Legal Counseling for Individuals

We believe that it is critical for you to understand the U.S. immigration system and the unique options that may be available to you and your family, empowering you to advocate for yourself.

Find out about our SOS (Second Opinion Service) service, designed to help you fully understand your unique situation and the full spectrum of your immigration options. We help, among others:

Employees at companies with their own immigration counsel who want to understand their employer’s immigration strategies for them and realistic timing for each step
Individuals currently on valid work visas who want to explore the implications of switching jobs, sometimes when they are in the middle of a green card process;
Students/professional workers who want to evaluate their chances of success if selected in the H-1B lottery; or
International entrepreneurs who want to understand the timeline and the steps involved with moving to the U.S. to expand their businesses; and
Individuals with a good understanding of their own visa type but want to know if there are any other options open to them.

Employees

As an employee being sponsored for immigration benefits by an employer it is important to understand what important decisions are being made so that you can participate in the process. After all the largest impact is on you as the immigrant.

Family-based

The U.S. immigration system divides Green Card options into employment-based and family-based categories. Depending on your relationship to a U.S. Citizen or Green Card holder you may be eligible for a family-based Green Card. This is an important consideration in your overall immigration strategy.

SPECIAL SERVICES

ImmiPartner routinely handles all work visa applications for our corporate clientele, but we also love working with amazing applicants directly. Here are some of our most popular services for individual clients.

EB-1A Self-Petitioned Green Card

EB-1A applications are oftentimes the quickest way to fast-track a green card process for an accomplished individual, no matter what their field of work is. It is also one of the only green card petitions that an individual is allowed to file for themselves, versus having to be sponsored by an employer or a qualifying family member. We have extensive experience working with employees in the private sector and have helped many shave ~5-10+ years off of their green card wait times.

O-1 “Genius Visa” for Work Authorization

Often misunderstood as a work visa that is only attainable by those who have reached truly remarkable milestones such as winning the Nobel Prize or an Oscar, the O-1 visa is, in reality, an attractive option for professionals across many industries. Our attorneys have successfully obtained O-1 work authorization for thousands of applicants who work as remarkable engineers, product managers, scientists, marketing specialists, entrepreneurs, and in countless other disciplines behind the scenes.

Employer Strategy - Independent Reviews

We will help you understand where you stand with the immigration strategy your company has set up on your behalf. Because we are completely unrelated to your employer, our attorneys are able to solely consider your interests when analyzing your visa and/or green card situation, and advise you with 100% transparency if there are any other preferable options.

We also provide other immigration benefits representation and negotiations services where we can help explain to your employer any visa situations you would want to clarify. If you’re considering joining a new company and Our team advocate for your interests, immigration benefits package when considering joining a new employer and speaking with your employer about the best visa options for you.

Mandamus Filings for Delayed Cases

Has the processing of your case been delayed? Whether we are talking about a work visa, a family-based green card, or a citizenship application, clients are often surprised to learn that federal law may actually give them a claim to force the USCIS to take action.

With the USCIS delays being the new normal over these last years dealing with the pandemic and, at times, a challenging political climate, expediting a decision through filing a mandamus action has become a useful and necessary strategy. Contact us to discuss your situation and let us help you move things forward.

SECOND OPINION SERVICE (SOS)
Unbiased Counsel for Employees or Individuals

At ImmiPartner, we actively help people understand their complete immigration options. While many people ask for a second opinion on a medical diagnosis, some feel hesitant to pursue one for a legal case. The fact of the matter is, you have the option and the right to seek a second opinion without having to leave your current lawyer or substitute in new legal counsel.

Whether you already have a company-sponsored visa or green card case, or are just looking to understand what options are open to you, or maybe have some questions about how the latest big immigration developments affect you, speak with one of our attorneys now to stay fully informed.

Instead of spending hours in internet forums searching for nuanced but ultimately unreliable answers, spend an hour with us so that we can help arm you with the knowledge to confidently navigate the complex immigration world.

Book a Consultation

Employees with employer-sponsored visas or green card processes.

If you have questions because you are considering other career opportunities, or just want understand questions regarding timing, visa types, EB2 vs. EB3 choices, we will be able to assist.

If you are worried about how termination, furlough, or any other corporate restructuring may affect your immigration cases, we will be honest with you about your rights and obligations.

Students who are looking for employer-sponsored visas after graduation.

If you are unsure how to approach a company about visa sponsorship, we can help you understand what is involved from the company side to sponsor you for a visa type you are eligible for based on your nationality and background. That way, you are empowered to present your visa situation and needs clearly to potential employers.

Alternatively, we can help by speaking with your potential employers to directly address any of their concerns regarding sponsoring a work visa.

Individuals who are working outside of the U.S. may not know what visa(s) they are eligible for.

We save you time and energy scouring the internet by telling you exactly what options are open based on your nationality and career path.

Immigration takes time. Our team can help you draw up an action plan and can give you a realistic timeline for coming to the U.S. to work, depending on current processing times and trends.

Let’s Chat

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Immigration News

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Featured

5 Considerations When Hiring an H-1B Employee

Want to hire an H-1B employee? Check out this chart showing 5 things to keep in mind to make the hiring process go well. Of course, there are many other items to assess but this is intended as a quick reference reminder.

8 Tips for HR Professionals Taking Over or Improving Immigration Programs! 🚀

Whether you are new to managing a corporate immigration program, or looking to improve your current immigration practices, I encourage you to take 2 minutes to watch the below video! 💼🌍

✨See our 8 tips and hacks to guide you through the journey. Let's dive in and empower your role today! 🎯

Pt. 4 - Breaking Down the EB-1A Criteria for Private Sector Professionals

Now that you understand some of the variety of successful EB-1A cases and how long it takes to put a case together, we want to introduce and discuss the Top 5 Categories of evidence that a qualified professional who works in business, technology, or science would use for self-petitioned EB-1A cases. As you will see, these 5 are distilled from the 10 EB-1A categories that the USCIS posts on its website.

Pt. 3 - Let’s Talk Details - How to Prepare & File an EB-1A Petition

Now that we know the EB-1A can be a great option to speed up your Green Card process for a wide variety of qualified professionals, what are the steps for an EB-1A case? And how long does it take? Let’s be clear: the EB-1A is a document-intensive process and it takes time and real effort on the part of you, the applicant. But the payoff in getting ahead of the Visa Backlog (TVB) is worth it. Below, we’ll outline the steps and timelines of a typical EB-1A case filed by ImmiPartner’s experienced legal team.

Pt. 2 - Demystifying the EB-1A for Professionals—With Success Stories

An EB-1A case could look just like you! Many professionals who are mid-career or who otherwise have had notable achievements related to their area of expertise can qualify with some dedicated attention and effort. The goal is to construct a strong EB-1 case by working with our team to build and present an accurate, fully-fleshed out picture of all of the accomplishments in your career thus far. Here are four success stories, taken from different professional fields, that illustrate just a few of the variety of approved EB-1A cases our attorneys at ImmiPartner have filed.

Pt. 1 - An Ambitious Solution to the Dreaded Green Card Backlog - the EB-1A Green Card

“The Visa Backlog” is enough of a significant issue affecting international workers in the United States that we have decided to give it a proper name and an acronym, TVB. Today, we start a multiple-part nosedive into how someone could take matters into their own hands and obtain their US Green Card years faster than the normal process by filing an EB-1A Green Card application themselves. Let’s treat TVB together.

H-1B Cap FAQs - FY2024

When will I find out if my registration was selected in this year's lottery?

ANSWER: USCIS will announce on or around April 1st that it has completed the lottery of H-1B registrations and finished notifying petitioners whose registrations were selected. Your ImmiPartner legal team thoroughly reviews the selection notices for all applicants as they are received, and if your registration was among those selected, our team will notify you via email between April 1-7.

Calculating the 60 Day H-1B Grace Period

Understanding the 60-day rule and the possible interpretations of when this time period begins is critically important for laid-off workers. This calculation is very important for an H-1B worker and their new sponsoring employer, to ensure timely filing of a transfer application or change of status application, without USCIS finding a violation of authorized stay and denying such filing. The immigration regulations (8 CFR 214.1(l)(2)), dealing with the 60-day grace period, references “cessation of employment” as the start date or triggering event for counting this window. Let’s dig into this.

Equal Pay Transparency Laws and Immigration Related Green Card Recruitment

The recent trend in states adopting Equal Pay Transparency (EPT) laws, which typically require the disclosure of pay ranges in recruitment, also implicates immigration considerations. These considerations come into play for employers engaging in recruitment practices required to satisfy a testing of the U.S. labor market, as dictated by immigration regulation under the typical employer-sponsored PERM Green Card process.

FAQ: Tech Layoffs & Immigration Implications for Existing Employees

Layoffs impact immigration status and Green Card processing for individual employees, whether they are laid off or staying with their employer. This FAQ series answer questions related to the Green Card and PERM implications for employees remaining at companies who are going through layoffs.