On October 24, 2016, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced fee increases for most immigration applications and petitions. USCIS operations are funded almost entirely through application fees and the agency is required to evaluate fees every two years. This is the first fee increase for USCIS in six (6) years, and we will see an average increase of 21% for fees for all applications and petitions. The Biometric Services...

  Kolko & Associates, P.C. wants to remind every individual in the United States, including undocumented immigrants, of their legal rights if approached or interrogated by law enforcement, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).   We highlight the National Immigration Law Center’s Know Your Rights Advisement and take this opportunity to remind immigrants in the United States of their legal rights if they are approached or interrogated by an Immigration Officer:...

  The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program was implemented by executive order by President Obama in June of 2012. Under this program, qualified individuals receive reprieve from any immigration enforcement action against them and an employment authorization document (EAD) valid for two years. DACA has been renewable every two years for qualified individuals. In order to qualify, applicants had to establish they entered the United States when they were...

From the Immigration Attorneys at Kolko & Associates, P.C., an open letter to our clients, their families and our community: To start, we never expected to have to write this kind of a letter to you. We have dedicated our lives to advocating for the immigrant community. Our work as immigration lawyers helps families stay together; U.S. businesses to grow and maintain their workforce; foreign entrepreneurs to start businesses in the...

On August 25, 2016, the Department of Homeland Security approved a revised Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. USCIS is scheduled to publish the new form by late November 2016. Employers are permitted to continue to use the current version of Form I-9 (version date 03/08/2013) until January 21, 2017. After that date, all prior Form I-9 versions will be invalid. It is essential that employers ensure that they utilize the correct form...

On October 24, 2016, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) issued a policy memorandum announcing that it designated Matter of R-C-C-S-D-, as an Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) adopted decision that binds all USCIS employees. As the law firm that spent a year and half arguing Matter of R-C-C-S-D-, with USCIS and the AAO, we are very proud that USCIS has taken this rare step of adopting the AAO decision. The...

Between October 18-20, 2016, Partner Jennifer Casey had the privilege of attending the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Rome District’s 2016 Fall Conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The AILA Rome District Chapter serves U.S. immigration attorneys practicing abroad, with a focus on attorneys practicing in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the issues that clients seeking to obtain both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas to the United States frequently face. The AILA...

The Diversity Visa Lottery is a congressionally mandated system that provides immigrant visas to randomly selected individuals from regions and countries around the globe with historically low numbers of immigrants to the United States. For Fiscal Year 2018 (which runs from October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018), 50,000 immigrant visa numbers are available to individuals and qualified family members from qualifying countries if those individuals register for the Diversity Visa....

In its recent decision in Matter of Khan, 26 I&N Dec. 797 (BIA 2016), the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) held that an Immigration Judge does not have jurisdiction to consider a waiver of inadmissibility under section 212(d)(14) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) for an applicant for U nonimmigrant status. The BIA held that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) holds exclusive jurisdiction over both the application for U...

Our friend and colleague, Bryon Large has accepted a position as a trial attorney with the Colorado Supreme Court’s Office of Attorney Regulation. While we are so pleased for Bryon and his new position, we are also saddened that Bryon will be leaving the practice of immigration law and our firm. Over the past several years, we have had the great privilege of working with Bryon. Bryon has been a national...

After months of anticipation, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on July 29, 2016 a final rule to expand the I-601A Provisional Waiver process. The I-601A Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver was created in 2013 in an effort to reduce the time that family members are separated during immigrant visa processing. Prior to the current expansion, only spouses, parents, and children of U.S. citizens who could demonstrate extreme hardship to a U.S....

Moving can be a stressful and tiring event. Remembering to have mail forwarded and updating your address is often low on the priority list for people. But if you move, remember to tell your attorneys, too! We will want to update our records, as well as make sure that you are in compliance with the law when it comes to updating your address with the government. American immigration law requires non-citizens,...

Children in deportation proceedings in immigration court, even those as young as three or four years old, have no right to a government-appointed lawyer. As a result, many children are forced to represent themselves in front of an immigration judge and face deportation to countries where they face abuse, human trafficking, and targeting by gangs and criminal groups. Most of the children appearing before our immigration courts are eligible for protections...

Attorney Abbie Johnson joined Kolko & Associates, P.C., this week, as a Senior Associate Attorney. Abbie is an experienced immigration practitioner, with strong experience representing children. She enters private practice after several years as the Managing Attorney of the Children’s Program at the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN), a program serving minors who find themselves in deportation proceedings, usually fleeing violence in Central American countries. Abbie grew up in Loveland,...

“The driver is safer when the roads are dry, the roads are safer when the driver is dry.” Certainly true. For individuals who have entered the United States on non-immigrant visas, I would also add “the driver’s non-immigrant visa is safer when the driver is dry.” Driving Under the Influence (DUI) of alcohol is serious, it can jeopardize your life and safety. It can jeopardize the lives and safety of those...

As of August 10, 2016, Colorado employers will no longer be required to complete the Colorado Affirmation Form or retain certain copies of identity and employment verification documents for newly hired employees. This is because on June 8, 2016, Governor John Hickenlooper signed Colorado House Bill 16-1114, repealing the majority Section 8-2-122 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, (otherwise known as the 2006 Colorado Employment Verification Law). Federal law requires all employers...

Today, the United States Supreme Court dismissed the United States v. Texas case, a case revolving around the President's 2014 deferred action program for DAPA and expanded DACA. The decision allows the lower court's injuction to stand. It is sad and disheartening news for the immigrant community. A 4-4 decision created a deadlock for the Court, and no formal opinion was given on the merits of the case. The Court's Order simply...

Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court announced four decisions. Unfortunately, none of them were immigration cases. They scheduled an additional decision date for this coming Thursday, June 23, and there is a regularly scheduled decision date set for Monday, June 27. The Supreme Court has eight remaining decisions to make in cases that they took during this term. It is likely that all eight decisions will be announced between the next...

Each year in June, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”) hosts an annual conference, giving its members an opportunity to catch up on the latest in immigration law. This year’s conference will be later this month, and will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada. The conference is an important opportunity for our attorneys to attend lectures and hear from nationally-recognized experts on the latest trends in the law, as well as...

Cases for U non-immigrant status are taking an abnormally long time to process with USCIS currently. The backlog is frustrating for applicants and attorneys, alike. The delays are attributed to many factors, including an increase in petitions, a cap on visa limits, and a large backlog at the Vermont Service Center of USCIS. U non-immigrant status is available to foreigners who have been victims of certain crimes. Waivers available under the...