Category: Naturalization and Citizenship
U.S. and Hong Kong Wary of Birth Tourism
The United States and Hong Kong encourage medical tourism. Patients are drawn by the high standard of care, and hospitals find this business to be disproportionately profitable. But both are wary of “birth tourism,” i.e., women entering as visitors with the intent to give birth.
Best Passport for Visa-Free Travel (2011)
The Economist has posted this graphic showing that the best passports for visa-free travel are Sweden/Finland/Denmark (entry to about 170 countries), followed closely by Germany, Japan, USA, and Canada. A Chinese passport allows visa-free travel to about 40.
Translation: Interim Regulations for the Administration of Schools Established for Children of Foreign Personnel
(Source: Ministry of Education. English translation is unofficial).
USCIS Fee Increase
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced it is raising fees an average of 10%, effective Nov. 23, 2010. The agency is primarily fee-based, with about 90% of its budget coming from applicants and petitioners seeking immigration benefits. The agency justifies the fee increase as a way to recover costs after fiscal year 2008…
DOS Increases Fees for Immigrant Visas & American Citizen Services
I previously reported on fee increases by the U.S. Department of State (DOS) for nonimmigrant visas effective June 4, 2010. Now, DOS has also issued an interim final rule increasing fees for immigrant visas and certain American Citizen Services, effective July 13. DOS justifies the changes by citing an independent cost of service study’s findings…
Translation: Notice of the Beijing Education Committee Regarding Measures for Enrolling in Kindergarten, Elementary, and Secondary Schools the Children of Certain Parents Coming to Beijing for Investment and Innovation
(Source: Beijing Education Commission. English translation is unofficial).
Chinese Green Card Holder Under Deportation Proceedings After Voting in U.S. Election
Hong Skains, age 37, is a green card holder from China. She registered and voted in the 2004 federal elections in Colorado, apparently unaware that only citizens are eligible to vote.