The place of power in the socio-economic development of any given nation cannot be underestimated. Experts, as well as non-experts alike have unanimously come to acknowledge the fact that the dulled Nigerian economy would spring a huge surprise even if Nigeria were to have just about 15,000 megawatts of electricity, which curiously is far below the nation’s required capacity. Serious countries all over the world have virtually put behind them the issue of power generation, supply and distribution.
The Obasanjo administration committed large sums of money to realise the elusive dream of constant power supply in Nigeria. The figure differs depending on who is saying it. But the speaker of the House of Representatives officially admitted that Nigeria under Obasanjo committed about $13 billion through the National Integrated Power Project, NIPP in search of power.
The former president build thermal plants in almost all the geopolitical zones in the country; from Geregu to Mambilla, from Aloji to Papalanto, but the problem became how to pipe natural gas from the volatile Niger Delta to these far flung places. Those critical of the manner of citing these gas power plants berated the government for doing what economically could be described as madness; that is not citing an industry with the proximity of raw material in mind. Rather the only paramount consideration was geopolitical spread.
Many years down the line, Nigeria is darker than Obasanjo met it. Soon after late Yar’Adua took over, he made promises upon promises of declaring a state of emergency in the power sector, when that failed to material what has now become a bogus promise of generating 6000 megawatts of electricity by the end of 2009. Like other unfulfilled expectations, this never saw the light of the day.
But the question is how can Nigeria overcome what have become a debilitating power situation?
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
The Foreigner's Guide to Owning an American Business
The Foreigner's Guide to Owning an American Business
By Bob Dean Stanford
The USA features one of the largest and most prestigious markets in the world today. The Internet has opened up incalculable income opportunities for the small businessperson worldwide. There is a growing list of individuals living in foreign lands that strongly desire to own an American business, tapping into this vast marketplace, while continuing to live in their homeland. This article will briefly touch on the subject of how you can setup and operate a business in the USA while living in a foreign land.
Why would you want to own an American business?
Generally, Americans prefer doing business with American companies because they expect American quality and have legal recourse if the company doesn't deliver on their product or service as promised. This may not be true when they make a purchase from a foreign business. If you market your goods through your American business, you can overcome this limitation.
The American buyer needs to have confidence in a company they wish to make a purchase from and image is of paramount importance. You may live in a foreign land, but if your business has its address, bank account, and phone number in the USA, you have already laid substantial credibility to your company. Also, American suppliers may be more cooperative with your company in America than overseas.
Overcoming demographic issues
It may seem overwhelming to you when considering the idea of setting up your own American company. Actually, most steps are rather simple and it isn't too difficult to find qualified services and consultants that can walk you step-by-step through the complete process for a reasonable startup fee.
Meeting legal requirements
It isn't a requirement to be an American citizen or even live in the USA to own a company here. You can hire agents to setup your corporation or LLC (Limited Liability Company) for you for less than $700 (US Dollars), and maintain your own business address with receptionist for about $200 - $300 per month. Your phone number will cost about $30 per month. Business licenses are low cost and renewed annually. Your company will be required to obtain an Employer's I.D. from the U.S. Internal revenue Service (IRS) since it must pay taxes it earns. If you setup your company in the state of Nevada, Delaware, or Wyoming, you won't have any state corporation or personal state income taxes.
One problem that faces a foreigner establishing an American business is the establishment of a business bank account in their state of business. It's important for the corporation to have a bank account in its home state (the state of its incorporation). This is one of the tests to validate that the business is legal.
Most banks here require the business owner to open their bank checking account in person. The individual that is authorized to sign checks on the account must sign the required bank signatory card in person. Normally, this requirement would necessitate a trip to the USA by the foreign business owner. But, there are creative ways to circumvent this issue. Some small Internet companies even utilize their PayPal Premier Business Account to handle many international sales payments, though a bank checking account is still necessary.
There are various legal structures for American companies, but you will likely use either the "C" corporation or LLC (Limited Liability Company) structure. The "S" corporation structure isn't available to nonresident corporate owners. The service or consultant you select to assist you in setting up your new business will help you understand what you need so you can make an intelligent decision as to the best way to proceed.
Once your business is established, it isn't to difficult to maintain its legal status. Don't be overwhelmed with this process. It's more than worth the effort to establish your own business in the USA. It can open many business opportunities that simply are not available to nonresident businesses. Even many established and successful companies like Sony, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Honda, and Hitachi have opened up American branches and businesses for these reasons. Learn from their examples and gain many of the same benefits.
Bob Dean Stanford, aka "Maverick" is a 61 year old International business consultant (now specializing in small business), television show host and producer. He served as Sr. consultant to law offices, specializing in formation of corporations, LLCs, business plans, loan packaging, corporate bankruptcies, new product development, marketing, and general business consulting.
As a published author, TV/radio personality and business consultant, he creates "How to" books for small home businesses, and producing and hosting the upcoming television (TV) show, "The Maverick Entrepreneur." He is just completing his latest book "The Foreigners Guide to Owning an American Business."
Free subscription to "Maverick's Tips" newsletter teaching tricks of the home and Internet marketing trade. One unique feature, we cover topics related to expatriates and foreigners operating a USA business while living abroad. Click on the 1st two links below to subscribe.
http://maverickentrepreneur.com
http://stanfordtc.com
http://webvideopros.com
email maverick@stanfordtc.com
Phone 877-702-1157
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bob_Dean_Stanford
By Bob Dean Stanford
The USA features one of the largest and most prestigious markets in the world today. The Internet has opened up incalculable income opportunities for the small businessperson worldwide. There is a growing list of individuals living in foreign lands that strongly desire to own an American business, tapping into this vast marketplace, while continuing to live in their homeland. This article will briefly touch on the subject of how you can setup and operate a business in the USA while living in a foreign land.
Why would you want to own an American business?
Generally, Americans prefer doing business with American companies because they expect American quality and have legal recourse if the company doesn't deliver on their product or service as promised. This may not be true when they make a purchase from a foreign business. If you market your goods through your American business, you can overcome this limitation.
The American buyer needs to have confidence in a company they wish to make a purchase from and image is of paramount importance. You may live in a foreign land, but if your business has its address, bank account, and phone number in the USA, you have already laid substantial credibility to your company. Also, American suppliers may be more cooperative with your company in America than overseas.
Overcoming demographic issues
It may seem overwhelming to you when considering the idea of setting up your own American company. Actually, most steps are rather simple and it isn't too difficult to find qualified services and consultants that can walk you step-by-step through the complete process for a reasonable startup fee.
Meeting legal requirements
It isn't a requirement to be an American citizen or even live in the USA to own a company here. You can hire agents to setup your corporation or LLC (Limited Liability Company) for you for less than $700 (US Dollars), and maintain your own business address with receptionist for about $200 - $300 per month. Your phone number will cost about $30 per month. Business licenses are low cost and renewed annually. Your company will be required to obtain an Employer's I.D. from the U.S. Internal revenue Service (IRS) since it must pay taxes it earns. If you setup your company in the state of Nevada, Delaware, or Wyoming, you won't have any state corporation or personal state income taxes.
One problem that faces a foreigner establishing an American business is the establishment of a business bank account in their state of business. It's important for the corporation to have a bank account in its home state (the state of its incorporation). This is one of the tests to validate that the business is legal.
Most banks here require the business owner to open their bank checking account in person. The individual that is authorized to sign checks on the account must sign the required bank signatory card in person. Normally, this requirement would necessitate a trip to the USA by the foreign business owner. But, there are creative ways to circumvent this issue. Some small Internet companies even utilize their PayPal Premier Business Account to handle many international sales payments, though a bank checking account is still necessary.
There are various legal structures for American companies, but you will likely use either the "C" corporation or LLC (Limited Liability Company) structure. The "S" corporation structure isn't available to nonresident corporate owners. The service or consultant you select to assist you in setting up your new business will help you understand what you need so you can make an intelligent decision as to the best way to proceed.
Once your business is established, it isn't to difficult to maintain its legal status. Don't be overwhelmed with this process. It's more than worth the effort to establish your own business in the USA. It can open many business opportunities that simply are not available to nonresident businesses. Even many established and successful companies like Sony, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Honda, and Hitachi have opened up American branches and businesses for these reasons. Learn from their examples and gain many of the same benefits.
Bob Dean Stanford, aka "Maverick" is a 61 year old International business consultant (now specializing in small business), television show host and producer. He served as Sr. consultant to law offices, specializing in formation of corporations, LLCs, business plans, loan packaging, corporate bankruptcies, new product development, marketing, and general business consulting.
As a published author, TV/radio personality and business consultant, he creates "How to" books for small home businesses, and producing and hosting the upcoming television (TV) show, "The Maverick Entrepreneur." He is just completing his latest book "The Foreigners Guide to Owning an American Business."
Free subscription to "Maverick's Tips" newsletter teaching tricks of the home and Internet marketing trade. One unique feature, we cover topics related to expatriates and foreigners operating a USA business while living abroad. Click on the 1st two links below to subscribe.
http://maverickentrepreneur.com
http://stanfordtc.com
http://webvideopros.com
email maverick@stanfordtc.com
Phone 877-702-1157
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bob_Dean_Stanford
Monday, July 26, 2010
How to get American Visa and Green card
How to get American Visa and Green card.
A lot of people fail to get visa to the United States of America even when what they have genuine cases. This has painted the USA as a country with very stringent immigration laws. However investigation and research has shown that this is not true leading to the summation that with enough information American visas can be gotten easily.
In this write up i have identified seven ways of getting American Visa and what is required.
Firstly an international passport is the most paramount tool before one can apply for a visa be it American or any other country.
After this, one can qualify for a visa to enter America if he or she is either going on a business, leisure, educational, medical etc the approach is the same.
Apart from the above reasons you also apply for a green card.
The United States offers several ways to become a Permanent Resident (Green Card holder). A Green Card allows you to live and work permanently in the U.S.
Below is a list of the various ways that you may qualify for a Green Card.
An immigrant usually has to go through a three-step process to get permanent residency. The whole process may take several years, depending on the type of immigrant category and the country of birth.
1. Immigrant Petition – in the first step, USCIS approves the immigrant petition by a qualifying relative, an employer, or in rare cases, such as with an investor visa, the applicant himself. If a sibling is applying, she or he must have the same parents as the applicant.
2. Immigrant Visa Availability – in the second step, unless the applicant is an "immediate relative", an immigrant visa number through the National Visa Center (NVC)[9] of the United States Department of State (DOS) must be available. A visa number might not be immediately available even if the USCIS approves the petition, because the amount of immigrant visa numbers is limited every year by quotas set in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). There are also certain additional limitations by country of birth. Thus, most immigrants will be placed on lengthy waiting lists. Those immigrants who are immediate relatives of a U.S. citizen (spouses and children under 21 years of age, and parents of a US citizen who is 21 years of age or older) are not subject to these quotas and may proceed to the next step immediately (since they qualify for the IR immigrant category).
3. Immigrant Visa Adjudication – in the third step, if an immigrant visa number becomes available, the applicant must either apply with USCIS to adjust their current status to permanent resident status or apply with the DOS for an immigrant visa at the nearest US consulate before being allowed to come to the United States.
o Adjustment of Status (AOS) – Adjustment of status is submitted to USCIS via form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.[10] The USCIS conducts a series of background checks (including fingerprinting for FBI criminal background check and name checks) and makes a decision on the application. Once the adjustment of status application is accepted, the alien is allowed to stay in the United States even if the original period of authorized stay on the Form I-94 is expired, but he is not allowed to leave the country until the application is approved or rejected. If the alien has to leave the United States during this time, he/she can apply for travel documents at the USCIS with form I-131, also called Advance Parole.[11] If there is a potential risk that the applicant's work permit (visa) will expire or become invalid (laid off by the employer and visa sponsor) or the applicant wants to start working in the United States, while he/she is waiting for the decision about his/her application to change status, he/she can file form I-765, to get Employment Authorization Documents (also called EAD) and be able to continue or start working legally in the United States.[12][13] In some cases, the applicant will be interviewed at a USCIS office. If the application is approved, the alien becomes an LPR, and the actual green card is mailed to the alien's last known mailing address.
o Consular Processing – this is an alternative to AOS, but still requires the immigrant visa petition to be completed. If the applicant is outside of the USA (or selects this option instead of AOS), he/she may make an appointment at the U.S. embassy or consulate in his/her home country, where a consular officer adjudicates the case. If the case is approved, an immigrant visa is issued by the U.S. embassy or consulate. The visa entitles the holder to travel to the U.S. as an immigrant. At the port of entry, the immigrant visa holder is processed for a permanent resident card and receives an I-551 stamp in his/her passport. The permanent resident card is mailed to his/her US address within several weeks.
[edit] Application process for family-sponsored visas
[edit] Green card holders and families
Green card holders married to non-U.S. citizens are able to legally bring their spouses and minor children to join them in the USA, but only after an extensive multi-year delay, during which time the family is separated. The foreign spouse of a green card holder must wait for approval of an 'immigrant visa' from the State Department before entering the United States. Due to numerical limitation on the number of these visas, the current wait time for approval is four to five years for all non-retrogressed countries (including Western Europe), and many more for the retrogressed countries. In the interim, the spouse cannot be legally present in the United States (let alone work), unless he/she secures a visa for himself/herself using some other means. However, securing such a visa is usually difficult (and nearly-impossible at US embassies in some countries). This is because the spouse has to overcome presumed immigrant intent in order to qualify for a non-immigrant (or tourist) visa, a position at odds with her or his marriage to a US permanent resident. Due to the long wait and the immigration intent issues, many green card holder opt to wait to become US citizens (usually 5 years), and only then sponsor their spouses and children (the process is much faster for US Citizens). This, however, imposes a family separation of several years, unique in the immigration laws of industrialized nations.
This puts US green card holders in a uniquely disadvantaged situation:
• visitors and non-immigrants coming to the USA on temporary visas for work, business, or study (including H1, L1, B, J1, and F1 visas) can sponsor their dependent spouses to live with them (but usually not work) in the US;
• U.S. citizens can sponsor their spouses to come to the USA in non-immigrant status; the spouse can then convert to an immigrant status under the Legal Immigration and Family Equity Act of 2000 (the "LIFE Act"). This process is fast (6–12 months) and, unlike with green card holders, the spouse can be present in the US during the process.
The issue of US green card holders separated from their families for years is not a new problem. A mechanism to unite families of LPRs was created by the LIFE Act by the introduction of a 'V visa,' signed into law by President Clinton. It effectively expired and is no longer available. Bills HR1823 and HR4448 were proposed in the 2005–2007 U.S. Congress, but did not pass, and were as such cleared from the books at the end of 2007 Congress session. A similar bill S1085 has been proposed in the US Senate in May 2009, but has since made only little progress.
These proposals for reviving the V visa are based on something that has little controversy—family unity. However, passing such a bill into law is not a small matter, mostly because it is often perceived as a back-door to increasing immigration numbers from heavily retrogressed countries such as China, India, the Philippines and Mexico.
[edit] Application process for employment-based visa
Many immigrants opt for this route, which requires an employer to "sponsor" (i.e. to petition before USCIS) the immigrant (known as the alien beneficiary) through a presumed future job. The three-step process outlined above is described here in more detail for employment-based immigration applications. After the process is complete, the alien is expected to take the certified job offered by the employer to substantiate his or her immigrant status, since the application ultimately rests on the alien's employment with that company in that particular position.
1. Immigrant Petition – the first step includes the pre-requisite labor certification upon which the actual petition will reside.
o Labor Certification – the employer must legally prove that it has a need to hire an alien for a specific position and that there is no minimally qualified U.S. citizen or LPR available to fill that position, hence the reason for hiring the alien. Some of the requirements to prove this situation include: proof of advertising for the specific position; skill requirements particular to the job; verification of the prevailing wage for a position; and the employer's ability to pay. This is currently done through an electronic system known as PERM.[14] The date when the labor certification application is filed becomes the applicant's priority date. In some cases, for highly skilled foreign nationals (EB1 and EB2 National Interest Waiver, e.g. researchers, athletes, artists or business executives) and "Schedule A" labor[15] (nurses and physical therapists), this step is waived. This step is processed by the United States Department of Labor (DOL). The labor certification is valid for 6 months from the time it is approved.
o Immigrant Petition – the employer applies on the alien's behalf to obtain a visa number. The application is form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker,[16] and it is processed by the USCIS. There are several EB (employment-based) immigrant categories[17] under which the alien may apply, with progressively stricter requirements, but often shorter waiting times. Many of the applications are processed under the EB3 category.[18] Currently, this process takes up to 6 months. Many of the EB categories allow expedited processing of this stage, known as "premium processing".
2. Immigrant Visa Availability. When the immigrant petition is approved by the USCIS, the petition is forwarded to the NVC for visa allocation. Currently this step centers around the priority date concept.
o Priority date – the visa becomes available when the applicant's priority date is earlier than the cutoff date announced on the DOS's Visa Bulletin[19] or when the immigrant visa category the applicant is assigned to is announced as "current". A "current" designation indicates that visa numbers are available to all applicants in the corresponding immigrant category. Petitions with priority dates earlier than the cutoff date are expected to have visas available, therefore those applicants are eligible for final adjudication. When the NVC determines that a visa number could be available for a particular immigrant petition, a visa is tentatively allocated to the applicant. The NVC will send a letter stating that the applicant may be eligible for adjustment of status, and requiring the applicant to choose either to adjust status with the USCIS directly, or apply at the U.S. consulate abroad. This waiting process determines when the applicant can expect the immigration case to be adjudicated. Due to quotas imposed on EB visa categories, there are more approved immigrant petitions than visas available under INA. High demand for visas has created a backlog of approved but unadjudicated cases. In addition, due to processing inefficiencies throughout DOS and USCIS systems, not all visas available under the quota system in a given year were allocated to applicants by the DOS. Since there is no quota carry-over to the next fiscal year, for several years visa quotas have not been fully used, thus adding to the visa backlog.[20]
3. Immigrant Visa Adjudication. When the NVC determines that an immigrant visa is available, the case can be adjudicated. If the alien is already in the USA, that alien has a choice to finalize the green card process via adjustment of status in the USA, or via consular processing abroad. If the alien is outside of the USA he/she can only apply for an immigrant visa at the U.S. consulate. The USCIS does not allow an alien to pursue consular processing and AOS simultaneously. Prior to filing the form I-485 (Adjustment of Status) it is required that the applicant have a medical examination performed by a USCIS-approved civil surgeon. The examination includes a blood test and specific immunizations, unless the applicant provides proof that the required immunizations were already done elsewhere. The civil surgeon hands the applicant a sealed envelope containing a completed form I-693, which must be included unopened with the I-485 application.[21] (The cited reference also states that the The February 25, 2010 edition of the Form I-693 reflects that an individual should no longer be tested for HIV infection.)
o Adjustment of Status (AOS) – after the alien has a labor certification and has been provisionally allocated a visa number, the final step is to change his or her status to permanent residency. Adjustment of status is submitted to USCIS via form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. If an immigrant visa number is available, the USCIS will allow "concurrent filing": it will accept forms I-140 and I-485 submitted in the same package or will accept form I-485 even before the approval of the I-140.[22]
o Consular Processing – this is an alternative to AOS, but still requires the immigrant visa petition to be completed. In the past (pre-2005), this process was somewhat faster than applying for AOS, so was sometimes used to circumvent long backlogs (of over two years in some cases). However, due to recent efficiency improvements by the USCIS, it is not clear whether applying via consular processing is faster than the regular AOS process. Consular processing is also thought to be riskier since there is no or very little recourse for appeal if the officer denies the application.[23][24]
[edit] Green card lottery
Main article: Diversity Immigrant Visa
Each year, around 50,000 immigrant visas are made available through the Diversity Visa (DV) program, also known as the Green Card Lottery to people who were born in countries with low rates of immigration to the United States (fewer than 50,000 immigrants in the past five years). Applicants can only qualify by country of birth, not by citizenship. Anyone who is selected under this lottery will be given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. They can also file for their spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21.
If permanent residence is granted, the winner (and his/her family, if applicable) receives an immigrant visa in their passport(s) that has to be "activated" within six months of issuance at any port of entry to the United States. The new immigrant receives a stamp on the visa as proof of lawful admittance to the United States, and the individual is now authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. Finally, the actual "green card" typically arrives by mail within a few months.
[edit] Recent developments
Over 6.4 million applications for the 2008 Diversity Visa Lottery were submitted. This is an increase from the more than 5.5 million applications submitted in the 2007 Diversity Visa Lottery. Taking into account dependents, there are more than 10 million participants in the 2008 Diversity Visa Lottery. Most of the applications were from Africa and Asia: 41 percent of the total came from Africa, 38 percent from Asia, 19 percent coming from Europe, and two percent from South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. The largest number of applicants came from Bangladesh (more than 1.7 million applicants) followed by Nigeria (684,735) and Ukraine (619,584).
[edit] Crime: Green card lottery scam
There is a growing number of fraudulent green card lottery scams, in which false agents take money from applicants by submitting application forms for them, usually for a fee between US$50 to US$250. Most agents are not working for the distribution service. Some claim that they can increase the chance of winning the lottery. This is not true—in fact, they may delay or not submit the application. Likewise, some claim that they provide free airline tickets to winners or other benefits, such as submissions in future years and even cash funds. There is no way to guarantee their claims, and there are ample nefarious reasons for them not to fulfill their promises. Applicants are advised to use only U.S. official government websites, whose web address finishes with GOV.
Both the Department of State and the Federal Trade Commission have issued warning statements about this type of fraud or similar business practices.[25][26]
[edit] Conditional permanent residence
As part of immigration reform under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), as well as further reform enacted in the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRAIRA), persons who are eligible and properly apply for permanent residence based on either a recent marriage to a U.S. citizen or as an investor are granted permanent residence on a conditional basis for two years. An exception to this rule is the case of a U.S. citizen legally sponsoring a spouse in which the marriage at the time of the adjustment of status (I-485) is more than two years old. In this case, the conditional status is waived and a 10-year Permanent Resident Card is issued upon USCIS approval of the case. A permanent resident under the conditional clause may receive an I-551 stamp as well as a Permanent Resident Card. The expiration date of the conditional period is two years from the approval date. The immigrant visa category is CR (conditional resident).
When this two-year conditional period is over, the permanent residence automatically expires and the applicant is subject to deportation and removal. To avoid this, 90 days or less before the conditional residence expires, the applicant must file form I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence[27] (if conditional permanent residence was obtained through marriage) or form I-829 Petition by Entrepreneur to Remove Conditions[28] (if conditional permanent residence was obtained through investment) with USCIS to have the conditions removed. Once the application is received, permanent residence is extended for 1-year intervals until the request to remove conditions is approved or denied. The USCIS requires that the application provide both general and specific supporting evidence that the basis on which the applicant obtained conditional permanent residence was not fraudulent. For an application based on marriage, birth certificates of children, joint financial statements, and letters from employers, friends and relatives are some types of evidence that are accepted. A follow-up interview with an immigration inspector is sometimes required but usually waived if the evidence is sufficient. This is to ensure that the marriage was in good faith and not one of fraudulent means with a sole intention of obtaining a green card. Both husband and wife must attend both interviews under most circumstances. The applicant receives an I-551 stamp in their foreign passport upon approval of their case. The applicant is then free from the conditional requirement once the application is approved. The applicant's new Permanent Resident Card arrives via mail to their residence several weeks to several months later and replaces the old two-year conditional residence card. This new card must be renewed after 10 years, however permanent resident status is now granted for an indefinite term provided that residence conditions are satisfied at all times. USCIS may request to renew the card earlier due to security enhancements of the card or as a part of a revalidation campaign to exclude counterfeit green cards from circulation.
It is important to note that this two-year conditional residence period counts towards time as a permanent resident for all purposes including naturalization. However, the application for the removal of conditions must be adjudicated before naturalization can be granted to the applicant.
[edit] Abandonment or loss of permanent residence status
A green card holder may abandon permanent residence by filing form I-407, with the green card, at a U.S. Embassy.[29]
Under certain conditions, permanent residence status can be lost involuntarily. This includes committing a criminal act that makes a person removable from the United States. A person might also be found to have abandoned their status if he or she moves to another country to live there permanently, stays outside the USA for more than 365 days (without getting a re-entry permit before leaving),[30] or does not file an income tax return. Permanent resident status can also be lost if it is found that the application or grounds for obtaining permanent residence was fraudulent. The failure to renew the permanent resident card does not result in the loss of status, except in the case of conditional permanent residents as noted above.
A person who loses permanent residence status is immediately removable from the United States and must leave the country as soon as possible or face deportation and removal. In some cases the person may be banned from entering the country for three or seven years, or even permanently.
[edit] Tax costs of green card relinquishment
Due to the Heart Act[31] foreign workers who have owned a green card in eight of the last 15 years and choose to relinquish it will be subject to taxation on unrealized gains above $600,000. However this will only apply to those people who have a federal tax liability greater than $139,000 a year or have a worth of more than $2 million or have failed to certify to the IRS that they have been in compliance with U.S. federal tax obligations for the past five years.[32][33]
If the green card is not relinquished then the holder is subject to double taxation when living or working outside of the United States, whether or not within their home nation, although double taxation may be mitigated by foreign tax credits.
A lot of people fail to get visa to the United States of America even when what they have genuine cases. This has painted the USA as a country with very stringent immigration laws. However investigation and research has shown that this is not true leading to the summation that with enough information American visas can be gotten easily.
In this write up i have identified seven ways of getting American Visa and what is required.
Firstly an international passport is the most paramount tool before one can apply for a visa be it American or any other country.
After this, one can qualify for a visa to enter America if he or she is either going on a business, leisure, educational, medical etc the approach is the same.
Apart from the above reasons you also apply for a green card.
The United States offers several ways to become a Permanent Resident (Green Card holder). A Green Card allows you to live and work permanently in the U.S.
Below is a list of the various ways that you may qualify for a Green Card.
An immigrant usually has to go through a three-step process to get permanent residency. The whole process may take several years, depending on the type of immigrant category and the country of birth.
1. Immigrant Petition – in the first step, USCIS approves the immigrant petition by a qualifying relative, an employer, or in rare cases, such as with an investor visa, the applicant himself. If a sibling is applying, she or he must have the same parents as the applicant.
2. Immigrant Visa Availability – in the second step, unless the applicant is an "immediate relative", an immigrant visa number through the National Visa Center (NVC)[9] of the United States Department of State (DOS) must be available. A visa number might not be immediately available even if the USCIS approves the petition, because the amount of immigrant visa numbers is limited every year by quotas set in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). There are also certain additional limitations by country of birth. Thus, most immigrants will be placed on lengthy waiting lists. Those immigrants who are immediate relatives of a U.S. citizen (spouses and children under 21 years of age, and parents of a US citizen who is 21 years of age or older) are not subject to these quotas and may proceed to the next step immediately (since they qualify for the IR immigrant category).
3. Immigrant Visa Adjudication – in the third step, if an immigrant visa number becomes available, the applicant must either apply with USCIS to adjust their current status to permanent resident status or apply with the DOS for an immigrant visa at the nearest US consulate before being allowed to come to the United States.
o Adjustment of Status (AOS) – Adjustment of status is submitted to USCIS via form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.[10] The USCIS conducts a series of background checks (including fingerprinting for FBI criminal background check and name checks) and makes a decision on the application. Once the adjustment of status application is accepted, the alien is allowed to stay in the United States even if the original period of authorized stay on the Form I-94 is expired, but he is not allowed to leave the country until the application is approved or rejected. If the alien has to leave the United States during this time, he/she can apply for travel documents at the USCIS with form I-131, also called Advance Parole.[11] If there is a potential risk that the applicant's work permit (visa) will expire or become invalid (laid off by the employer and visa sponsor) or the applicant wants to start working in the United States, while he/she is waiting for the decision about his/her application to change status, he/she can file form I-765, to get Employment Authorization Documents (also called EAD) and be able to continue or start working legally in the United States.[12][13] In some cases, the applicant will be interviewed at a USCIS office. If the application is approved, the alien becomes an LPR, and the actual green card is mailed to the alien's last known mailing address.
o Consular Processing – this is an alternative to AOS, but still requires the immigrant visa petition to be completed. If the applicant is outside of the USA (or selects this option instead of AOS), he/she may make an appointment at the U.S. embassy or consulate in his/her home country, where a consular officer adjudicates the case. If the case is approved, an immigrant visa is issued by the U.S. embassy or consulate. The visa entitles the holder to travel to the U.S. as an immigrant. At the port of entry, the immigrant visa holder is processed for a permanent resident card and receives an I-551 stamp in his/her passport. The permanent resident card is mailed to his/her US address within several weeks.
[edit] Application process for family-sponsored visas
[edit] Green card holders and families
Green card holders married to non-U.S. citizens are able to legally bring their spouses and minor children to join them in the USA, but only after an extensive multi-year delay, during which time the family is separated. The foreign spouse of a green card holder must wait for approval of an 'immigrant visa' from the State Department before entering the United States. Due to numerical limitation on the number of these visas, the current wait time for approval is four to five years for all non-retrogressed countries (including Western Europe), and many more for the retrogressed countries. In the interim, the spouse cannot be legally present in the United States (let alone work), unless he/she secures a visa for himself/herself using some other means. However, securing such a visa is usually difficult (and nearly-impossible at US embassies in some countries). This is because the spouse has to overcome presumed immigrant intent in order to qualify for a non-immigrant (or tourist) visa, a position at odds with her or his marriage to a US permanent resident. Due to the long wait and the immigration intent issues, many green card holder opt to wait to become US citizens (usually 5 years), and only then sponsor their spouses and children (the process is much faster for US Citizens). This, however, imposes a family separation of several years, unique in the immigration laws of industrialized nations.
This puts US green card holders in a uniquely disadvantaged situation:
• visitors and non-immigrants coming to the USA on temporary visas for work, business, or study (including H1, L1, B, J1, and F1 visas) can sponsor their dependent spouses to live with them (but usually not work) in the US;
• U.S. citizens can sponsor their spouses to come to the USA in non-immigrant status; the spouse can then convert to an immigrant status under the Legal Immigration and Family Equity Act of 2000 (the "LIFE Act"). This process is fast (6–12 months) and, unlike with green card holders, the spouse can be present in the US during the process.
The issue of US green card holders separated from their families for years is not a new problem. A mechanism to unite families of LPRs was created by the LIFE Act by the introduction of a 'V visa,' signed into law by President Clinton. It effectively expired and is no longer available. Bills HR1823 and HR4448 were proposed in the 2005–2007 U.S. Congress, but did not pass, and were as such cleared from the books at the end of 2007 Congress session. A similar bill S1085 has been proposed in the US Senate in May 2009, but has since made only little progress.
These proposals for reviving the V visa are based on something that has little controversy—family unity. However, passing such a bill into law is not a small matter, mostly because it is often perceived as a back-door to increasing immigration numbers from heavily retrogressed countries such as China, India, the Philippines and Mexico.
[edit] Application process for employment-based visa
Many immigrants opt for this route, which requires an employer to "sponsor" (i.e. to petition before USCIS) the immigrant (known as the alien beneficiary) through a presumed future job. The three-step process outlined above is described here in more detail for employment-based immigration applications. After the process is complete, the alien is expected to take the certified job offered by the employer to substantiate his or her immigrant status, since the application ultimately rests on the alien's employment with that company in that particular position.
1. Immigrant Petition – the first step includes the pre-requisite labor certification upon which the actual petition will reside.
o Labor Certification – the employer must legally prove that it has a need to hire an alien for a specific position and that there is no minimally qualified U.S. citizen or LPR available to fill that position, hence the reason for hiring the alien. Some of the requirements to prove this situation include: proof of advertising for the specific position; skill requirements particular to the job; verification of the prevailing wage for a position; and the employer's ability to pay. This is currently done through an electronic system known as PERM.[14] The date when the labor certification application is filed becomes the applicant's priority date. In some cases, for highly skilled foreign nationals (EB1 and EB2 National Interest Waiver, e.g. researchers, athletes, artists or business executives) and "Schedule A" labor[15] (nurses and physical therapists), this step is waived. This step is processed by the United States Department of Labor (DOL). The labor certification is valid for 6 months from the time it is approved.
o Immigrant Petition – the employer applies on the alien's behalf to obtain a visa number. The application is form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker,[16] and it is processed by the USCIS. There are several EB (employment-based) immigrant categories[17] under which the alien may apply, with progressively stricter requirements, but often shorter waiting times. Many of the applications are processed under the EB3 category.[18] Currently, this process takes up to 6 months. Many of the EB categories allow expedited processing of this stage, known as "premium processing".
2. Immigrant Visa Availability. When the immigrant petition is approved by the USCIS, the petition is forwarded to the NVC for visa allocation. Currently this step centers around the priority date concept.
o Priority date – the visa becomes available when the applicant's priority date is earlier than the cutoff date announced on the DOS's Visa Bulletin[19] or when the immigrant visa category the applicant is assigned to is announced as "current". A "current" designation indicates that visa numbers are available to all applicants in the corresponding immigrant category. Petitions with priority dates earlier than the cutoff date are expected to have visas available, therefore those applicants are eligible for final adjudication. When the NVC determines that a visa number could be available for a particular immigrant petition, a visa is tentatively allocated to the applicant. The NVC will send a letter stating that the applicant may be eligible for adjustment of status, and requiring the applicant to choose either to adjust status with the USCIS directly, or apply at the U.S. consulate abroad. This waiting process determines when the applicant can expect the immigration case to be adjudicated. Due to quotas imposed on EB visa categories, there are more approved immigrant petitions than visas available under INA. High demand for visas has created a backlog of approved but unadjudicated cases. In addition, due to processing inefficiencies throughout DOS and USCIS systems, not all visas available under the quota system in a given year were allocated to applicants by the DOS. Since there is no quota carry-over to the next fiscal year, for several years visa quotas have not been fully used, thus adding to the visa backlog.[20]
3. Immigrant Visa Adjudication. When the NVC determines that an immigrant visa is available, the case can be adjudicated. If the alien is already in the USA, that alien has a choice to finalize the green card process via adjustment of status in the USA, or via consular processing abroad. If the alien is outside of the USA he/she can only apply for an immigrant visa at the U.S. consulate. The USCIS does not allow an alien to pursue consular processing and AOS simultaneously. Prior to filing the form I-485 (Adjustment of Status) it is required that the applicant have a medical examination performed by a USCIS-approved civil surgeon. The examination includes a blood test and specific immunizations, unless the applicant provides proof that the required immunizations were already done elsewhere. The civil surgeon hands the applicant a sealed envelope containing a completed form I-693, which must be included unopened with the I-485 application.[21] (The cited reference also states that the The February 25, 2010 edition of the Form I-693 reflects that an individual should no longer be tested for HIV infection.)
o Adjustment of Status (AOS) – after the alien has a labor certification and has been provisionally allocated a visa number, the final step is to change his or her status to permanent residency. Adjustment of status is submitted to USCIS via form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. If an immigrant visa number is available, the USCIS will allow "concurrent filing": it will accept forms I-140 and I-485 submitted in the same package or will accept form I-485 even before the approval of the I-140.[22]
o Consular Processing – this is an alternative to AOS, but still requires the immigrant visa petition to be completed. In the past (pre-2005), this process was somewhat faster than applying for AOS, so was sometimes used to circumvent long backlogs (of over two years in some cases). However, due to recent efficiency improvements by the USCIS, it is not clear whether applying via consular processing is faster than the regular AOS process. Consular processing is also thought to be riskier since there is no or very little recourse for appeal if the officer denies the application.[23][24]
[edit] Green card lottery
Main article: Diversity Immigrant Visa
Each year, around 50,000 immigrant visas are made available through the Diversity Visa (DV) program, also known as the Green Card Lottery to people who were born in countries with low rates of immigration to the United States (fewer than 50,000 immigrants in the past five years). Applicants can only qualify by country of birth, not by citizenship. Anyone who is selected under this lottery will be given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. They can also file for their spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21.
If permanent residence is granted, the winner (and his/her family, if applicable) receives an immigrant visa in their passport(s) that has to be "activated" within six months of issuance at any port of entry to the United States. The new immigrant receives a stamp on the visa as proof of lawful admittance to the United States, and the individual is now authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. Finally, the actual "green card" typically arrives by mail within a few months.
[edit] Recent developments
Over 6.4 million applications for the 2008 Diversity Visa Lottery were submitted. This is an increase from the more than 5.5 million applications submitted in the 2007 Diversity Visa Lottery. Taking into account dependents, there are more than 10 million participants in the 2008 Diversity Visa Lottery. Most of the applications were from Africa and Asia: 41 percent of the total came from Africa, 38 percent from Asia, 19 percent coming from Europe, and two percent from South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. The largest number of applicants came from Bangladesh (more than 1.7 million applicants) followed by Nigeria (684,735) and Ukraine (619,584).
[edit] Crime: Green card lottery scam
There is a growing number of fraudulent green card lottery scams, in which false agents take money from applicants by submitting application forms for them, usually for a fee between US$50 to US$250. Most agents are not working for the distribution service. Some claim that they can increase the chance of winning the lottery. This is not true—in fact, they may delay or not submit the application. Likewise, some claim that they provide free airline tickets to winners or other benefits, such as submissions in future years and even cash funds. There is no way to guarantee their claims, and there are ample nefarious reasons for them not to fulfill their promises. Applicants are advised to use only U.S. official government websites, whose web address finishes with GOV.
Both the Department of State and the Federal Trade Commission have issued warning statements about this type of fraud or similar business practices.[25][26]
[edit] Conditional permanent residence
As part of immigration reform under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), as well as further reform enacted in the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRAIRA), persons who are eligible and properly apply for permanent residence based on either a recent marriage to a U.S. citizen or as an investor are granted permanent residence on a conditional basis for two years. An exception to this rule is the case of a U.S. citizen legally sponsoring a spouse in which the marriage at the time of the adjustment of status (I-485) is more than two years old. In this case, the conditional status is waived and a 10-year Permanent Resident Card is issued upon USCIS approval of the case. A permanent resident under the conditional clause may receive an I-551 stamp as well as a Permanent Resident Card. The expiration date of the conditional period is two years from the approval date. The immigrant visa category is CR (conditional resident).
When this two-year conditional period is over, the permanent residence automatically expires and the applicant is subject to deportation and removal. To avoid this, 90 days or less before the conditional residence expires, the applicant must file form I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence[27] (if conditional permanent residence was obtained through marriage) or form I-829 Petition by Entrepreneur to Remove Conditions[28] (if conditional permanent residence was obtained through investment) with USCIS to have the conditions removed. Once the application is received, permanent residence is extended for 1-year intervals until the request to remove conditions is approved or denied. The USCIS requires that the application provide both general and specific supporting evidence that the basis on which the applicant obtained conditional permanent residence was not fraudulent. For an application based on marriage, birth certificates of children, joint financial statements, and letters from employers, friends and relatives are some types of evidence that are accepted. A follow-up interview with an immigration inspector is sometimes required but usually waived if the evidence is sufficient. This is to ensure that the marriage was in good faith and not one of fraudulent means with a sole intention of obtaining a green card. Both husband and wife must attend both interviews under most circumstances. The applicant receives an I-551 stamp in their foreign passport upon approval of their case. The applicant is then free from the conditional requirement once the application is approved. The applicant's new Permanent Resident Card arrives via mail to their residence several weeks to several months later and replaces the old two-year conditional residence card. This new card must be renewed after 10 years, however permanent resident status is now granted for an indefinite term provided that residence conditions are satisfied at all times. USCIS may request to renew the card earlier due to security enhancements of the card or as a part of a revalidation campaign to exclude counterfeit green cards from circulation.
It is important to note that this two-year conditional residence period counts towards time as a permanent resident for all purposes including naturalization. However, the application for the removal of conditions must be adjudicated before naturalization can be granted to the applicant.
[edit] Abandonment or loss of permanent residence status
A green card holder may abandon permanent residence by filing form I-407, with the green card, at a U.S. Embassy.[29]
Under certain conditions, permanent residence status can be lost involuntarily. This includes committing a criminal act that makes a person removable from the United States. A person might also be found to have abandoned their status if he or she moves to another country to live there permanently, stays outside the USA for more than 365 days (without getting a re-entry permit before leaving),[30] or does not file an income tax return. Permanent resident status can also be lost if it is found that the application or grounds for obtaining permanent residence was fraudulent. The failure to renew the permanent resident card does not result in the loss of status, except in the case of conditional permanent residents as noted above.
A person who loses permanent residence status is immediately removable from the United States and must leave the country as soon as possible or face deportation and removal. In some cases the person may be banned from entering the country for three or seven years, or even permanently.
[edit] Tax costs of green card relinquishment
Due to the Heart Act[31] foreign workers who have owned a green card in eight of the last 15 years and choose to relinquish it will be subject to taxation on unrealized gains above $600,000. However this will only apply to those people who have a federal tax liability greater than $139,000 a year or have a worth of more than $2 million or have failed to certify to the IRS that they have been in compliance with U.S. federal tax obligations for the past five years.[32][33]
If the green card is not relinquished then the holder is subject to double taxation when living or working outside of the United States, whether or not within their home nation, although double taxation may be mitigated by foreign tax credits.
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