U.S. Immigration law attorney, Ann L. Lipson is theVISAGeek™!

TheVISAGeek™ has her ear to the ground regarding daily changes to immigration laws, procedures and policies. Whether you are an individual or business in the San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara or Monterey counties or a worldwide corporation, you will find timely and useful guideposts to help navigate the rough seas of U.S. immigration. Our goal is to be accessible to the non-specialist by using straightforward English.

TheVISAGeek™ is a publication of the Immigration Law Offices of Ann L. Lipson, PC. A U.S. Immigration attorney with 25+ years experience advocating for employment-based immigration, including universities/researchers; scientific/engineering skilled workers; and self-petitioners, and family-based immigration, including marriage; fiance; and citizenship applications.

RFE and Denial Rates Soaring for Work Visas

Published on: February 16, 2012 | Immigration Law Category: Employer Based Immigration Law, Immigration Policy Developments, Intra-company Transfers, Work Permits

Soaring denial and RFE rates for L-1 and H-1B petitions are hurting U.S. business We knew it but no-one official was acknowledging it. Finally, a recent study from the National Foundation for American Policy  - a non-partisan public policy research organized based in Virginia, released data showing that USCIS has dramatically increased denials of L-1… read more

E-1/E-2 visa holders admissible for two years AT EACH ENTRY

Published on: February 13, 2012 | Immigration Law Category: Employer Based Immigration Law, Entrepreneurs, Immigration Policy Developments

A recent “practice pointer” (1) from the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)/Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Liaison Committee highlights a critical issue for E-1 and E-2 visa holders.  A foreign national applying for admission to the United States with an un-expired E-1 (Treaty Trader) visa or E-2 (Treaty Investor) visa should be admitted for a… read more

Lose-Lose strategies diminish U.S. competitiveness

Published on: February 12, 2012 | Immigration Law Category: Immigration Policy Developments

Ill-conceived, short-sighted U.S. immigration policy mixed with university and college policies to recruit full-paying foreign students over qualified in-state students diminishes our human capital The New York Times reported recently on an increasing trend at U.S. colleges and universities to recruit foreign students who can pay full tuition in the hope of mitigating budget shortfalls.… read more

Non-immigrant visa interview: Waivers expanded

Published on: February 8, 2012 | Immigration Law Category: Consular Processing, Immigration Policy Developments, Waivers

State Department expands waiver of some non-immigrant visa applicant interviews In an effort to manage an increasing workload with less resources, the U.S. Department of State has added a large number of nonimmigrant visa applicants to the list of those for whom interviews may be waived. The program became effective on January 19, 2012 and… read more

Global Entry Program Now Available

Published on: February 6, 2012 | Immigration Law Category: General Immigration, Immigration Policy Developments, Tourist Visa

CBP has begun processing applications for the Global Entry Program for expedited entry clearance Global Entry is a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) program that allows expedited clearance for pre-approved, low-risk travelers upon arrival in the United States. Though intended for frequent international travelers, there is no minimum number of trips necessary to qualify… read more