S&S - Haitian immigrants' filings for protected status lag projections

From my archive of press clippings:

Stars and Stripes

Haitian immigrants' filings for protected status lag projections

By Trenton Daniel and Alfonso Chardy, McClatchy Newspapers

Stars and Stripes online edition, Friday, April 9, 2010

MIAMI — When U.S. officials granted temporary protected status to Haitians in the United States days after the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, they expected as many as 200,000 applications. But nearly three months later, federal officials say 42,942 Haitians have filed for TPS.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"On March 16, more than 500 Haitians, including several children, showed up at the Miami field office of USCIS to be fingerprinted and photographed — part of the processing of their applications for TPS.

TPS shields undocumented immigrants from detention and deportation. In the case of Haitian TPS, the protection from deportation will last 18 months, though the benefit is expected to be renewed as TPS has been renewed repeatedly for Central Americans.

Applicants can also request work permits, which immigration officials say they plan to start issuing soon. Immigration advocates say the work permits are critical because they allow Haitian nationals here to wire remittances to family members back in Haiti whose homes were wrecked in the quake."

"The total cost of a TPS application is $470, which includes $50 for the application itself, $340 for a work permit and $80 for "biometrics," the fingerprinting and photographing process."

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"The main reasons for rejection include not enclosing the correct filing fee, not completing forms, failing to include biographical information and not signing forms."

JG - IMMIGRATION CORNER - Filing for my fiancée

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Gleaner


IMMIGRATION CORNER - Filing for my fiancée

Published: Tuesday July 7, 2009

Your articles in Jamaica Gleaner is where I got your information. My name is C.J.; my fiancée is from Ethiopia, and lives and works in Doha, Qatar. I am a US citizen over 32 years, retired from the US Air Force, working in Iraq as a contractor, and my home of record is Miami, Florida. I have known her more than two years. My questions are:

Should I apply for a fiancée visa or get married and file for a resident visa in Qatar?

Which procedure is more feasible, less time consuming? Based on your experience in immigration law, which method is more logical?

- CJ

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"A citizen of the United States is entitled to file a petition for a fiancée visa to bring your fiancée and the fiancée's minor children to the United States.

There are several requirements to obtain approval for this visa. Premier among these requirements are that you must both be free to be married, must have met each other within the last two years - unless there is a cultural prohibition against the meeting, and you and your fiancée plan to be married within 90 days of her arrival in the US. You must show proof that you are legally divorced, if previously married, or proof of your prior spouse's death, if that is the case. "

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Dahlia A. Walker-Huntington, Esq. is a Jamaican-American attorney who practices law in Florida in the areas of immigration, family, corporate & personal injury law. She is a mediator, arbitrator and special magistrate in Broward County, Florida. Send your questions and comments to info@walkerhuntington.com or editor@gleanerjm.com

TW - Full implementation of ESTA delayed

Travel Weekly

Full implementation of ESTA delayed

(20 May 2009)

Full implementation of the US Customs and Border Protection ESTA Visa Waiver Programme has been delayed by up to a year to allow airlines and the public more time to comply with the scheme.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"The flagship security project - the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) - is an online version of the I-94 Green Card, which is currently completed by passengers on inbound flights.

ESTA went live in January as planned, but all travellers from the 35 visa waiver countries are still required to fill in the I-94 for the time being."

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By Matthew Hampton reporting from Pow Wow in Miami

JO - Air Jamaica needs to explain Miami route cut

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer

Air Jamaica needs to explain Miami route cut

Thursday, January 29, 2009

We have to believe that the decision by Air Jamaica, the national airline, to drop its Miami route, among others, was based on very strong financial reasons.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"Over time, Miami became the heart and soul of Air Jamaica. For convenience, it is hard to beat. Jamaicans needing to do business and shopping in Miami, a little over an hour away, and return home the same day, depended on those flights."

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"Miami has become for Jamaicans, "Kingston 21", a virtual extension of Kingston and St Andrew, because of the many nationals living in Florida and the heavy traffic between the two gateways."