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USCIS urges E-2C investors to apply for extension ASAP
The enactment into law of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (H.R. 83) extends the CNMI Investor E-2C nonimmigrant visa classification until Dec. 31, 2019. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will now accept petitions for extension of E-2C nonimmigrant status.
USCIS encourages current E-2C investors to apply immediately for an extension, in order to minimize a lapse in valid nonimmigrant status. Apply using Form I-129, “Petitioner for a Nonimmigrant Worker” along with the E-1/E-2 Classification Supplement found on pages 9-10 of the form. Detailed instructions are found on the same web page. Please disregard the note in the Form I-129 instructions indicating that the E-2C nonimmigrant classification expires on Dec. 31, 2014; a correction will be made to reflect the five-year extension.
E-2C nonimmigrants are not eligible for parole in the CNMI. Likewise, anyone who has previously held any nonimmigrant status is not eligible to apply for or to receive parole in the CNMI, regardless whether or not the nonimmigrant status has expired.
The Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 created the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands-Only Investor (E-2C) nonimmigrant visa classification. This allowed eligible foreign, long-term investors and their spouses and children to remain lawfully present in the CNMI from Nov. 28, 2009, through December 2014. As noted previously, the E-2C nonimmigrant visa program has now been extended until Dec. 31, 2019. This classification was intended to help as the CNMI transitioned from the CNMI permit system to U.S. immigration laws.
See www.uscis.gov/cnmi for additional information, or go to www.uscis.gov and make a free appointment to see a USCIS officer at your local office. (USCIS)
