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....

We do a fair number of hardship waivers in our office each year, and I am frequently asked by my clients how to write a good hardship letter. While many attorneys have different styles for putting together a hardship waiver application, most attorneys will agree that the letter is one of the most important pieces of the case. The difficult part about a hardship letter is that the attorney shouldn’t write...

The Colorado Department of Revenue announced earlier this month an expansion of the driver license program under the Colorado Road Community Safety Act. Beginning June 1, the Colorado Springs and Grand Junction offices will resume appointments to issue licenses for those unable to demonstrate lawful presence in the United States. The program had previously been dramatically scaled down under political pressure and budget cuts in the state legislature. Applicants must schedule...

As a part of President Obama’s executive actions announced on November 20, 2014, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) announced that it will allow the spouses and children of lawful permanent residents and the adult children of U.S. citizens to apply for the Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver, also known as the I-601A Waiver. The Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver is a powerful tool that helps reduce the amount of time...

Early last week, the President addressed immigration reform from the Rose Garden of the White House. Clearly frustrated by Congressional inaction, the President indicated that he would move forward using his existing legal authorities, to “fix as much of our immigration system” as possible. The White House was informed in late-June that the Speaker of the House of Representatives would not move immigration reform legislation to the floor of the House...

Starting August 1, 2014, pursuant to the Colorado Road and Community Safety Act (CRCSA) (SB13-251), Colorado residents who are in the United States without lawful immigration status will be eligible to receive a Colorado Driver’s License, Instruction Permit or State Identification Card.   In order to receive a Colorado Driver’s License, Instruction Permit or Identification Card under CRCSA, all Applicants must:1) Present a valid passport, consular identification card, or military identification...

On March 18, 2014, USCIS announced that, on its own motion, it would reopen and review I-601A waivers that were denied prior to January 24, 2014 and review the reasons for denial. This affects spouses of United States citizens who have had their provisional waivers denied. The I-601A provisional waiver went into effect in early 2013, allowing those who required a waiver for unlawful presence only to have their inadmissibility waiver...

Kolko & Associates, P.C. is pleased to announce an important change in the immigration law with regard to the processing of waivers for the Unlawful Presence ground of inadmissibility. This new process is only available for spouses, children and certain parents of U.S. citizens (immediate relatives). Applicants applying for an Immigrant Visa to the United States are required to demonstrate that they are “admissible” to the United States. The Immigration and...