September 2024

Consular zealotry knows no bounds.  That is the impression that I am getting after conducting a flurry of consultations on visa denials related to EB-3 cases. After an EB-3 immigrant visa is denied at the Embassy, the I-140 approved petition is referred back to USCIS for review, often with an accusation against the applicant about a supposed willful, material misrepresentation. Compounding the problem, sometimes the petitioner-employer in the US decides not to continue the process or the applicant changes his or her mind and decides to pursue other immigration options (e.g., if has a US citizen adult child).  But like that evil jack-in-the-box or Jason in Friday the 13th, the “bad guy” – the misrepresentation allegation in the form of a Section 212(a)(6)(C)(i) finding – pops up out of nowhere when you least expect it, years later when applying for a new, different visa.  This then complicates the ability to…