Here is a copy of an article I wrote for the Johnson County Bar Letter:     One of the most important – and troublesome – concepts in immigration law is that of “unlawful presence.”  A person is “unlawfully present” if he or she is present in the United States “after the expiration of the period of stay authorized by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security or is present in the United States without being admitted

One of the recurring themes I’ll examine on this blog is the idea of “unlawful presence.”  With certain exceptions, under current immigration laws, a person “unlawfully present” in the United States for a certain period of time is ineligible to: (1) adjust his or her status to that of a Lawful Permanent Resident (e.g., by having an I-130 Petition for an Alien Relative filed on his or her behalf), or (2) Enter the United States.

For many people, an Application for Asylum is the only immigration option. Compare the number of times asylum is granted to the overall number of asylum cases; do the numbers seem reasonable? http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/17/17708693-for-asylum-seekers-path-to-citizenship-is-paved-with-peril?lite

Washington (CNN) — The full Senate formally kicks off debate Tuesday on the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” immigration reform bill — a plan which, if enacted, will create a 13-year path to citizenship for most of America’s 11 million undocumented immigrants. Among other things, the measure aims to strengthen border security while raising the cap on visas for high-skilled workers and establishing a new visa program for low-skilled workers on America’s farms and elsewhere. “This