President Obama Signs Bill and Extends Programs

On Wednesday, October 28, 2009, President Obama signed into law the FY10 Department of Homeland Security Appropriations bill (P.L. 111-83). The law extends through September 30, 2012 the following programs: "Conrad 30" for J-1 waivers for physicians, the EB-5 Pilot Program for Regional Centers and E-Verify. It also extends the ability of non-minister religious workers to file Special Immigrant Religious Worker Petitions in order to obtain U.S. permanent residence.

Green Card Lottery Starts Today!

The 2011 Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV-2011), better known as the green card lottery, starts today at noon Eastern Daylight Time. The program runs through noon Eastern Standard Time on November 30, 2009. The green card lottery is not available to individuals borth in Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, South Korea, United Kingdom (except Northern Ireland) and its dependent territories, and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, and Taiwan are eligible. For more information or to apply, please see http://www.travel.state.gov/pdf/DV-2011instructions.pdf.