Borderwise: App and a lawyer for immigrants, for $1(washingtonpost.com)
washingtonpost.com
Borderwise: App and a lawyer for immigrants, for $1
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/inspired-life/wp/2017/02/13/why-these-philadelphia-lawyers-are-helping-immigrants-seek-a-green-card-for-only-1/
83 comments
Perhaps the interest of the company is not so much to provide their 'product' to low-income, spanish speaking families, but to make some buzz around themselves and make sure you know about it.
Is it really possible to get a green card knowing no English at all?
Probably not, however I am not a lawyer.
The point I was trying to make is that it is in the interest of the company and it's users to make translated versions easily available.
The point I was trying to make is that it is in the interest of the company and it's users to make translated versions easily available.
Yes. My wife and her family came to America with a permanent resident permit knowing not a lick of English.
There is only an English proficiency test for naturalization, not for a green card.
It's possible to start the process with very limited English skills.
[deleted]
Yes, but you would need help.
> When he married an American woman and could then apply for a green card, he figured with his legal background he’d have no trouble filling out the paperwork himself. But the forms were so overly complicated and frustratingly counterintuitive that he gave up and hired an immigration attorney.
When I applied for my green card I thought the whole process was pretty simple and straightforward. I do think it might be harder for someone with more complicated circumstances, or who doesn't speak english as a first language. But I do find it surprising how hard many people with (what seem to me to be) simple cases think it is...
When I applied for my green card I thought the whole process was pretty simple and straightforward. I do think it might be harder for someone with more complicated circumstances, or who doesn't speak english as a first language. But I do find it surprising how hard many people with (what seem to me to be) simple cases think it is...
You may not be aware of this, but lawful permanent resident status in the US is based on a quota system by country of origin. Immigrants from Central America can experience wait times for LPR status approaching twenty years. I haven't kept a consistently non-expired drivers license or license plate tag for more than 2 years. But if you screw up any of the procedural details of an LPR application in the US --- for instance, failing to timely notify any time your residence changes for any reason --- the penalty isn't a ticket, but rather the likely forfeiture of your application.
So no, the process is not pretty simple and straightforward for a great many applicants.
So no, the process is not pretty simple and straightforward for a great many applicants.
The quotas don't apply to applicants who are immediate relatives (e.g. spouses) of US citizens.
> You may not be aware of this, but lawful permanent resident status in the US is based on a quota system by country of origin.
To expand on this, immigrant visas in most (but not all) categories are actually what is limited; for people that don't get in on a dual intent visa like the H-1B first (i.e., the vast majority of prospective legal immigrants), that means entry is limited on that basis, not the status transition to an LPR from some other legally-present status.
To expand on this, immigrant visas in most (but not all) categories are actually what is limited; for people that don't get in on a dual intent visa like the H-1B first (i.e., the vast majority of prospective legal immigrants), that means entry is limited on that basis, not the status transition to an LPR from some other legally-present status.
Is an O1 Visa dual intent? Also is there a rough estimate of how long wait times are for different countries of Origin?
> Is an O1 Visa dual intent?
Maybe. US immigration law and the implementing regulation is complex and there's some confusing grey areas. This source seems to indicate that O-1 is (or was as of 2011) treated as dual intent in that you can apply for permanent residency while on it, but also seems to indicate that you still need to return to your country of origin rather than transition in place. [0]
> Also is there a rough estimate of how long wait times are for different countries of Origin?
This might help, though it's technically how long people now being admitted in each category/country have waited from establishing eligibility rather than how long people entering the queue now with wait. [1]
[0] http://www.americanlaw.com/dintent.html
[1] http://www.immihelp.com/visa-bulletin-movement/
Maybe. US immigration law and the implementing regulation is complex and there's some confusing grey areas. This source seems to indicate that O-1 is (or was as of 2011) treated as dual intent in that you can apply for permanent residency while on it, but also seems to indicate that you still need to return to your country of origin rather than transition in place. [0]
> Also is there a rough estimate of how long wait times are for different countries of Origin?
This might help, though it's technically how long people now being admitted in each category/country have waited from establishing eligibility rather than how long people entering the queue now with wait. [1]
[0] http://www.americanlaw.com/dintent.html
[1] http://www.immihelp.com/visa-bulletin-movement/
As I mentioned in my original comment, I'm sure there are circumstances different from my own that are much more challenging.
I can only speak to the experience coming from the UK (and I confess to assuming that the experience from Canada is comparable), and that's where I find surprise: people from the UK who presumably went through the same experience as me often claim that it's impossible to navigate without a lawyer. That's just not true.
I can only speak to the experience coming from the UK (and I confess to assuming that the experience from Canada is comparable), and that's where I find surprise: people from the UK who presumably went through the same experience as me often claim that it's impossible to navigate without a lawyer. That's just not true.
In fact, the overwhelming majority of resident aliens in this country seeking lawful permanent status face far more difficult challenges than you did. I'm not criticizing you, I'm just reporting a fact.
> So no, the process is not pretty simple and straightforward for a great many applicants.
That read as a snarky criticism of a claim I never made.
The fact that you're supplying isn't really a contradiction of or great addition to anything I said in my narrow comment: I explicitly acknowledged it myself. I wouldn't mind that, but it isn't very nice to accompany it with snark and misrepresentation.
That read as a snarky criticism of a claim I never made.
The fact that you're supplying isn't really a contradiction of or great addition to anything I said in my narrow comment: I explicitly acknowledged it myself. I wouldn't mind that, but it isn't very nice to accompany it with snark and misrepresentation.
I'm sorry, I'm not seeing the snark, but I'm sorry my comment put you on the defensive.
Because it is hard. Harder than it needs to be. Of course it has gotten easier recently. But it is more complicated than it needs to be.
How can low income immigrants qualify for permanent residence in the US if they do not earn enough to support themselves?
They can be related to a US citizen (parent/child/spouse), have received a job offer in some skilled fields but be currently out of work or underemployed, be a refugee, etc.
spot on. I work on a database tracking the help given by the State to maaaany refugees, poors, whatever you call them, etc. The situations in which those people are very often extremely complex, confusing, etc. If one focus on money only, or self-determination, then you end up with a very tough, unfriendly, non human system...
> The situations in which those people are very often extremely complex, confusing, etc. If one focus on money only, or self-determination, then you end up with a very tough, unfriendly, non human system...
Could you share some examples. It would be valuable to learn about the reality of these issues on a personal level, rather than statistics.
> refugees, poors, whatever you call them
Let's call them people: People who are refugees, people who are poor, etc.
(It's a general point and not a criticism of the parent, which like any comment I don't think should be taken literally and dissected.)
Could you share some examples. It would be valuable to learn about the reality of these issues on a personal level, rather than statistics.
> refugees, poors, whatever you call them
Let's call them people: People who are refugees, people who are poor, etc.
(It's a general point and not a criticism of the parent, which like any comment I don't think should be taken literally and dissected.)
Reminds me of the Onion report on the study that found "human babies, long thought by psychologists to be highly inquisitive and adaptable, are actually extraordinarily stupid." [0]. My parents were Vietnam War refugees. They had the legal clearance, and I believe eventually proved themselves to be hard-working and contributors to society, but they probably would have floundered if not for the initial cushion of government assistance (food stamps, welfare, etc) and the generosity of American host families.
[0] http://www.physics.mcgill.ca/~arobic/funny/babies.html
[0] http://www.physics.mcgill.ca/~arobic/funny/babies.html
Indeed, those are the "people", no offense.
So for example of a situation...
Immigrant I comes in my country. He's intercepted by the police, I is sick, so the police send him to hospital. As the guy as no social security number, the hospital gives him a temporary one. The hospital pays the bill (yes, my country is socially very advanced). Then guy is better but, because the hospital paid the bill, he now has a special "register number" (more or less a social security number). The guy now reaches a "social help center". They find him a place to sleep. At the same time the guy request a request for asylum. For that he needs a lawyer because, well, he doesn't speak our language and our administration is sometimes complex. Now the guy is interviewed, because the state wants to make sure he is in the condition for asylum. Problem, he'll have to wait 6 months before the first real interview. So the guy starts to run out of money (eating, paying lawyer,...) so he seeks friends. Ah, those friends are somewhere else in my country. So he moves. Ah, friends are in deep shit for some reason, so he moves again. Now he has to be tied to another center for social help, more papers, more complex administration. He now has his first interview. Not a good one, the guy didn't manage to offer all the proofs. So the lawyer will help him to gather some more proofs. Second interview, better this time, he's on track to be recognized as a political refugee; but that'll take a year or two. More lawyers, more money, more small job, more moves from place to place. And all of this is OK if the guy keeps sane (yes, they are people who try to abuse the weaks).
If this sound like a pile of facts, it is. But all those facts are gathered, analyzed, to determine what kind of help the person can receive from the state. And that makes my little database and rule model extremely complicated (or sophisticated, depending on your point of view).
So for example of a situation...
Immigrant I comes in my country. He's intercepted by the police, I is sick, so the police send him to hospital. As the guy as no social security number, the hospital gives him a temporary one. The hospital pays the bill (yes, my country is socially very advanced). Then guy is better but, because the hospital paid the bill, he now has a special "register number" (more or less a social security number). The guy now reaches a "social help center". They find him a place to sleep. At the same time the guy request a request for asylum. For that he needs a lawyer because, well, he doesn't speak our language and our administration is sometimes complex. Now the guy is interviewed, because the state wants to make sure he is in the condition for asylum. Problem, he'll have to wait 6 months before the first real interview. So the guy starts to run out of money (eating, paying lawyer,...) so he seeks friends. Ah, those friends are somewhere else in my country. So he moves. Ah, friends are in deep shit for some reason, so he moves again. Now he has to be tied to another center for social help, more papers, more complex administration. He now has his first interview. Not a good one, the guy didn't manage to offer all the proofs. So the lawyer will help him to gather some more proofs. Second interview, better this time, he's on track to be recognized as a political refugee; but that'll take a year or two. More lawyers, more money, more small job, more moves from place to place. And all of this is OK if the guy keeps sane (yes, they are people who try to abuse the weaks).
If this sound like a pile of facts, it is. But all those facts are gathered, analyzed, to determine what kind of help the person can receive from the state. And that makes my little database and rule model extremely complicated (or sophisticated, depending on your point of view).
$10,000 - $30,000 is enough to support yourself in most places across the country. Yearly minimum wage @ 40hrs/week is $15,080.
[deleted]
Is there a rule saying they can't? I hope they can; my attitude toward immigration is that those are the people that need help and will benefit the most. From a statue in NY harbor:
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
MOTHER OF EXILES. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
MOTHER OF EXILES. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Did you know that awful poetry tacked onto unrelated statuary does not dictate public policy? The entire media doesn't know this, so it's no shame if you don't either.
Bringing people to a foreign land does not really help them that much. It is a much better form of help if you were to help them fix their own countries.
Having to adjust to a new culture is not really fun (unless you had an interest in that culture for some reason; but this did not apply to "poor"immigrants).
Having to adjust to a new culture is not really fun (unless you had an interest in that culture for some reason; but this did not apply to "poor"immigrants).
> It is a much better form of help if you were to help them fix their own countries.
As an immigrant, let me tell you that immigration had a huge positive impact my family's lives. Of course fixing my country would be great... if it were even remotely possible.
As an immigrant, let me tell you that immigration had a huge positive impact my family's lives. Of course fixing my country would be great... if it were even remotely possible.
As an immigrant, I've seen many immigrants who have absolutely no interest in the culture or society of the country they immigrated to. Most people just want to get a citizenship because their own country's passport sucks and their country's economy and education and health care sucks.
There isn't one monolithic "American culture". For example just because I'm part of the hacker culture doesn't mean I have to sip IPAs. There can and will be cherry picking of aspects they like, what matters is how their outlook changes and the love for this land. They might appear to be outwardly disinterested, but many sort of enjoy the culture in their own ways. Giving up on their citizenship and applying for a new one is no easy decision.
> Giving up on their citizenship and applying for a new one is no easy decision.
The decision is very easy. Obtaining the citizenship, on the other hand, is not easy.
The decision is very easy. Obtaining the citizenship, on the other hand, is not easy.
> The decision is very easy
It's very easy to decide to give up citizenship in your native land and move to strange new place? I don't see that as true.
It's very easy to decide to give up citizenship in your native land and move to strange new place? I don't see that as true.
> I've seen many immigrants who have absolutely no interest in the culture or society of the country they immigrated to
The U.S. culture is whatever the people make it. Italian immigrants brought Italalian food; Mexican immigrants brought Mexican food.
Regardless, the parent claim is made for all first generation immigrants, historically; you can read it over and over in history books: They keep to themselves, speak their own language, etc. The research I saw (long ago) said the second generation are part of the 'American' culture; the third generation intermarries at a rate of about 80% (based on vague recollection, but the number was of that order).
EDIT: It makes sense: I would say almost anyone in their 30s or older or even in their 20s, if they moved to a country with a different culture and language (e.g., U.S. to Russia or Japan), would continue to speak English at home, eat American food, read English books and watch English movies, and hang around other immigrants. Their kids would be Russian/Japanese, however.
The U.S. culture is whatever the people make it. Italian immigrants brought Italalian food; Mexican immigrants brought Mexican food.
Regardless, the parent claim is made for all first generation immigrants, historically; you can read it over and over in history books: They keep to themselves, speak their own language, etc. The research I saw (long ago) said the second generation are part of the 'American' culture; the third generation intermarries at a rate of about 80% (based on vague recollection, but the number was of that order).
EDIT: It makes sense: I would say almost anyone in their 30s or older or even in their 20s, if they moved to a country with a different culture and language (e.g., U.S. to Russia or Japan), would continue to speak English at home, eat American food, read English books and watch English movies, and hang around other immigrants. Their kids would be Russian/Japanese, however.
> As an immigrant, I've seen many immigrants who have absolutely no interest in the culture or society of the country they immigrated to.
Okay, if you say so, but that's not what I was disputing.
> Most people just want to get a citizenship because their own country's passport sucks and their country's economy and education and health care sucks.
IMO, the economy, the education system, and the health care system are fundamental to society, and if these suck, then moving out and immigrating into a better country sounds like a perfectly reasonable choice to me. Immigrants are trying to secure the best futures for their families.
Okay, if you say so, but that's not what I was disputing.
> Most people just want to get a citizenship because their own country's passport sucks and their country's economy and education and health care sucks.
IMO, the economy, the education system, and the health care system are fundamental to society, and if these suck, then moving out and immigrating into a better country sounds like a perfectly reasonable choice to me. Immigrants are trying to secure the best futures for their families.
> Bringing people to a foreign land does not really help them that much
What is this claim based on? It's very hard to believe that Somalis or Syrians, for example, or any of the hungry, tired and poor who emigrate to the U.S. aren't far better off.
It helped my ancestors immensely; our family is immeasurably better off than those left behind, who probably are wiped out and almost certainly not up to our standard of living.
What is this claim based on? It's very hard to believe that Somalis or Syrians, for example, or any of the hungry, tired and poor who emigrate to the U.S. aren't far better off.
It helped my ancestors immensely; our family is immeasurably better off than those left behind, who probably are wiped out and almost certainly not up to our standard of living.
It's easier to move to a country who's ideals you identify with than to fix an entire country. Also American culture isn't exactly limited to the American mainland. It's been exported over media, one of the major reasons people immigrate.
One reason I posted this is that it gives the immigrants access to real expertise: An app designed by experts, and access to real legal advice. (Caveat: I don't know about the quality of the app or the lawyers beyond what this article says.)
I've seen good-willed people try to create their own apps, advice, etc. But without expertise, the best intentions may lead to very bad results. You wouldn't well-intentioned lawyers giving immigrants IT security advice.
I've seen good-willed people try to create their own apps, advice, etc. But without expertise, the best intentions may lead to very bad results. You wouldn't well-intentioned lawyers giving immigrants IT security advice.
xienze(7)
You really need to make a Spanish language version available from the home page.
Nowhere do I see an easy way to translate the page, or an indication as to what languages the information has been translated to.
Your primary audience is going to be native Spanish speakers, they likely have English language skills, but will be much more comfortable in their first language.
Think about how this impediment is effecting your conversions, and your prospective customers ability to use your service.