Our Practice Areas

Eligibility for Citizenship/Naturalization

An individual can become a United States citizen at birth, during childhood by virtue of a parent’s citizenship (derivative citizenship), or through a process called naturalization. Claiming to be a United States citizen when you are not one can have dire, long-term consequences. If you think you might be a citizen of the United States already, or you want to become a citizen, seeking experienced legal help is extremely important.

Derivative and Natural Born Citizenship

Deriving citizenship through your parent or parents is complicated. Several things can impact whether or not you are a U.S. citizen. For example, derivative citizenship can depend on when and where you were born, how long your parent or parents lived in the United States prior to and following your birth, and how old you were when your parent or parents naturalized.

Natural born citizenship is similarly complicated. The phrase "natural-born citizen" appears in the Constitution of the United States. Unfortunately, the constitution does not expressly define “natural-born” nor has the Supreme Court ever ruled precisely upon its meaning. One can be a citizen while not being a "natural-born" citizen if, for example, that person gained citizenship through the process of naturalization or derived their citizenship from a parent after birth. There has been some discussion in the legal world about whether a person born abroad who has citizenship from birth is a “natural-born citizen,” but the law is currently unclear.

Whether you are a U.S. citizen seeking to register your child’s birth abroad (through a process called Consular Report of Birth Abroad/CRBA) or you believe you might have become a U.S. citizen after your birth and need a citizenship certificate as proof, our experienced immigration attorneys in Greensboro, Wilmington, and Asheville, North Carolina are ready to help!

Naturalization

The requirements for naturalization can be difficult to understand and cumbersome to pursue. At McKinney Immigration Law, we will offer an individualized assessment of your ability to become a U.S. citizen, draft the application, and help you to document your case correctly and completely. In addition, our firm will conduct a mock “interview” to prepare you for the real thing.

If you require medical or other disability accommodation while seeking U.S. citizenship, our experienced naturalization attorneys will work with your medical provider to obtain the proper documentation. If your adult family member has a legal guardian appointed by a state court, come meet with one of our experienced naturalization attorneys in Asheville, Greensboro, or Wilmington to discuss if and how they can become citizens of the United States.

Do Not Risk It All: Our Experienced Naturalization Attorneys are Ready to Help!

Permanent Residents are often tempted to file their own applications for citizenship without first consulting with a qualified immigration attorney. It is very important that a potential applicant at least have an initial consultation to verify that they are in fact eligible to naturalize. Certain criminal convictions or life changes that might have happened to the applicant since the approval of their permanent residence might change the recommended course of action.

While obtaining U.S. citizenship is desirable, moving forward in the wrong way can result in rescission and removal proceedings – court actions where the government of the United States tries to take away an individual’s legal permanent residency and make them leave the country. Being screened by our experienced naturalization attorneys in Greensboro, Wilmington, or Asheville, North Carolina can help ensure you avoid legal trouble.

Employers and Employees

H-1B visas are commonly used by businesses to recruit professionals who have very a specialized knowledge base or set of skills. Depending on the details of the situation, the petition may be competing for one of a limited number of visas made available each year. Our experienced H-1B lawyers will evaluate both the business and the employee for eligibility. We will also explain the options available to you, including the potential advantages and disadvantages. Regardless of whether you are an employer or an employee, we encourage you to contact us to discuss the situation.

Teachers, Schools, and Universities

Most schools and universities across the nation qualify for H-1B sponsorship. Schools are often exempt from the annual cap on H-1B visas when hiring teachers and professors in areas, such as ESL, TOESL, special education, foreign language, and other specialized areas.

Our firm has extensive experience working with teachers and their employers to identify the best options for temporary and permanent residency in many different states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey and Colorado. We also work hard to identify immigration options for a teacher’s immediate family.

General Information:

H-1B visas are commonly used by businesses in the United States to recruit professionals who have, at a minimum, a bachelor’s degree and work in an area of specialized knowledge. Most of these visas are subject to a “cap” which is a limit on the number of visas the United States may grant each fiscal year. The government of the United States’ fiscal year runs from October 1 until September 30 of the next year.

H-1B petitions can be filed six months in advance of the requested start date. For example, if an employer wanted a foreign national to start work on the first day of the government’s fiscal year, October 1, the petition could be filed no sooner than April 1. This is when the majority of H-1B cap subject petitions are filed, due to the limited number of H-1B visas available under federal immigration law each year.

Sometimes, the H-1B cap is reached on the very first day. In recent years, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) have received thousands of visa petitions more than they had visas. A visa lottery is used to determine which petitions are selected for adjudication.

Not all cases must be filed on April 1. H-1B Petitions that are “cap exempt” may be filed at any time during the year. As a result, during our consultations, our immigration attorneys will evaluate the petitioning school, organization, or company information to determine whether the H-1B cap applies.

To give an H-1B case the best possible chance of being selected and approved, we highly recommend that employers and employees in need of work authorization contact us as soon as possible, so that (1) we can determine whether the employee is subject to the H-1B cap; and (2) if so, we can prepare an H-1B petition in time for the April 1 deadline and/or evaluate other visa opportunities or back-up options.

Either the employee or the employer, or both, can schedule a consultation with a McKinney Immigration Law attorney. We will look at the job description for the new hire, the desired start date for employment, salary requirements, the employee’s education and experience credentials, and other background information to determine whether the H-1B category is the most appropriate.

Cap Exempt H-1B For Teachers

Almost all North Carolina schools (and many nationwide) qualify to be an H-1B visa sponsor for teachers when we help them prove they are not subject to the annual limit on H-1B visas. McKinney Immigration Law prides itself in serving teachers in public and private schools, universities, and program organizations. We work with teachers and their employers to identify the best temporary and immigrant visa options, and to identify options for spouses and other family members as well.

McKinney Immigration Law has extensive experience in handling H-1B, PERM, and other employment-based cases for ESL, TOESL, Special Education, Spanish, and other teachers and professors in many states, including North Carolina, Virginia, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, and Colorado.

Because teaching positions generally are considered professional occupations, the H-1B visa often is the most appropriate visa category for teacher work authorization. Good planning and legal advice are critical.

Our immigration attorneys help teachers and schools:

• Resolve issues regarding whether there are licensing issues that will impact on visa eligibility, and whether a provisional license will result in a grant of less than 3 years of H-1B status;

• Work with credential evaluators to obtain equivalencies for a bachelor’s degree in education from the United States or the specific field of instruction, etc., to avoid common problems many teachers and schools encounter when filing for H-1B status;

• Determine whether there are any options for avoiding the H-1B cap. For example, if a public high school is affiliated with a university that qualifies as an institution of higher education under federal law, the teaching position may not be subject to the H-1B cap;

• Determine whether a change of status from J-1 to H-1B will require a waiver of the 2-year foreign residency requirement. Even if a teacher is not H-1B cap subject, he or she may need to obtain the J waiver now, to obtain H-1B approval before school starts; and

• Walk through the necessary paperwork to ensure that all visa sponsorship laws are met.

Nonimmigrant Visas for Employment

Several nonimmigrant visas are provided to persons entering the United States to take temporary employment ranging from farm work to a highly specialized professional position. Under the leadership and direction of board-certified immigration law specialist, Jeremy L. McKinney, our experienced immigration attorneys will take the time to carefully evaluate your situation and identify your legal objectives. After an initial assessment of your, or your prospective employee’s, ability to qualify for a nonimmigrant visa, we will discuss the options available to you and develop a strategy geared toward reaching your goals in the most effective and efficient manner possible.

Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)

Nonimmigrant visas are for foreign nationals who desire to enter the United States for a specific purpose, but do not intend to stay in the United States permanently. The world of nonimmigrant visas is “alphabet soup,” with each type of visa named after their specific subsection in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Our firm can help you navigate this maze and find the right type of visa for you or your worker. Some of the visas we help our clients obtain include:

• B-1 (Business Visitor) or B-2 (Tourist): This category is available to persons who can demonstrate that (a) they have no intention of abandoning their residence abroad and (b) they are visiting the United States temporarily for business or pleasure. Regardless of the life of the visa itself, most B-1 or B-2 admissions are normally no longer than 6 months.

• E-1 (Treaty Trader) or E-2 (Treaty Investor): This category is available for traders, investors, and their employees to carry on substantial trade, or to develop and direct the operations of an enterprise in which the national has made a substantial investment where the applicant is a national of a country with which the United States maintains a treaty of commerce and navigation.
  

• H-1B (Professional Worker): This category is available for persons coming temporarily to perform services in a specialty occupation, or as a fashion model of distinguished merit and ability. Generally, a “specialty occupation” is defined as the theoretical and practical application of highly specialized knowledge requiring completion of a bachelor’s degree as a minimum qualification. Please see our H-1B page for additional information.

• H-2A (Farm Worker) or H-2B (Temporary Worker): This category is available to persons coming temporarily to meet temporary or seasonal needs in positions for which qualified US workers are not available. Generally, the employer must conduct a “recruitment campaign” designed to locate minimally qualified US workers before proceeding with a visa petition.

• J-1 (Exchange Visitor) or Q-1 (Cultural Exchange Visitor): This category is available to persons coming temporarily for educational and cultural exchange programs designated by the Department of State (J-1), or an international cultural exchange program designated by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (Q-1).

• L-1A (Manager or Executive Transferee) or L-1B (Specialized Knowledge Worker Transferee): This category is available to persons transferring from a company outside the United States to the company’s United States parent, subsidiary, branch, or affiliate. Generally, the person must have been employed full time abroad for the company for at least one continuous year out of the last three-year period to qualify.

• O-1 (Alien of Extraordinary Ability) or P-1 (Athletes, Entertainment Groups, Artists): This category is available to persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics (O-1); or to perform at a specific athletic competition as an athlete, individually or as part of a group or team, at an internationally recognized level of performance (P-1 Athlete); or to perform as a member of a foreign-based entertainment group that has been recognized internationally as outstanding in the discipline for a sustained and substantial period of time (P-1 Entertainment Group); or to perform, teach or coach as artists or entertainers, individually or as part of a group, under a program that is culturally unique (P-3).

• R-1 (Religious Worker): This category is available for persons entering temporarily to work for a bona fide nonprofit religious organization at the request of the organization, in a religious occupation which relates to a traditional religious function.
  

• TN (NAFTA Worker): This category is available to certain Canadian and Mexican professionals entering temporarily to work for a United States employer under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). TN employment must be in a profession listed in Appendix 1603.0.1 to NAFTA and the TN employee must possess the credentials required.