This document provides an overview and summary of an immigration law presentation titled "Getting in the Game" presented by Jill K. Soubel, Esq. on April 27, 2011. The presentation covers key terminology, processes and visa types for nonimmigrants seeking to enter the United States for business, pleasure, athletic competitions and other temporary purposes. It also discusses visa options and processes for certain immigrant visas and hypothetical scenarios.

1. “Getting in the Game”
April 27, 2011
Jill K. Soubel, Esq.
The Rudnick Spector Firm
Philadelphia, PA
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

2. Jill K. Soubel, Esq.
Sr. Associate
1608 Walnut St., Ste. 1700
Philadelphia, PA 19103
T: (215) 690 – 5090
E: jsoubel@rudnickspector.com
http://www.rudnickspector.com
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

3.  Introduction
 Terminology
• Non-Immigrant v. Immigrant
• Visa v. Stay v. Status
• Visa Types
 Nonimmigrant Process
• Filing in the U.S.
• Visa Application at a U.S. Consulate
• Entering the U.S.
• Extending Status & Stay in the U.S.
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

4.  Visa Waiver Program (“VWP”)
 B-1 Visa
 P-1 Visa
 O-1 Visa
 Immigrant Visas
 Hypotheticals
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

5.  The Law
• Immigration & Nationality Act
• 8 CFR – Regulations
• Title 9 Foreign Affairs Manual
 The Players
• Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
 USCIS: US Citizenship & Immigration Services
 CBP: Customs & Border Protection
 ICE: Immigration & Customs Enforcement
• Department of State (DOS)
 U.S. Embassy/Consulates
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

6.  Nonimmigrant: a foreign national (“FN”)
who legally enters the U.S. for a limited
amount of time without the intent to reside
permanently in the U.S.
• Permissible Activities: Travel, work, study
• Limited duration of stay
• Dual Intent: Certain nonimmigrants are allowed to
intend to reside permanently in the U.S. (H-1B, L-1)
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

7.  Immigrant: a FN who legally enters the U.S.
with the intention of permanent residing in the
U.S.
• Basis for immigrant status
 Family
 Work
• Preference system with limited number of immigrant
visas available each year
• Backlogs based on preference and nationality of the
intending immigrant
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

8.  Visa
• A visa is a stamp that is affixed by a U.S. Consulate to
a FN’s passport
• A visa allows a FN to present him/herself for
admission to the U.S. at the “border”
• The border can be: Land, Sea, or Air
• Visa can be nonimmigrant or immigrant
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

9. © 2011 Jill K. Soubel

10.  Stay
• Amount of time FN is admitted to U.S., as
determined by DOS and/or USCIS
• At U.S. border, FN will receive I-94 card with red
entry stamp, indicating length of permitted stay.
• If extending stay in U.S., FN will receive a new I-94
card at bottom of approval notice.
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

11. © 2011 Jill K. Soubel

12.  Status
• Authority by which FN is in the U.S.
• Nonimmigrants: “H-1B status”
• Immigrants: Legal Permanent Resident (“LPR”)
status
• Is evidenced by relevant approval document (USCIS
notice, I-94 card, LPR card)
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

13. © 2011 Jill K. Soubel

14.  Visa Waiver Program (VWP)
• Certain FNs require no visa to enter U.S.
• 36 countries participate
• Restrictions:
 Admitted to U.S. for 90 days or less
 Leisure travel
 Certain business travel (meetings, attend training/conference)
 Nonimmigrant MVPs:
• B: Leisure or limited business travel
• E: Treaty Trader/Investors/Specialty Occupation
• F: Student Visas
• J: Cultural Exchange/Au Pair/Summer Work Travel/Trainee
• H: Professional workers
• L: Intracompany transferees
• O: Extraordinary Ability FNs
• P: Athletes, Artists, Entertainment Groups
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

15.  Begin in U.S.
• File with USCIS
• Visa application to DOS at U.S. Consulate
• Enter U.S. at border after CBP inspection
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

16.  Begin at Consulate
• Small class of nonimmigrants process solely at U.S.
Consulate: B, E, Blanket L
 Canadians
• Do not require visas
• Skip U.S. Consulate
• Process at border
• UNLESS: inadmissibility issues (i.e. criminal)
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

17.  Visitors for Business (B-1) or Pleasure (B-2)
 Most temporary of all visas/status
 Visa (if required) only valid for up to one
year
 Will be admitted to U.S. for up to 6 months
 Limited scope of permissible activities
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

18.  Professionals (B-1)
• Participating in tournament/event
• May not received salary
• May receive prize money
• Athlete/team members may compete against another
sports team IF:
 Principally based abroad;
 Income/salaries principally accrued abroad; and,
 Member of international sports league or event involved has
international dimension.
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

19.  Amateurs (B-2)
• Participating in athletic event/tournament
• NOT member of professional association
• No remuneration/prize money
• Incidentals may be reimbursed
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

20.  Must make appointment at U.S. Consulate
 Must pay applicable fee – at least $140 USD
 Burden of proof at U.S. Consulate:
• Event/tournament bona fide & certain
• Invitation
• Intended stay is temporary
• Sufficient ties to home country
• Sufficient funds to support stay in U.S. & return to
home country
• Round-trip airfare or itinerary
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

21.  Common Consular Issues
• I didn’t realize I needed a visa and my event is
tomorrow!
• I’m Mexican, but I live in Nigeria. Can I apply for my visa
as a third-country national?
• I’m Moroccan, Cuban, Iranian, Egyptian, Turkish…
• Oh, I forgot to mention the drug arrest/manslaughter
conviction/time served for petty theft…
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

22.  For Athletes & Coaches (P-1)
 Granted in 5 year increments, renewable indefinitely
 Support personnel (P-1S) – Coaches “highly skilled”
 Dependent family members (P-4)
 Requirements
 Process begins in U.S.
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

23.  Four Categories of Eligibility:
1. Athlete performing at “internationally recognized
level”
2. Athletes employed by teams in major professional
association or minor league affiliates
3. Athletes or Coaches employed by team/franchise
located in U.S., that is qualifying member of
foreign amateur league or association
4. Professional or amateur in theatrical ice skating
production
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

24.  Athlete or team performing at “internationally
recognized level”
 “Degree of skill and recognition substantially above that ordinarily
encountered”
 “Renowned, leading, or well-known in more than one country”
 If team, 75% of athletes must have 1 yr. with team.
 Must meet 2 of the following:
 Played significantly in prior season with major US sports league or U.S.
college/university,
 Participated in international competition with national team,
 Letter from sport governing body detailing FN/team’s internationally recognition
 Letter from sports media or expert
 International rankings
 Significant honor or award in sport
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

25.  Athletes employed by teams in major professional
association or minor league affiliates
• For “professionals” in large commercial sports
• Employed by a team that is member of association that:
 Consists of 6 or more professional teams
 Combined revenues exceeding $10 Million/year
 Governs conduct of members
 Regulates regular member-attended contests and exhibitions
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

26.  Athletes or Coaches employed by amateur
team/franchise located in U.S.
 Team must belong to foreign amateur league or association
with 15 or more members
 Compete at “highest” amateur level in relevant country
 Athletes ineligible to earn scholarship or participate in sport
at U.S. College/University under NCAA
 “Significant number” must be drafted by major sports
league or minor league affiliate
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

27.  For Athletes & Coaches (O-1)
 Support personnel (O-2)
 Dependent family members (O-3)
 Renewable indefinitely
 Requirements:“one of the small percentage
who have arisen to the top of the field”
 Process
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

28.  Must show at least 3 of the following to prove extraordinariness:
• Nationally/Internationally recognized prize/award for excellence
• Membership in associations requiring excellence
• Published material about athlete in major trade/media
• Participation as a judge of others in the field
• Current/prior employment in critical capacity or distinguished organization
• Past or proffered comparatively high salary
• Any comparable evidence
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

29.  Required for primary beneficiary AND separately for
support personnel
 Provided by regulating body/union
 If no regulating entity, no consultation required
 Support personnel consultation must address why
no U.S. worker qualified to perform role
 Can take weeks to obtain
 Associated fees
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

30. E visa (treaty investors/traders):
 L-1 (intracompany)
Q (cultural visitors)
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

31.  EB-1 Extraordinary Ability Alien
 No sponsor required
 One-time achievement (major, international award) OR 3 of the
following
 Receipt of lesser national/international prize or award
 Memberships in associations;
 Published material about FN in trade or mass media
 Judged others in field;
 Served in lead/critical role for distinguished organization; and,
 Commanded high salary.
 EB-2/EB-3 PERM
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

32.  Polly Payne is Australian. She attended the University of
Texas, where she competed as a triathlete for the Long Horns.
Polly will graduate in May. She will return to Sydney to start
training for the Big Easy Tri in New Orleans, LA, which will take
place in September, and the Turkey Trot Duathalon in
Plymouth, MA, which will take place in November. She really
wants to “make it” as a triathlete in the U.S., but knows that only
her Aussie coach can take her there!
 Jean-Luc Canard, a Canadian national, is an amateur hockey
player in Toronto, Canada. The Flyers would like to bring him to
play with the team for a try-out during the play-offs. What do
the Flyers need to do to bring him over?
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

33.  Jessica Jumper, a Bulgarian national, is a professional stadium
jumper and horse trainer. She competed in the Olympics on
behalf of Bulgaria, coming in 37th place, and regularly travels
within Europe to compete on her trusty stead, BPO Visa
Challenge. She has won at some major shows, including at one
Grand Prix and she belongs to the Hungarian and British
Equestrian Federation. She has an offer of employment from the
Bryn Mawr High Flyers stable to train and compete.
 Coach Muddleworthshire’s UK national reserve champion
cricket team has been invited to participate in a number of
exhibition sporting matches in the U.S. The team is nothing
without him, and he must accompany them to ensure their top
performance. Secretly, Coach Muddleworthshire would like to
open cricket franchises throughout the U.S., and would like the
option to remain in the U.S. for as long as possible.
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

34. Ms. Soubel is an Associate at The Rudnick Spector Firm, having served in this capacity
with its predecessor firm beginning in 2007. Ms. Soubel was selected as a 2010 Top Young
Attorney “Rising Star” by Pennsylvania Super Lawyers.
Ms. Soubel counsels clients on U.S. and global immigration matters. She concentrates in all
aspects of U.S. corporate immigration, including nonimmigrant visas and permanent
residence for intracompany transferees, professionals, and extraordinary ability individuals.
She also assists clients with global immigration needs by preparing outbound business-
related visas. She advises on and crafts corporate strategies for clients to ensure U.S.
immigration law compliance.
Prior to practicing exclusively in immigration law, Ms. Soubel gained several years of
employment litigation experience representing employers and their insurance providers in
Workers’ Compensation matters.
Throughout her career, Ms. Soubel has been actively involved with international affairs and
the immigrant community. In 2003, she interned as a Law Clerk in Tokyo, Japan, at Sakura
Kyodo Law Offices in the International Law Department, where she advised on matters of
U.S. immigration, corporate, and antitrust law, and gained experience in Japan’s
immigration system. She served as a member of the Temple International and Comparative
Law Journal, while pursuing her legal studies at Temple University. Prior to practicing
law, Ms. Soubel also served as an EFL Instructor.
Education:
James E. Beasley School of Law at Temple University, 2004, J.D.
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2000, BA with Honors.
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel

35. Stacey Leigh Spector, a Founding Partner of The Rudnick Spector Firm, is among the country’s
leading immigration lawyers. She has been practicing immigration law for over 25 years, and is a
founding partner of The Rudnick Spector Firm. Ms. Spector’s practice encompasses a full
spectrum of business immigration including multinational corporations, technology
companies, academic and research institutions, and entertainers and artists. Ms. Spector has
particular expertise in advising employers on the immigration implications of corporate
changes, including mergers and acquisitions, downsizing, and reductions in work force. She has
successfully developed I-9 Compliance Training Programs for HR personnel, and has managed I-
9 and H-1B audits for her clients.
Prior to establishing the Rudnick Spector Firm, Ms. Spector served for ten years as Of Counsel
to the predecessor firm of Steel, Rudnick & Ruben. Ms. Spector also served as Immigration
Counsel to the former Rhône-Poulenc Group based in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, from 1992 to
2000. Ms. Spector was based in Paris, France, from 1990 to 1992, where she established an
immigration practice and published “The Immigration Chronicle.” From 1987 to 1990, Ms. Spector
headed the immigration practice at Pavia & Harcourt in New York, New York. She served as an
Associate at Patterson, Belknap Webb & Tyler, also in New York City, from 1982 to 1984.
Education:
New York University School of Law, 1982, J.D.
Brown University, 1979, Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa
© 2011 Jill K. Soubel