Daniels & Smith, LLC - Immigration Law Topics

  My employer brought me to the United States on an employment based visa, and now I want to transfer to a new company. Can I change jobs without it affecting my immigration status? Every fiscal year, thousands of individuals are granted visas to enter into the United States for employment. Various employers seeking to employ a wide range of individuals, from highly specialized and skilled workers, religious workers, or international entertainers, submit petitions to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to secure domestic employment opportunities for some of their most talented international employees. However, there are instances when a foreign national employee may seek to change jobs after working in the U.S. for a specific employer.   So, what happens if an employee seeks to move their talent to a new employer? And is it possible to do so? In short, it is possible to change employers. Additionally, it is possible to change employers ...

Being arrested can be an extremely stressful ordeal, especially when you are concerned about possible deportation.  It is important that if you have found yourself being arrested and charged with a criminal offense that you remember these important steps. Step One:  During the Arrest.  It is very important that when you are facing arrest that you do not give a false name.  Giving a false name to law enforcement is a crime.  It is also important not to give any false documentation to the police as well.   When you are brought to the police station, they will fingerprint you and they will find out your identity, hence it is important to be truthful.   Step Two:  Consult a Criminal Law Attorney.  It is important to have representation during the criminal process.  It is important because all sentencing is heightened in the process of immigration.   It is very important to consult with an experienced criminal law atto...

Staying in compliance with the requirements to immigrate to a new country can be stressful enough.  However, obtaining identification in your new state of residence is imperative when you choose to establish your residency in the State of Georgia and the United States.  Georgia Law requires that any new resident, whether a US Citizen or immigrant, obtain a valid Georgia ID or driver’s license within 30 days of accepting employment, enrolling children in the State of Georgia school system, or if you have been in the state for more than 30 days. I recommend that all new immigrants obtain identification as soon as possible before the 30-day statutory requirement.  You may wonder, what documents should I bring with me to obtain a driver’s license?  That is a good question, and I have compiled a checklist of important documents you will need to obtain your Georgia identification.           Your original immigration paperwork (i.e. ...

Many individuals who migrate to the United States, including men, come here only to find out that their dream of freedom is not so near.  Every day, immigrant spouses are abused and mistreated.  Many feel they need to stay in the relationship because they feel they have no other option.  They think that their only way to preserve their immigration status, without being deported, is to stay with the spouse that is sponsoring them. This is not the case.  I am here to tell you that you DO have options.   Here are my Safety Steps for Freedom from violence and protection of your immigration status. Step Number One:  Document the abuse.  Take photos and store them in a safe location that is not accessible to your spouse.  If you have a cloud storage drive such as Google Drive, Box or One Drive, store your photos there away from your abuser.  Document what prompted the abusive situation and be as thorough as you possibly can with your ...