You may have already submitted your green card application to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). However, with only a small percentage of applications being approved per year, you may already assume that your chances are slim to none. You may still try your luck with entering the diversity visa lottery. Without further ado, please read on to discover more about the diversity visa lottery and how a seasoned green card lawyer in Milwaukee, WI, at Sesini Law Group, S.C., can help you enter it.

What should I know about the diversity visa lottery?

Essentially, the diversity visa lottery is an annual program offered by the United States Department of State where an extra 55,000 immigrants are granted access to enter the country on an immigrant visa. This program is otherwise known as the green card lottery. Specifically, this lottery is designated for individuals who are citizens of countries with low immigration rates in the United States. Of this group, eligible individuals must also have graduated from high school or its equivalent, or have qualified work experience, in their home countries.

With that being said, the list of countries with low immigration rates in the United States varies from year to year. Therefore, the list of countries eligible for this lottery varies from year to year. Now, natives from the following countries are, unfortunately, ineligible for the 2025 lottery:

• Bangladesh.
• Brazil.
• Canada.
• The People’s Republic of China (plus mainland- and Hong Kong-born natives).
• Columbia.
• Dominican Republic.
• El Salvador.
• Haiti.
• Honduras.
• India.
• Jamaica.
• Mexico.
• Nigeria.
• Pakistan.
• The Philippines.
• Republic of Korea.
• Venezuela.
• Vietnam.

What if I win the diversity visa lottery while in the United States?

Every year, some diversity visa lottery winners already reside legally in the United States; whether it be because they are on a nonimmigrant status or some other legal status. If this is your case, your process of obtaining a green card may look different. That is, you may have to submit an adjustment of status application with the USCIS. With this, your adjustment of status process must be completed by September 30 of the 2025 fiscal year. Your lottery winning cannot be carried over to the next fiscal year.

This process may contrast with that if you still reside outside the country at the time of your lottery win. This is because you would have had to go through consular processing with the United States Department of State to be issued an immigrant visa. Evidently, consular processing is a whole other animal, so to speak.

This blog is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to immigration laws in the United States. So for more information, please reach out to a competent family immigration lawyer in Milwaukee, WI, from Sesini Law Group, S.C., today.

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You may be desperate to obtain refuge in a place outside of your home country or country of current residence. This is why you may, understandably, experience feelings of shock, panic, and distress when you get word that your petition for asylum in the United States was ultimately denied. However, you must keep your head up, so to speak, and not give up on this hope just yet.  Please continue reading to learn why your asylum application would get denied and how an experienced asylum immigration lawyer in Milwaukee, WI, at Sesini Law Group, S.C., can help you figure out your next move.

Why would my asylum application get rejected?

You must be very careful with the asylum application (i.e., Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal) you submit to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). This is because the slightest error may immediately prompt its rejection. After all, in 2023, the USCIS had more than one million pending affirmative asylum cases and only completed a little over 52,000. So, without further ado, below are common mistakes you must avoid making with your case:

• You may have failed to qualify for asylum protection in the United States in the first place.
• You may have failed to file your asylum application within one year of entering the United States.
• You may have failed to answer each question within your asylum application clearly and thoroughly.
• You may have failed to supplement your asylum application with the appropriate, required evidence.
• You may have failed to show up to your interview with an asylum officer on time or with an interpreter.
• You may have failed to relay information during your interview that was consistent with your application.

What happens if my asylum application is denied?

Usually, most motions to reopen or reconsider an immigration case are done by filing Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion, with the appropriate fee. However, petitioning to appeal an asylum decision does not require this form or fee. Rather, you may submit a new Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal. With this, you should file this new form with the asylum office with jurisdiction over your place of residence rather than directly with the USCIS. You should also include a letter explaining how your previous asylum application was denied.

Importantly, you must appeal an asylum decision within 30 days of receiving a decision from the USCIS. Or, 33 days if you received your decision via mail. If you miss this deadline, you must be able to demonstrate how this delay was beyond your reasonable control.

If you find yourself at a crossroads, please seek the sound advisement of one of the skilled Wisconsin immigration attorneys. Someone at Sesini Law Group, S.C. will stand by your side at a moment’s notice.

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There are two ways you may apply for permanent resident status in the United States. But if you still reside abroad in your home country, your best option would be consular processing. So, without further ado, please follow along to find out the purpose behind consular processing and how a proficient consular processing immigration visa lawyer in WI, at Sesini Law Group, S.C., can take you through each step of this legal process.

What is the purpose behind consular processing?

For one, the United States Department of State stations consulates abroad to represent the country’s interests. One of these interests is issuing and renewing United States passports, along with processing visa applications for foreign citizens. Now, United States visas grant conditional authorization to enter and remain in the country for a specified period. This is different from a permanent resident card, which grants the ability to live and work in the United States indefinitely. Therefore, the purpose of consular processing is to allow the U.S. Department of State to determine whether a foreigner is admissible into the country with a permanent resident status rather than with a visa status.

What should I expect to happen during consular processing?

You should know that consular processing is notorious for being invasive and complex. But at the same time, a lot of it is just waiting around, anxiously awaiting notices from the involved government agencies. All in all, you may consider it personally worth it if you can reside in the United States permanently thereafter. With that being said, below are the steps you should expect to undergo during consular processing:

1. You should wait for a sponsor to file an immigration petition with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on your behalf.
2. You should wait to hear back from the USCIS regarding their decision, which is hopefully a notice of approval.
3. You should wait for the USCIS to send the petition to the National Visa Center (NVC), if it is approved.
4. You should wait to hear back from the NVC regarding when your immigrant visa number is available, when to submit documentation and fees, etc.
5. You should wait to receive your scheduled consular interview date, and most definitely prepare for and attend it.
6. You should wait for the consular office to, hopefully, approve your immigration application.
7. You should wait to receive your visa or green card in the mail and head to the U.S.

Importantly, you should not subject yourself to this demanding legal process if you do not qualify for immigration in the first place. This is something you should independently research or speak with your legal representative about beforehand. In conclusion, a talented family immigration lawyer in Milwaukee, WI can help kickstart your legal action today. Our team at Sesini Law Group, S.C. will happily take on your case.

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You may be eternally grateful that you were able to seek refuge in the United States. But now, you may want to solidify your presence in the country even further by gaining a permanent resident card, otherwise known as a green card. With that being said, if you are a refugee, please continue reading to learn how you can become eligible to obtain a green card and how an experienced green card lawyer in Milwaukee, WI, at Sesini Law Group, S.C., can help make this possibility a reality.

How can a refugee be eligible for a green card?

Notably, those with refugee status in the United States, along with qualifying spouses or children of refugees, are eligible to apply for permanent resident status. However, this is so long as this individual submits their application one year after they enter the country. In other words, it is required for this individual to be physically present in the country for at least one year. What’s more, during this time, this individual’s refugee status must not have been terminated.

Further, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will need to confirm that this individual was legally admitted into the country as a refugee in the first place. That is, they were admitted under Section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Further, they submitted Form G-466, Sworn Statement of Refugee Applying for Admission into the United States, to the USCIS.

How can a refugee go about obtaining a green card?

Once an individual confirms they are indeed a refugee eligible for a green card, they may fill out and submit Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. Here, it is worth mentioning that principal refugees are not obligated to supplement this application with the usual filing fee and biometrics services fee. But they will still be expected to produce the following forms of proof:

• Proof of their legal admission into the United States as a refugee:
  • A copy of their Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Record.
  • A copy of the United States Customs and Border Protection admission or parole stamp on their travel document.
• Proof of your physical presence in the United States for at least one year.
  • A copy of their travel records.
  • A copy of their rental or housing records.
  • A copy of their employment or school records.
• Two passport-style photographs of themself.
• A copy of their passport page on their nonimmigrant visa.
• A copy of their birth certificate, if easily accessible to them.
• A copy of their government-issued identity document with a photograph.

For more clarity on this, please allow a skilled family immigration lawyer in Milwaukee, WI to offer it to you. Schedule an appointment with Sesini Law Group, S.C. today.

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You may be eternally grateful for your opportunity to reside in the United States. So your worst nightmare may be for this right to be stripped away. That is, the last thing you want is for the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to issue and file a Notice to Appear to removal proceedings. But, on the off chance they do, please continue reading to learn the general process for removal from the United States and how an experienced removal & deportation defense lawyer in Milwaukee, WI, at Sesini Law Group, S.C., can stand by your side throughout these proceedings.

What is the general process for removal proceedings?

Upon receiving a Notice to Appear, you must read it and understand why you are being asked to present your case before the immigration court. Then, once you get your bearings, you may expect your removal proceedings to go through this general sequence of events:

1. You may attend a master hearing, where the judge sets the schedule for your upcoming removal proceedings.
2. You may attend an individual hearing, where you defend against the government’s claims for why you should be removed from the country.
3. You may attend additional court hearings, only if it applies to your case at hand (i.e., bond redetermination hearings or rescission hearings).
4. You may attend a final hearing, where the judge states whether or not you must be removed from the country.

Unfortunately, if the judge ultimately orders your removal from the United States, you may expect a letter from the government soon enough. This letter may detail when and where you must report for your trip exiting the country.

What can I do to get relief from removal?

Importantly, before the judge gives their final order, you may try to relieve yourself from removal from the United States. These efforts may extend beyond the opening statement, witness testimonies, and overall case you prepare for your individual hearing.

For example, you may apply for a stay of removal. With this, you may attempt to pause your removal for a valid reason, at least temporarily. Such valid reasonings may be that you have a medical emergency or need to attend to a family member at an end-of-life stage of their illness.

In addition, you may apply for a cancellation of removal. Here, you may ask the judge to allow you to stay in the United States as a lawful permanent resident. You may be eligible for this relief option if you are a lawful permanent resident who has been in the country for at least seven years now. Or, an undocumented immigrant who has been here for at least 10 years.

If you still have doubts about proceeding, please consult a skilled removal & deportation defense lawyer. Our team at Sesini Law Group, S.C. will point you in the right direction.

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