Unemployment and the CARES Act For Non-US Artists April 7, 2020 By Brian Taylor Goldstein Shocking as it may sound, USCIS has passed a tiny wind of hope in the direction of artist visas during this coronavirus pandemic. The Department of Homeland Security (which sets the policies for USCIS) has confirmed that applying for unemployment […]
Read the rest of this article »Depending on the consulate and a person’s nationality, a “renewal by mail” option is “sometimes” available for artists who are applying for the same visa (O, P, F, etc) within 1 year of the last one. For example, a famous conductor who comes to the U.S. each year on O-1 visas and who gets approved […]
Read the rest of this article »December 13, 2019 Hi folks Sorry for our infrequent posts. We’ll try and do better. To that end, I thought I’d share an issue that just arose with one of our clients. A booking agent filed P-1/P-1S visa petitions for a group that has previously been approved. This time, they received an RFE on a […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein Most of you are aware by now that in fall 2018 a number of significant policy and procedural changes were imposed on the already exasperating process of obtaining U.S. artist visas. No surprisingly, these changes were the work of Donald Trump, who is also known by many other names: Cheeto-In-Chief, Trumpty […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq., Robyn Guilliams, Esq., and Christopher Dowley, Esq. I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer…because we are just about the ruin it. So be prepared for some serious sunburn, chiggers, sand fleas, and food poisoning as we give you the latest updates: I. NEW USCIS POLICY ALLOWS VISA PETITIONS […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. For those of you who are unaware, on February 28, 2018 U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), both former chairmen of the Senate Judiciary Committee, have introduced the Arts Require Timely Service Act (ARTS Act); a bill that would require U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to provide […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein Dear Law and Disorder: I am a musician on an O-1 visa that my agent got for me. It covers multiple engagements. Last September, I was hired to be a section musician with an orchestra. They have been paying me up until now, but now they are saying that legally they […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. By now, you should all be aware that the incidents of artists and performers from a wide range of nationalities arriving in the United States as visitors (either on visitor visas (B-1/B-2) or through the visa waiver/ESTA program) and being refused entry are growing at an alarming rate. These […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein, Esq. Here we go again… On March 6, 2017, President Trump issued a new Executive Order regarding US immigration to replace the previous Executive Order of January 27, 2017. The new Order takes effect on March 16, 2017 and expressly revokes the January 27, 2017 Order (which had been subject to […]
Read the rest of this article »By Brian Taylor Goldstein The following situation was recently brought to our attention and we felt obligated to comment: http://www.avclub.com/article/sxsw-threatens-international-artists-deportation-p-251394?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=ShareTools&utm_campaign=default https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2017/mar/02/sxsw-immigration-told-slant-contract-trump-travel-ban http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/sxsw-responds-to-artist-immigration-controversy-w470167 Since this issue arose, the festival’s Managing Director has issued multiple “updates” and “clarifications” that are disingenuous or, at best, ill-informed. First, he contends that the contract provision regarding non-work visa violations is […]
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