Columbus Immigration Attorney

U.S. immigration laws allow foreign investors to come to this country and put money into the economy. The EB-5 immigrant visa allows certain investors to obtain permanent residence once they enter the U.S. Applicants need to invest $500,000-$1 million in an American business and take an active role in the business. Treaty trader (E-1) and treaty investor (E-2) visas are also available for an investor who is willing to either invest substantial capital in the American company or carry on substantial trade between his or her country and the U.S.

Work Visas & Employment-Based Green Cards

Many foreign nationals want to work in the U.S. There are numerous work visas available to different types of workers, depending on the purpose of their entry. For example, agricultural workers are eligible to enter the U.S. on an H2-A work visa. Au pairs, professors, teachers, and others who come to the U.S. to experience the educational system or culture and take the experiences back to their home country are eligible to enter on a J work visa, which provides opportunities for cultural and educational exchanges. Foreign nationals may be eligible to become permanent residents if they receive an offer of permanent employment in the U.S. The employer will need to get a labor certification and file an Immigrant Petition for the worker in order to obtain a green card for the worker.

Family-Based Green Cards

You may be eligible to get a family-based green card if you are an immediate relative of a U.S. citizen, a family member of a citizen who fits into a preference category, a family member of a green card holder, or a member of a special category, such as a battered spouse or a widower of a U.S. citizen.

K-1 and K-3 Visas

K-1 and K-3 visas are available for foreign nationals who are planning to marry a U.S. citizen or are already the spouse of a citizen. To obtain a fiancé visa, a U.S. citizen must file a petition on behalf of the fiancé and show that he or she plans to marry within 90 days of the fiancé's entry into the country, that both the citizen and the fiancé are free to marry, and that the citizen and fiancé met at least once in person within two years of filing the petition. There are certain exceptions for the last of these requirements.

Deportation/Removal Proceedings

You are only safe from deportability if you have honestly and successfully become a U.S. citizen. The Immigration and Nationality Act provides numerous grounds under which a foreign national may be deported to his or her country of origin. Some grounds for deportation include certain criminal convictions, failing to register as a sex offender, marriage fraud, knowingly helping to smuggle other foreign nationals trying to gain entry, inadmissibility at the time of entry into the country, or a violation of the terms of a green card or visa.

Other Areas of Practice

Our comprehensive immigration practice also handles citizenship, student visas, visitor visas, DACA cases, and asylum petitions, among other matters.