artists and entertainers coming to the U.S. in a group for the purpose of presenting culturally unique performances; and
P-4 Visas: Immediate family members of P-1, P-2, and P-3 visa holders.

Q-1 Visas: Exchange visitors coming to the U.S. to participate in international cultural-exchange programs; and
Q-2 Visas: Immediate family members of Q-1 visa

R-1 Visas: Ministers and other workers of recognized religions (e.g. priests, monks, etc.); and
R-2 Visas: Immediate family members of R-1 visa holders.

S-1 Visas: People coming to the U.S. to supply critical information to federal or state authorities where it has been determined that their presence in the U.S. is essential to the success of a criminal investigation or prosecution;

S-5 or S-6 Visas: People coming to the U.S. to provide critical information to federal authorities or a court, who will be in danger as a result of providing such information, and are eligible to receive a reward for the information; and
S-7 Visas: Immediate family members of S visa holders.

T Visas: Women and children who are in the U.S. because they are victims of trafficking, who are cooperating with law enforcement, and who fear extreme hardship if returned home.

U Visas: Victims of criminal abuse in the U.S., who are cooperating with law enforcement.

V Visas: Spouses and minor unmarried children of lawful permanent residents who have been waiting three or more years to get a “green” (permanent residency) card, whose initial visa petition was submitted before December 21, 2000.

On the other hand, an immigrant visa allows you to live and work in the US indefinitely as a permanent resident and allows you to obtain residency for your accompanying spouse and children as well. Some green cards are subject to annual quotas.