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U.S. BUSINESS IMMIGRATION PRIMER

Visa: A machine-readable sticker placed in the passport of a foreign national, signifying that they have been approved by the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) for a certain nonimmigrant visa category of entry into the USA. The Visa is issued by the U.S. Department of State, only at U.S. Consulates outside the USA, after a Visa Petition has been approved by USCIS.
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I-94 Form: The little white card a foreign national completes on the airplane and has stamped by an immigration officer upon entry into the USA. The date the officer writes on the I-94 Form controls the foreign national’s stay in the USA, not the date on the Visa. All foreign nationals must remain be “In Status” while they are in the USA, or there may be serious immigration consequences.


In Status: When a foreign national is in the USA, complying with the terms of the visa category upon which he or she entered the USA, and is current in the departure date on his or her I-94 Form.


Change of Status (COS): Changing from one nonimmigrant type to another. A foreign national must be in status to change or adjust status.


Adjustment of Status (AOS): Changing from nonimmigrant to immigrant status and becoming a permanent resident of the USA while inside the USA.


Consular Processing: Obtaining a nonimmigrant or an immigrant visa at a U.S. Consulate or Embassy outside the USA.


Premium Processing: By paying an additional $1,000.00 filing fee to USCIS, they guarantee to take action on an “E”, “H” or “L” Nonimmigrant Visa Petition within fifteen (15) days of filing. The action may be either approval or a Request for Evidence (RFE). Presently L-1 Regular Processing takes about 35 days and H-1B Regular Processing takes about 60 days. Therefore, Premium Processing should be used only in cases of extreme emergency to justify the additional cost.


NONIMMIGRANT EMPLOYMENT VISA TYPES:

B-1 or B-2 Visitor:

If they are from certain countries, foreign nationals can enter the USA without a visa, under the "Visa Waiver Program", but they still make either a B-1 or a B-2 entry at the point of entry. Visa Waivers receive a green, rather than a white, I-94 Form upon entry. A green Visa Waiver I-94 Form only allows a foreign national to remain in the USA for up to 90 days. There is no extension or COS for Visa Waiver travelers. The only exception is that Visa Waivers who marry a US citizen can adjust status to permanent residence through a Relative Petition and Application for Permanent Residence.

Foreign nationals desiring to enter the USA as a visitor, and who are not a citizen of a Visa Waiver Country, must obtain a B-1/B-2 Visitor Visa at a US Consulate in their country of residence. Visitor Visa entrants are normally granted a stay of six months, extendable for an additional six months upon a proper showing of evidence. Visitor Visa entrants are allowed to change or adjust status, so long as they are in status at the time the petition or application is filed. (Note: There is a special regulation concerning COS to student status.)

B-2 entrants are not allowed to perform any employment-related functions, but are strictly tourists.

B-1 entrants cannot work or be paid in the USA, but can perform limited functions on behalf of their foreign employer, such as negotiation and signing of business contracts, promotion of the company’s business, installation of the company’s product where technical expertise is required, and attending training sessions and company meetings, or to act in an advisory capacity on a short-term basis.


E-2 Visas:

The E-2 visa category is for companies that have made a substantial investment in a business enterprise in the USA and that have the nationality of a country that has a treaty of trade and commerce with the USA. There is no need to show that no US workers are available, but the principle foreign national applying for issuance of an E-2 visa must have the same nationality as the company. E-2 visas can be extended indefinitely, so long as the employee works for the company.

There are no other special qualification factor, except that the foreign national must be an “essential worker”, with experience in the field of the employment endeavor. There is no requirement that the foreign national have worked for the company previously, or that they have a university degree.

Immediate relatives of the principle E-2 are eligible for the issuance of an E-2 visa. E-2 spouses can obtain an Employment Authorization Document by separate application after arrival in the USA, and may then work for any employer in the USA.


H-1B Visas:

For Foreign Nationals with a University Degree
or its equivalent:

An H-1B nonimmigrant employment authorized visa is intended for a foreign national with a university degree, and who will be working in a "Specialty Occupation". A Specialty Occupation is one that normally requires at least a bachelor degree for entry level, like a Chemist or an Engineer.
H-1B petitions are submitted by an employer based on their need for the services of a non-US employee. The employer must pay the foreign national the prevailing wage in the geographic area of employment, as determined by the Department of Labor and must comply with all regulations relating to H-1B employment. There is no need to show that no US workers are available, but there is a cap on the number of |H-1B visas that can be issued every year, so they are not always available.

H-1B visas have a maximum life of six (6) years (normally approved in two increments of three years), and cannot be extended beyond that time, but a new petition may be filed after the foreign national has spent at least one year outside of the USA. (There is an exception to this rule for certain foreign nationals with permanent residence processing pending.)
Upon application at the US Consulate or Embassy, immediate family members of H-1B’s may be issued H-4 visas. Spouses of H-1B’s cannot obtain an Employment Authorization Document and cannot work in the USA unless they independently qualify for an employment authorized nonimmigrant visa, or unless they are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien.


L-1 Intracompany Transferee Visas:

A company may file an L-1 visa petition for a foreign national who has been employed outside the USA for at least one year out of the previous three years by a parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliated company to a U.S. company. There is no need to show that no US workers are available.
There are two categories of L-1 visa, one for Multinational Executives and Managers (L-1A), and one for persons with “Specialized Knowledge” about the company’s business methods (L-1B). L-1A Multinational Executives and Managers may qualify for US Permanent Residence without a Labor Certification, by directly filing a Form I-140, Petition for Alien Worker, along with supporting documentation and an Application for Permanent Residence.
L-1A visas are normally issued in increments of three years, three years, and one year. L-1B visas are normally issued increments of two years and three years. L-1A visas have a maximum life of seven (7) years and L-1B have a maximum life of five (5) years, and cannot be extended. Upon expiration of the maximum term, the foreign national must leave the USA for a period of one year, and then may reapply for L-1 status and return to the USA to work.

Upon application at the US Consulate or Embassy, immediate family members of L-1’s may receive L-2 visas. L-2 spouses can obtain an Employment Authorization Document by separate application after arrival in the USA, and may then work for any employer in the USA.

Labor Certification:

The first step in a three-step process to obtain U.S. Permanent Residence. Nonimmigrants can apply by having their employer file an Application for Alien Labor Certification. Through Labor Certification, the U.S. Department of Labor determines there are no U.S. workers available to fill the job position. Thereafter, application is made to the USCIS for AOS.
This entire permanent residence process can be expected to take several years. Nonimmigrant visas that expire before AOS require that the foreign national leave the USA, even if the permanent residence process has been started, but not finished. Under limited circumstances, H-1B’s may extend their stay for the purpose of AOS. L-1’s cannot, under any circumstances extend their stay beyond the maximum term of the visa.

Permanent Residence Visa:

A visa issued by a US Consulate or Embassy after a determination of qualification for permanent residence by the USCIS, which allows a foreign national to come to the USA to adjust status to that of a US permanent resident. Permanent residents may live and work in the USA indefinitely, so long as they maintain their permanent residence in the USA and reside here a majority of the time. Permanent residents may apply for US citizenship after satisfying residence status and physical presence time requirements. Many countries, including the USA allow dual citizenship.

For more information see: Immigration; Immigration Lawyer Orange County; L-1 Visa; E Visa; H-1B Visa; L1 Visa; E Visa; H1 Visa

Hello,
My name is Mike Bailey and I am a Special Process Server.
Many People may have seen this and never give it a second thought, but Please, Think about this. A process server is an Officer of the Court whom may be known as a paper server of legal documents. Please let me enlighten You. It is much more then that. Most Attorneys file documents and figure that the documents are going to the Sheriff and of course, they will get the subject served. Consider this. The document is attempted at the given address and the subject moved. End of story, non-est, moved. A vehicle is in the driveway unknowingly to the Deputy that it is the subjects car. He will not run the license plate and the person whom answered the door tells the Deputy, " I never heard of this person before". A process server has the authority to run License plates, search data bases that allows the Process server to locate and serve the individual at the new address even though the new address two Counties over. A process Server is not bound by jurisdiction.
We can even go to other states if need be to serve a document. I can locate Criminal and Civil history on people and or businesses. locate legal registered agents or owners of companies. I can locate assets when a spouse is hiding property, vehicles, boats, planes or any tangible property when going through a Divorce. A Person passes away and no family members can be found. We can find them. Yes, Serving documents are a large part of the business, but like a good baker, If you are missing some of the main ingredients, your recipe will not turn out. Please visit our web site, browse through the buttons, then call or E-mail. We can also conduct the searches mentioned even if we do not serve a paper for you. So, To answer the subject line question. That is what a Process Server is and can do for you. Thanks for reading my post. Mike.

__________________
MB PROCESS SERVICE
Michael H. Bailey
PO Box 751
Arnold, MO. 63010
Phone: (314)280-2188
Fax : (314)667-5442
E-Mail: michael@mbprocessservice.net
Web: www.mbprocessservice.net
Member of:
NAPPS: (National Association of Professional Process Servers)
Servenow.com
Licensed through the St. Louis Sheriff Department

Hello All,
I wanted to title the subject line vague to get People to read.
If you are on an Attorney forum, you are either an Attorney or a Person looking for answers to various Questions.

If you are an Attorney or a Person looking for answers, Please read this post, as I hope to offer my services which I would rather call my help.

I am going to tell you what I do for a living, then I will tell you my Job title. I hope this will be interesting and a helpful post.

When a Case is filed with the Courts, weather by an Attorney, Landlord, or an individual, in most cases, the Defendant (person being sued) needs to be served with Court papers.

Most people (many Attorneys included) leave it up to the Sheriff department to serve the documents on the Defendant because of many reasons, such as, COST, after all the price is included when the documents are filed to be served by the Sheriff. Or the Defendant is dangerous and the Sheriff has the training to handle serving an eviction, but you want possession of your property and back owed rent. If in Missouri, if your documents are posted, you can not receive monetary damages. Child Support, Protection order on the Man that won't stop beating you, and remove him from my house so you and your Children and I can live in peace. To your Spouse when you have won custody and need to retrieve your Child from that violent person who has your Child right now and return to you. Just to name a few situations that happen every day in someones life.

Please don't take what I am saying wrong, BUT. The Sheriff Department has so much Process to serve that while on the clock, the best attempts are made. But, if it is a hard to serve person, most likely it won't be served. Not because of not trying, just because there is too many cases going through the Sheriff Department and not enough time to spend on one case.

Each document is time sensitive and needs to be served in a time frame from when the Court dates the document, the clock has started. Sheriff receives it, (along with 80 other papers for the day), well in short, your document did not get served because no one was home when attempted, person moved, wont answer the door, is evading service. Paper ran out of time for service. With these examples, you can see why your paper did not get served. However, it HAS to be served or all of the examples I mentioned documents are not worth the paper it is written on. The Police can only act on a protection order when it has been served. The court can only Rule on a Case if it has been served. Each time your documents goes to that Sheriff with 80 papers a day to serve, Will he/she get service this time? not only because it cost extra each time it goes through for service, but the cases I mentioned are very serious and in many cases, (a life or death situation). You can't afford to gamble.

An Attorney always gives his Client the best service possible because he/She wants to keep you as a Client and also have you recommend Him/Her to Friends and Family for Business Growth. I like to also look at my Job as a Support system to Attorneys.

Now to go back to the main reason Attorneys and People use the Sheriff department, COST. This in many or most cases is an illusion. As I said, each time it goes through the Sheriff Dept. it is extra!!!! Per Document is charged, if the documents being served include, a summons, Restraining order, etc. plus you pay mileage on top of the fee for service. It may not be as inexpensive as it looks. Then when all is said and done and you have done this about three times, you turn to someone like me.

Who or What am I?

A Special Process Server. A Court Officer. I am Licensed through the St. Louis Sheriff Department, Authorized to serve any of the Court documents. A Person who will spend the time on those cases, even hard to serve or evading service and get them served. A person who truly cares about people and does want to help and can if you just call or e-mail.

It don't cost to call and ask questions, (call me, I will take the time to answer your questions). I will make those papers worth the paper they are written on. I will serve and remove that abusive Spouse, (With Court order), I will serve the eviction documents and get possession and back rent, because I will get those Defendants served.

NOW, I do not publish price on the web, however, if you call me and need my service, I will tell you. What I can tell you is. I charge a very reasonable flat rate fee per document, discounted to serve more then one person at the same address. no mileage fee. and unlimited attempts until document is served or in the unlikely reason the document expires.(this happens when the document is received with a day or two to serve a hard to serve person before the document expires).

PLEASE take a moment to visit my web site below and contact us. If we are not in your area for service, visit my web site (link below) on the home page, you Will see two links, one to ( NAPPS) and the other is (Servenow.com). These links will link you to Process servers across the Country whom also have very high standards to get your documents served. I hope this helps. Lets get those papers served and you can get on with your life. After all, you did not come to this site just because you wanted to read, DID YOU? Thank you for reading my post. Mike

__________________
MB PROCESS SERVICE
Michael H. Bailey
PO Box 751
Arnold, MO. 63010
Phone: (314)280-2188
Fax : (314)667-5442
E-Mail: michael@mbprocessservice.net
Web: www.mbprocessservice.net
Member of:
NAPPS: (National Association of Professional Process Servers)
Servenow.com
Licensed through the St. Louis Sheriff Department

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