The HMA Law Firm - Immigration & Criminal Defense Lawyers

Call: 703.964.0245

  • Home
  • Our Team
  • Practice
    • Immigration >
      • Employment-Based Immigration >
        • The H-1B Visa
        • Investor and Intracompany Transfers (E & L Visas)
        • PERM Labor Certification >
          • Cross Chargeability
          • EB-5 Green Cards
      • Marriage & Fiancé Visas >
        • Special Service for Servicemen
        • Marriage Interview Questions
        • The I-751 Good Faith Waiver
        • Evidence for Filing an I-751
        • My I-751 Was Denied: Now What?
        • Same-Sex Marriage Immigration Issues
        • New 90 Day Rule
      • General Immigration >
        • Filing a FOIA from USCIS
        • Form G-639: How to Complete
        • Re-Entry Permits
        • TPS >
          • More on TPS
          • SYRIA TPS
          • TPS Yemen
        • U Visas
      • Legal Victories
      • How To Choose The Right Immigration Lawyer
      • Waivers (I-601/I-601A) >
        • Drunk Driving (DUI/DWI) and I-601/I-601A Waivers
      • Citizenship >
        • N-648 Medical Waivers
        • Naturalization Pitfalls
        • The Civics Test for Naturalization
        • Exceptions for English Test
        • Criminal Convictions and Naturalization
      • Mandamus: It's Taking Too Long >
        • Mandamus: What to Think, What to Expect
        • How an Immigration Writ of Mandamus Works
        • Petition for Hearing on Naturalization
      • Deportation Defense >
        • Overview of Removal Proceedings
        • Deportation: Preventive Maintenance
      • Deferred Action (DACA) >
        • To Lawyer Or Not To Lawyer
        • Applying for a Social Security Number
    • Criminal Defense >
      • Traffic Offenses
    • Learn >
      • Immigration In A Nutshell >
        • The Visa Bulletin and Family Immigration
      • Criminal Immigration Law 101 >
        • Know Your Rights
      • Eligibility for Citizenship >
        • Citizenship versus Naturalization
        • Why Become a Citizen?
  • Consult/Pay Fees
  • Testimonials
  • Careers
  • Blawg
  • En EspaƱol
    • Accion Ejecutiva
    • El Interdicto Temporal
    • Buscar Detenido
    • Reforma Inmigratoria
    • Papeles Por Los Indocumentados

IMMIGRATION - IN A NUTSHELL

The US immigration system has a reputation for being notoriously complex. In many ways, it is a reputation that is well deserved. Many other countries in the world have similar regulations, but few have the immense body of law and regulation that is encountered in the American system. As lawyers we often have to explain some of these complex legal concepts, many of which are hard to understand.

One way of understanding the system is to think of the United States as a major league sports stadium. If you are a citizen, you are part owner of the team. If you have a green card, you've got box seats. If you have some other type of status, you're there just for a few games, or maybe just a single game. At each entrance to the stadium are the ticket collectors who check to see if people coming in have their tickets. Inside the stadium are security officers who will forcibly remove those who are in the wrong seats, failed to abide by stadium regulations, or commit a crime. If you want to get in, you have to have a ticket, or at least a hand stamp, and abide by the rules and regulations or risk being removed. And you can always visit the ticket office, pay fees and if you qualify, you may be able to upgrade your seats!

Sticking with this analogy a little further:

  1. Generally, you need a ticket to enter.
  2. It's much harder to get in, but once you're in, you can move around a bit more easily.
  3. Unless you're an owner, every time you try to enter, you're going to have to show a valid ticket.
  4. If you've been admitted and want to leave and come back, you've got to get a hand stamp before you leave, otherwise you will not be allowed back in.
  5. Each ticket class has its own regulations, is valid for a certain game or games, and has assigned seating.
  6. Unless you're an owner, you have no right to enter or be in the stadium. Even if you have a ticket, you can still be turned away or removed. It doesn't matter if you've held box seats for the last 20 seasons.
  7. Oftentimes, in order to get box seats, an existing box seat holder or owner has to sponsor you, unless you have the finances to buy one yourself.
And that's immigration in a nutshell. Core concepts of immigration are visas, admissibility, removability, and status. The immigration law regulates who gets in, who gets to stay, and who gets kicked out. The entire body of law that has grown around these central concepts is testament to difficult a task it is to regulate the movement of humanity.




Picture

Consult an attorney

The HMA Law Firm
1039 Sterling Road
Suite 204
Herndon VA 20170
703.964.0245
301.637.4019
info@hmalegal.com

Quick Links

  • Our Team
  • Practice Areas
  • Executive Action
  • Consult

Contact Info

8133 Leesburg Pike, Ste 801
Vienna VA 22182

Tel:  703.964.0245

Fax: 703.997.8556
Email: info@hmalegal.com

Subscribe to the HMA LawFeed

Picture

​Pay Fees Here

©2009 - 2021 by Hassan M. Ahmad. All rights reserved. No portion of this website may be copied or reproduced for any purpose without express written permission.

Photo used under Creative Commons from Daveybot