SMA opens Netherlands Office, names Rinske Harlaar as Director of SMA NL.

2024-01-04T14:06:20-05:00

SMA Is proud to announce the official opening of our Netherlands office, SMA NL, headed by attorney Rinske Harlaar. Due to SMA’s strong relationship with the Dutch business community, we believe it is time to provide local counsel to our clients and be able to continue to provide services on all U.S. immigration matters. […]

SMA opens Netherlands Office, names Rinske Harlaar as Director of SMA NL.2024-01-04T14:06:20-05:00

The hardest year in half a century for immigrants

2023-10-30T11:30:43-04:00
The holidays are here and another year is about to come and go, but 2019 has been the hardest year in half a century for immigrants. The current administration has denied visas at astronomically rising levels and this had led to a drop in visa petitions being presented etc., a vicious circle which feeds […]
The hardest year in half a century for immigrants2023-10-30T11:30:43-04:00

The Trump administration further attempts to restrict rights of asylum seekers

2023-10-30T11:33:56-04:00

On April 29th President Trump released a memo instructing the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security to formulate regulations that will further restrict our humanitarian asylum laws for those seeking asylum protection at the southern border.

The memo directs the implementation of regulations that will require asylum seekers to pay a fee to […]

The Trump administration further attempts to restrict rights of asylum seekers2023-10-30T11:33:56-04:00

H-1B Transfer Activity Will Be Unprecedented

2023-10-30T11:34:24-04:00

On May 1, prospective employers who sponsored H-1B visa candidates this year began to get receipt notices for US Masters Cap cases. In the month to follow, employers will find out the fate of the blind lottery used to determine which H-1B petitions will be adjudicated.

Every year, USCIS starts accepting H-1B petitions on April […]

H-1B Transfer Activity Will Be Unprecedented2023-10-30T11:34:24-04:00

Why become a U.S. citizen?

2023-10-30T11:35:36-04:00

In my profession, I get asked this question a lot. SMA assists many people to get permanent residence in the U.S., either through company sponsorship, self-sponsorship (extraordinary ability) or through family petitions or asylum applications, and the last step is to apply to become U.S. citizens, but not all people take that step, which […]

Why become a U.S. citizen?2023-10-30T11:35:36-04:00

Immigration Status and Employment Laws in New York

2023-10-30T11:39:29-04:00

Foreign workers in the U.S. occupy every position from farmhand and dishwasher to engineer, doctor and CEO, and their visas and legal statuses also vary greatly. For the majority of the twelve-plus million undocumented immigrants, there is no such thing as legal employment, and therefore employers are not supposed to hire them at all. […]

Immigration Status and Employment Laws in New York2023-10-30T11:39:29-04:00

The Government Shutdown: How is it affecting immigration cases? by Kate Chaltain, Esq

2023-10-30T11:42:40-04:00

On Monday, January 21st, we entered the sixth week of the federal government shutdown, making it the longest shutdown of the federal government in U.S. history.  Government agencies that receive federal appropriations and are not deemed “essential service” providers do not have the required funding to continue operating and have been shuttered until further […]

The Government Shutdown: How is it affecting immigration cases? by Kate Chaltain, Esq2023-10-30T11:42:40-04:00

“Outside-In Immigration”

2018-10-16T14:42:26-04:00

SMA Law Firm has its origins in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where its founder, Steve Maggi, set up shop in 2004 and started offering U.S. immigration legal assistance to people and companies from his native Argentina. What developed from that was a specialization in what we call “Outside-In Immigration”. What does this mean? Essentially it […]

“Outside-In Immigration”2018-10-16T14:42:26-04:00

A Country Built on the Shoulders of Immigrants

2021-12-29T08:47:23-05:00

It seems obvious, doesn’t it? When the first boats from Europe came to the shores of what became colonies and then eventually the United States of America, the only native “Americans” were the Indians, the only people who can claim this territory as their own, at least for the last 10,000 years or so, […]

A Country Built on the Shoulders of Immigrants2021-12-29T08:47:23-05:00

USCIS Announces Alarming Changes in Immigration Petition Adjudications

2018-08-09T12:59:38-04:00

On July 13, 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) posted a policy memorandum on its website, that provides guidance to USCIS adjudicators regarding their discretion to deny an application, petition, or request without first issuing a Request for Evidence (RFE) or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) when required initial evidence was not submitted […]

USCIS Announces Alarming Changes in Immigration Petition Adjudications2018-08-09T12:59:38-04:00

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