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U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

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191–200 of 907 posts

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#192
post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This was never about talent. It's about companies hiring foreigners on h1b visas at below market wages where their life in the USA is contingent on their job performance forcing them to work harder and longer than their peers to remain in the country. It's a situation that only benefits companies, while harming US citizens who have to compete with the lower wages of foreigners.

Isn't that a work visa and not an immigrant visa

H-1B / L-1 are non-immigrant visas, immigrant visas are green cards yes. Pausing green card processing in consulates after (on sketchy legal grounds) forcing folks to not do adjustment of status for getting an immigrant visa inside the country is, indeed, how the admin is trying to get around doing their job the way the INA intends them to.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#193
post #15

So for those that don't know, it's quite common for a visa renewal to be required to leave the country. Depending on the visa, you might have to do this every year. So just imagine, having a normal job in the US and you're asked to leave to renew your visa and this stuff happens. That's no more appointment, not even a new date and you're now very likely unable to work and possibly can't even enter the country to get…

[flagged]

The details of this story have glaring mistakes and don't make sense. I know this because I'm a naturalized citizen to the US and I came in on H1B.

> He's been doing the paperwork to finally become a citizen, and as one of the final steps he was required to leave the country

You don't have to leave the country to become a citizen. I recently became a US citizen a few years back and leaving the country is not required.

If you somehow meant Green Card, the timeline still doesn't make sense. Until May 2026, 3 months ago, you could do Adjustment of Status within the country without having to leave. So there's no reason why you friend would need to leave the country to get his Green Card unless he chose Consular Processing.

Getting denied CP is rare, but it means that they lied about something.

And if he did live in the US for decades without having his GC, well, applying for GC under Trump in this climate was a huge mistake, especially leaving the country having been in here for decades illegally. He should have waited 2 years until the Republicans were voted out and maybe he would have some modicum of amnesty where at least ICE would get him.

> His wife and child aren't citizens of his home country either, so it's not like they can move to be with him.

This also doesn't make sense. First off, the country's immigration is even more restrictive than the US?? They can't even visit on a travel visa??

They can definitely move to his home country, since he's a citizen. There's a spousal visas for almost all countries, and the child is most definitely allowed to come in since they can usually get citizenship via the father.

But there's no way he hasn't seen his daughter in over a year since the forced Consular Processing didn't start until this past May, and his spouse and daughter can most definitely travel to see him.

None of this story makes sense, so either you have the details very drastically incorrect or this is completely fake.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#194
post #15

So for those that don't know, it's quite common for a visa renewal to be required to leave the country. Depending on the visa, you might have to do this every year. So just imagine, having a normal job in the US and you're asked to leave to renew your visa and this stuff happens. That's no more appointment, not even a new date and you're now very likely unable to work and possibly can't even enter the country to get…

[flagged]

Didn't we used to fast track citizenship for immigrants who married a US citizen? I mean, the default should be that after the wedding you're now on track to be a citizen within a year or two if the marriage is still in effect by then.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#195
post #66
post #15

So for those that don't know, it's quite common for a visa renewal to be required to leave the country. Depending on the visa, you might have to do this every year. So just imagine, having a normal job in the US and you're asked to leave to renew your visa and this stuff happens. That's no more appointment, not even a new date and you're now very likely unable to work and possibly can't even enter the country to get…

Inhumane maybe, but our government should owe its first allegiance to our citizens wellbeing, not imported workers.

Surely you would admit that this Administration’s approach to immigration has been both chaotic and cruel. The workers who were given status in the United States expected a predictable process, not one that changes weekly based on the unserious personal whims of a bored, ill-informed and vindictive man. In any case, the prioritization of citizens’ wellbeing writ large is demonstrably _not_ a feature of this Administration’s agenda.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#196
post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Most immigration is based on hiring people into jobs for which the skills don't exist locally, based on what I've read. So, yes, they could hire a citizen, but then they probably wouldn't be able to do the job they were hired for.

Most immigration is based on hiring people into jobs for which the skills exist locally but which demand higher wages than immigrants. This is called a labor shortage by employers who prefer not to think of it as a salary shortage.

This is based on my experience in working with good immigrant coders who got the job over about equally capable locals, but more cheaply. The immigrants (mostly Indian and Chinese) tended to have weaker English communication skills but stronger work ethics.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#197
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Canada I had to leave and re-enter for my permanent resident status to complete. It’s not that uncommon - but it’s a pain.

Really? My spouse and I lived in Canada on work permits and were not required to leave in order to achieve PR status; nor to achieve citizenship status.

Prior to Covid, my wife had to exit the country to get photos taken as part of the permanent resident process. We took a trip to Montana for that purpose.

This seems to have changed in the past 3-4 years, but as the GP said, the original process did involve leaving.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#198
post #146

Not just immigration, seems like travel in general is becoming difficult too. It's a real shame that just when we have the tech and infrastructure to allow people to travel anywhere in the world within a day, for a single person to be able to explore the entirety of this awesome planet for the first time in human history, that the worst among us have to enforce artificial borders and deny everyone this basic freedom.…

> to enforce artificial borders and deny everyone this basic freedom. a very postnational view, humanist in a way, lipsius or erasmus would recognize it. that sort of individuated cosmopolitanism only works for educated men and women with means, who have or have the capacity to self-actualize. not for the masses. the nation is still a cradle to protect and nurture the commonwealth, and given that they took hundreds t…

There's no reason why we should worship borders, or the state.

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#199
post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd say it's on the Trump administration being full of racists and white nationalists and wanting to deport immigrants. Why do you wonder if it's economic instead of the Trump administration's announced policies of stopping immigration, including unconstitutionally removing birthright citizenship?

I think many (if not most) countries in the developed world should reduce immigration, and usa in particular should abolish birthright citizenship. The first because a lower supply of labor is going to create breathing space for an entire working population who will see tremendous job upheaval due to AI automation. A lower aggregate demand on houses, services will also be welcome to take the fuel out of inflation, an…

straight up lying and doomer boomer mentality, sad and gross.

very consistent correlations between migrants being net positive economic providers, more law abiding then native citizens, and just straight up regurgitating racist myths

mass deportations won’t solve anything economic when it’s the same admin hamstringing prices and rates with tariffs, war, and defacto support of the oligopoly

i really wish basement dwellers like you though of something original now and then

Re: U.S. State Department pauses immigrant visa applications

#200
post #106

As noted clearly in the article, this is a temporary pause while personnel are brought up to speed on the protocols. The real question is how just or unjust the refusals will be once it is unpaused. It's bad enough that the process is excruciatingly slow. Users keep downvoting my comment even though it is the only literal interpretation supported by the evidence, without any evidence to the contrary. I would rethink…

You're obviously wrong, it obviously doesn't make sense to close down instead is implementing the training for the new protocols in parallel. And the current disruption is just as real of a question as the future refusals. And obviously courts couldn't do it easily. By the way, you also haven't provided any evidence for your opinion, why would you burden type replies with it?

The evidence is the title and the content of the article, so read it. I am not the one to jump to conclusions.
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