Immigration Visa Attorney BlogThe interplay of US immigration policies and the race to save Baby Charlie
On July 11, 2017, two members of Congress — Brad Wenstrup and Trent Franks — introduced a private bill to grant lawful permanent resident status to Charlie Gard and his parents. The purpose is to allow the family to pursue experimental treatments at a hospital in New York City for Charlie, who has a rare genetic condition which currently has no cure. For those of you following this situation, this is the latest on Friday from CNN.
In the United States Congress, a private bill provides benefits to specific individuals, usually after “all administrative or legal remedies are exhausted.” In order to become law, such a bill must be passed in identical form by BOTH the House of Representatives and the Senate and then signed by the President. Given the difficulties of getting anything passed in Congress, this entire process may take months — months that Baby Charlie simply may not have.
Obtaining LPR status for Baby Charlie and his family is not the only option. In fact, there is a faster way! The U.S. government may grant humanitarian parole to individuals who have “urgent humanitarian or significant public benefit reasons for the beneficiary to be in the United States.” Surely, obtaining cutting-edge medical treatment inside the United States should qualify as an “urgent humanitarian” benefit. And if expediency is an issue, it should not be difficult to coordinate high-level Executive branch officials at the Department of Homeland Security and at the Department of State to fast-track the parole request and facilitate the visa that would allow Baby Charlie’s family travel to the United States.
Over many years, Romben Law, APC has counseled many immigrants who have come to the USA without passport or visa, or who have come legally but overstayed. In many of these case, it has not been possible to process the paperwork for an immigrant visa (the green card) without first having the immigrant depart the USA to go back to the US Embassy in the home country for an interview. In some cases, this means that the immigrant must file an 
After practicing law together for almost one decade, Eileen Chun-Fruto and I have evolved into different forms of law practice. I will continue to practice immigration and nationality law, handle consultations, and do my blog here at my offices in Los Angeles and in Palm Springs. The firm name is now, “Romben Law, APC.” You can reach me, as before, at Tel: +1.323.769.8187 — this is the same phone number you have used in the past. My new e-mail address is:
The immigration lawyers at Romben Law, APC in Los Angeles and in Palm Springs have been hearing that US Customs & Border Protection (CBP) officers — the border guards at the airports and other ports of entry (POE) — have been asking arriving US citizens and residents about taxes owed to the IRS and the US Government.
Immigration law clients of Romben Law, APC have been calling us at both our Los Angeles and Palm Springs offices to inquire whether they can travel in and out of the USA using documents scanned onto their iPads, iPhones, and other smart devices.
The US Government recently announced that NSEERS registration is no longer necessary. Like many other immigration law firms, Romben Law, APC of Los Angeles has numerous clients from countries in which Islam is the predominant religion. The National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) was implemented in 2001. NSEERS required the citizens of certain Islamic countries who are visiting the USA to undergo special treatment and registration upon entry to and exit from the USA. Many Romben Law, APC clients in Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Palm Springs, and Las Vegas were especially impacted by NSEERS.