John Stahl – Page 2 – Emerald Isle Immigration Center

EIIC Awarded FY2019 USCIS Citizenship and Assimilation Grant

October 22, 2019September 30, 2019

On Tuesday, September 17th, our country celebrated
Constitution Day and Citizenship Day. During Constitution Week, from September
17th to September 23rd, more than 34,000 people became citizens during
approximately 316 naturalization ceremonies nationwide.

A naturalization ceremony is a joyous and moving event,
which all Americans should have the opportunity to witness. Immigrants from
countries near and far vow to support and defend the Constitution, recite the
Pledge of Allegiance and proudly wave the American flag. For most new citizens,
getting to this milestone is the result of hard work and preparation.

At the Emerald Isle Immigration Center, we provide lawful
permanent residents with the support they need to be successful on their path
to citizenship. It is a privilege to work with these aspiring citizens, and we
now continue to have an even greater ability to assist those in our local
community through a generous grant from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS).

We are one of 41 organizations across the country to receive
this competitive grant award. The funding we will receive, totaling $250,000,
will help support our citizenship preparation services for the next two years.

The Emerald Isle Immigration Center is a
community-based organization with
offices in Woodside, Queens and Woodlawn in the Bronx. Over thirty years ago
the Emerald Isle Immigration Center was established as a Center to provide
day-to-day assistance to newly arrived Irish immigrants. Since those early days a small hard-working
staff, dedicated Board and many volunteers spent long hours helping people with
important matters; bank accounts, driver’s licenses, housing, medical
insurance, education and protection under the law. The Center helped thousands
to apply for visas after 1990 and has since assisted many more thousands to
follow through and get their green cards and attain US citizenship.

Since 1988, the Center has broadened the scope of its
services to include legal assistance, citizenship preparation and adult
literacy, social services and employment related services to all immigrants. We
assist more than 20,000 individuals each year by providing case assistance,
information, and referrals. We offer direct legal representation on immigration
and citizenship cases to over 1,000 low-income immigrants and New York City
residents annually. Over the past year, we have represented clients from
seventy-three countries, including Ireland.

The Center has always placed great emphasis on American
citizenship and civic engagement and we see empowerment, integration and
participation as vital factors in the well-being of the community we serve. We
are very grateful and proud to have received funding over the past eight years
and for the next two years from the USCIS Office of Citizenship to provide
legal assistance and instruction to those seeking to become U.S. citizens. The
additional funding will allow us to continue to provide our educational and legal
assistance to 880 needy lawful permanent residents through multi-level classes
led by trained instructors and direct legal assistance in understanding and
filing for naturalization.

This is the eleventh year USCIS has awarded grants to expand
the availability of high-quality citizenship preparation services for lawful
permanent residents across the nation. With this USCIS grant, our efforts will
have a larger impact in helping some of our fellow community members achieve
their dream of U.S. citizenship. By helping immigrants improve their English
language skills and learn about our country’s history and government, and the
rights and responsibilities that define citizenship, we will help them
civically integrate – and that’s good for us all.

With civic integration comes participation – in service
groups, school boards, homeowners associations, charitable organizations and
many other worthy causes. This citizen-driven community participation is a
hallmark of what makes this country great.

We at the Emerald Isle Immigration Center can’t help but
feel an extra boost of patriotism this week as we recognize the achievement of
those who will naturalize. We are proud to be a part of a process that is so
important for our country and for our community and look forward to serving at
least 880 more people as they pursue their own dream of becoming U.S. citizens.

DV-2020 Green Card Lottery Application Status Check Opens on Tuesday, May 7th

May 3, 2019

Applicants who submitted an entry under the Diversity Visa 2020 green card lottery (DV-2020) can check the status of their application online starting on Tuesday, May 7, 2019, at noon (EDT). The DV-2020 entry period opened on October 3, 2018, and closed on November 6, 2018. Only confirmation information for entries submitted during this period are valid for checking your status.

All DV-2020 applicants must check their status online, and will not receive a notification letter or e-mail from the U.S. government. Diversity Visa Entry Status Check will only be provided through the Department of State secure online site. Until September 30, 2020, entrants are able to check the status of their entry through the E-DV website at http://dvlottery.state.gov/ESC. Entrants need to use their own confirmation page information from the time of their entry to check the status to find out if their Diversity Visa Lottery entry was or was not selected. Entrants will need to enter their last name, year of birth and confirmation number from the receipt.

The Department of State advises the public of a notable increase in fraudulent emails and letters sent to potential Diversity Visa (DV) program (Visa Lottery) applicants. The scammers behind these fraudulent emails and letters are posing as the U.S. government in an attempt to extract payment from DV applicants.

Please keep your confirmation number until at least September 30, 2020, even if you are not selected on May 7, 2019. The Department of State may select more DV-2020 entries on October 1, 2019 or after.

Entrants who have lost their confirmation number can enter further identifying details on the official website to retrieve it by clicking the “Forgot Confirmation Number” link.

All lottery applicants who were assisted at our office would have received a copy of their application confirmation page with their confirmation number. Please contact our office if you need the information again.

Selected entrants must confirm their qualifications, submit their immigrant visa and alien registration application, prepare supporting documents, and have a consular interview. Visa number allocations are determined by the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act which determines the number of diversity immigrant visas available each year. Selected entrants will only be scheduled for an interview when and if there is a visa number available. Before being interviewed, each applicant must pay the Diversity Visa Lottery fee of $330 per person which is not refundable. For more detailed information, including steps to take to prepare for the consulate interview, go to https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/diversity-visa/if-you-are-selected.html.

It is expected that the next application period for the DV Lottery will be between October and November this year. Official dates, rules and eligible countries should be announced by late September. For more information, go to the official US State Department website at www.dvlottery.state.gov. You may also contact our office in the early fall for more information and assistance to complete another application. Be aware that the application for the DV lottery is free and you do not need to pay anyone to enter.

Diversity Visa (DV-2020) Green Card Lottery Entry Period and Upcoming Public Immigration Information Meetings

October 2, 2018

EIIC announces dates for Public Immigration Information sessions for the community at Bronx and Queens offices and continues to offer free assistance with green card lottery applications and general consultations

The annual diversity visa lottery registration period opens once again on October 3rd until November 6th for those who are eligible to apply for a green card to reside permanently in the United States. Only entries submitted during this period will be accepted and considered for selection in the lottery. Applications will only be accepted online via the U.S. Department of State official website at www.dvlottery.state.gov.

In recent years there has been an increase in online scams promising green cards or quicker service for a fee. EIIC’s Immigration Attorney and Director of Immigration Legal Services, John A. Stahl, Esq., urged those interested in applying to note, “There is still no fee to apply and there is only one official website to register.” He advises individuals to ignore any email offers to help complete or expedite the application process.

Please call either of our offices if you need assistance with your application. Alternatively, if you have questions about any immigration matter, please note the dates and places of our upcoming public meetings from 6pm to 8pm:

October 18, 2018, Queens, EIIC Office, 4275 Katonah Ave, Woodlawn, NY
October 23, 2018, Bronx, EIIC Office, 59-26 Woodside Ave, Woodside, NY

The immigration legal services staff at the Center is once again appealing to potential applicants to apply early this year, cautioning that the official DV Lottery website can get frozen closer to the deadline of noon on Tuesday, November 6th. Regretfully, we will be unable to accommodate last minute walk-ins during the final week of the DV Lottery registration period.

If you are a member of a local group or organization and would like our staff to speak to your group on the DV Lottery in October or on any immigration topic at a future meeting, please contact John A. Stahl, Esq., Director of Immigration Legal Services and Immigration Attorney at 718-478-5502, extension 201.

Check our website for additional information and upcoming public meeting dates at www.eiic.org

EIIC Immigration legal services staff has helped many apply who are currently in the United States on the visa waiver program or on a temporary work visa and are still in status. “The green card lottery is a yearly opportunity for qualified applicants who are legally in the United States or overseas to attain permanent resident status here with no strings attached”, according to EIIC’s Immigration Legal Services Director, John A. Stahl.

Each year, 50,000 green cards are made available through a lottery system to individuals who come from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The State Department’s Kentucky Consular Center holds the annual lottery and chooses winners randomly from about 8-10 million qualified entries. About 100,000 entries are selected and given the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. If permanent residence is granted, then the individual, their spouse and any unmarried children under the age of 21 will be authorized to live and work permanently in the United States. “The DV Lottery is one of the few ways that exist to apply for a green card. Despite the low allocation of green cards to Ireland, it is worth the effort, if you really do want a long term option to stay legally in America,” stated Siobhan Dennehy, EIIC’s Executive Director. “I equate the odds to playing the New York State Lottery as there are over 8 million applications from all over the world annually. Although you apply for the green card in 2018, you will not be notified about your application until 2019 and you won’t actually receive the green card itself until 2020, that’s why they call it the 2020 DV Lottery, which can be confusing.”

Only natives of certain countries are eligible to apply for the green card lottery. Those born in the following countries are NOT eligible to apply for the DV-2020 lottery because a total of more than 50,000 immigrants came from these countries to the U.S. in the previous five years: Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland-born), Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, South Korea, United Kingdom and its dependent territories (except Northern Ireland) and Vietnam. Persons born in Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR and Taiwan are eligible. An applicant may, however, claim the country of birth of their spouse, if eligible, or of either parent if they were born in a country of which neither of their parents was a native or a resident at the time of their birth.

All applicants also must have a high school diploma or the equivalent, defined in the United States as the successful completion of a 12-year course of elementary and secondary education or they must have two years of work experience within the last five years in an occupation that requires at least two years of training or experience to perform. Entries for the DV-2020 diversity visa lottery must be submitted electronically from noon EDT on Wednesday, October 3, 2018 through noon EST on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. Applicants may access the electronic diversity visa entry form at www.dvlottery.state.gov only during the registration period beginning October 3rd. Paper entries will not be accepted. All entries by an applicant will be disqualified if more than one entry for the applicant is received, regardless of who submitted the entry. Applicants may prepare and submit their own entries, or have someone submit the entry for them. The Department of State will issue DV lottery entrants an electronic confirmation number and notice upon receipt of a correctly completed Electronic Diversity Visa Entry Form.

Applicants must also attach separate digital photographs of themselves, their spouses and unmarried children less than 21 years of age (except spouses or children who are already permanent residents or U.S. citizens). The photographs must be in the Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format and meet specific resolutions (minimum 600 pixels high by 600 pixels wide), color depths (24-bit color) and kilobytes (maximum 240 KB) requirements. If a photograph print is scanned, the print must be two inches square and be scanned at a resolution of 300 dots per inch (dpi) and with specific color depths. The photograph must be taken within the last six months and no glasses may be worn in the photo. If the digital image does not conform to the specifications, the application will be automatically disqualified.

Applicants will be selected at random by computer from among all qualified entries. All applicants will be required to go back to the website to find out whether their entry has been selected in the DV-2020 lottery or to find out they have not been selected. Selectees will only be notified of their selection through the “entry status check” available starting May 7, 2019 at the website www.dvlottery.state.gov. The online entry status check will be the only means by which selectees will be notified of their selection for DV-2020. The Kentucky Consular Center will not be mailing out notification letters. Those selected in the random drawing are not notified of their selection by e-mail. Those individuals not selected will be notified of their non-selection through the web-based “entry status check.”

No fee is charged to enter the annual DV program. The U.S. Government employs no outside consultants or private services to operate the DV program. Any intermediaries or others who offer assistance to prepare submissions for applicants do so without the authority or consent of the U.S. Government. Use of any outside intermediary or assistance to prepare a DV entry is entirely at the applicant’s discretion. A qualified entry submitted electronically directly by an applicant has an equal chance of being selected by the computer at the Kentucky Consular Center as does an entry submitted electronically through a paid intermediary who completes the entry for the applicant.

The current immigration laws carry heavy penalties for visa overstays. Those who have overstayed their visa by 6 months, face a 3 year bar upon their departure from the United States, if they have overstayed for one year or more, they are subject to a 10 year bar. Successful lottery applicants who are undocumented in the US must be processed for a visa at a US Consulate abroad under existing immigration laws. Departing the US will trigger the 3 or 10 year bars making them ineligible for a visa. Undocumented lottery winners with a relative petition or an employer labor certification pending before April 30, 2001, may be eligible to be interviewed in the United States under Section 245(i), provided they have not already triggered the 3/10 year bars by leaving the US.

Inquiries may be made to the EIIC at their Woodside, Queens’s office at (718) 478-5502 or at their Woodlawn, Bronx office at (718) 324-3039 or on the EIIC website www.eiic.org.

The EIIC is a member of the Coalition of Irish Immigration Centers, for further information about Irish centers in the US providing free assistance with DV lottery applications please refer to their website at www.ciic.usa-org

In Memory of John J. Garvey

July 24, 2018July 2, 2018

The Emerald Isle Immigration Center (EIIC) Executive Committee, board and staff mourn the death of their longtime board member and dear friend, John Garvey. Heartfelt condolences are extended to his wife, Ann Garvey, and the entire family on the passing of their beloved husband, father and grandfather.

Funeral Arrangements
Monday, July 2, 2018
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
2:00 PM to 5:00 PM & 7:00 PM – 9:30 PM
Thomas F Dalton Funeral Home NHP, 125 Hillside Avenue, New Hyde Park, NY 11040

Funeral Mass:

Wednesday, July 4, 2018
10:00 AM
St. Aloysius RC Church

592 Middle Neck Rd, Great Neck, NY 11023

John J. Garvey, a native of County Mayo, passed away on Friday, June 29, 2018.
John was the son of Charles & Evelyn Garvey. He was a devoted husband to Ann, loving father to William (Carol) and cherished grandfather to Sara. He was the fond brother of Cathal and the late Frank in Ireland. He is sadly missed by his extended family in the US and Ireland including his nieces and nephews.

A true son of Ireland and an equally staunch American patriot, John has held a number of leadership positions in the Irish American community: a past president and founding member of the American Irish Teachers Association whose newsletter he wrote & edited with his wife; past president of the Mayo Society of New York whose newsletter he also wrote & edited for over 25 years. He pioneered the educational outreach program organized to bring new immigrants into higher education. He was a director of the Emerald Isle Immigration Center. He was at the forefront in securing the Irish Immigrant Stamp from the US Postal Service and bringing about the NYS Irish Famine Curriculum. He was an essay judge for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee essay competition and an avid AOH Division 4 member and member of the Bronx Gaelic League. He was an energetic fundraiser for Western Care and the Ceide Fields development as well as many other projects.

A former chair of the Irish American Heritage & Culture Committee, N.Y.C. Board of Education he organized the production of a documentary video, “The Irish in New York” which for many years was shown on Channel 25 in connection with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.

John also chaired the prestigious United Irish Counties 1916 Commemoration Committee which produced a book exploring New York City’s pivotal role in the 1916 Rising: “THE EASTER RISING: NEW YORK AND BEYOND”. In addition to his demanding role as committee chair, John wrote the introduction and contributed an essay for this publication.

For his work in the development of “The Easter Rising: New York and Beyond”, the United Irish Counties awarded John the Rose Cosgrove Distinguished Service Award. John also received the Salmon of Knowledge sculpture from the Irish government in recognition of his many contributions to the advancement and understanding of Irish contributions in the US and abroad.

As a Vietnam War era vet John was an instructor in the Engineer School at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. This experience inspired him to devote his professional life to the field of education. He retired from the New York City public school system after more than three decades of service as a teacher in PS 85X. John received his secondary education from St. Muredach’s College, Ballina and Patrician College, Ballyfin, Co. Laois. He held a B.A. from Fordham University in Marketing and Management and an M.A. in Distributive Education form NYU. He was honored as “Educator of the Year” by the Association of Teachers.

DV-2019 Green Card Lottery Application Status Check Opens May 15th

May 14, 2018

Applicants who submitted an entry under the Diversity Visa 2019 green card lottery (DV-2019) can check the status of their application online starting on May 15, 2018, at noon (EDT). The DV-2019 entry period opened on October 18, 2017, and closed on November 22, 2017. Only confirmation information for entries submitted during this period are valid for checking your status.

All DV-2019 applicants must check their status online, and will not receive a notification letter or e-mail from the U.S. government. Diversity Visa Entry Status Check will only be provided through the Department of State secure online site. Until September 30, 2019, entrants are able to check the status of their entry through the E-DV website at http://dvlottery.state.gov/ESC. Entrants need to use their own confirmation page information from the time of their entry to check the status to find out if their Diversity Visa Lottery entry was or was not selected. Entrants will need to enter their last name, year of birth and confirmation number from the receipt.

Please keep your confirmation number until at least September 30, 2019, even if you are not selected on May 15, 2018. The Department of State may select more DV-2019 entries on October 1, 2018 or after.