Random thoughts…

A MUST READ FOR ANY E-2 VISA HOLDER

A press release and information as received from Congresswoman Heather Wilson’s office.
This should excite every E2 holder, but what now becomes crucial is making contact with every Congress representative throughout the US wherever your business is located..Ideally you need to speak with the person who handles “immigration” issues, alert them to this Adjustment act, ask for a meeting so that you can fully explain your personal & business situation.

The Wilson Bill Will Help Small Business Success Stories Stay in the US

Change would allow legal business owners to gain permanent status

Washington, DC - Congresswoman Heather Wilson today introduced legislation to help legal residents in the U.S. with an E-2 Investor Treaty Visa gain permanent status after building a business here.

Bob and Patricia Franklin, who live in Albuquerque, came to America on an E-2 Treaty Investor Visa 15 years ago and have built a thriving business, Budget Transmissions. Under current law, they cannot even apply for permanent residency in the U.S. no matter how long they have been here or how much of a contribution they have made to the community by creating jobs.

“People like Bob and Patricia need to be able to plan for their businesses, their families and their futures. I want to change the law so that they can apply to change their status to permanent residency so they’ll stay here and keep growing jobs in our community,” Wilson said.

Like the Franklins, people here on E-2 Visas run businesses, have invested in America, and created jobs. The Franklins purchased Budget Transmissions, an automotive repair shop, which included 7 employees and a $350,000 turnover. Fifteen years later, they are half way through the purchase of a 13,000-square-foot building valued in excess of $1 million, employ 11 full-time employees, and bring in about $1.4 million dollars annually. Their employees receive competitive pay, benefits and training. They also have a 16-year-old son who is an aviator and a student at La Cueva High School in Albuquerque.

Wilson’s legislation, the E-2 Nonimmigrant Investor Adjustment Act of 2007, will fix a glitch in the law and give individuals on an E-2 Treaty Investor Visa the opportunity to apply to change their status to permanent resident after meeting certain requirements.

Currently, individuals who come to America on an E-2 Treaty Investor visa cannot become permanent residents and their children cannot stay in the country as adults.

The legislation could help 165 people in New Mexico and 143,786 nationally, according to 2005 data.

What is an E-2 Investor Treaty Visa?

· It is a visa category dating back to the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

· It provides a way for non-immigrants to legally live in the United States by investing in an enterprise and making a positive impact on the economy.

· These individuals operate a small business and pay taxes.

· It is typically issued for 2 or 5 years and must be renewed in order for them to stay in the U.S.

What is the problem with E-2 Investor Visas?

· Children face uncertainty. When children turn 21 they must return to their country of origin or apply for a separate visa - in most cases a student visa. Many of these visas are capped meaning they might not receive another visa.

· If they ever decide to retire or sell their business they must return to their country of origin regardless of the sometimes lifelong investment they’ve made in the American economy.

· No matter how long they’ve been in the U.S., currently they are not allowed to adjust their status to a permanent resident or begin a path to American citizenship.

What does the Wilson legislation do?

· The legislation would allow 3,000 people in America on E-2 Investor Visas each fiscal year to change their status to permanent resident if they meet the criteria.

· To qualify, they must be present in the U.S. for 5 years before being able to apply for permanent residency.

· They must make measurable and significant contributions to the economy:

· Invest $200,000 in an enterprise.

· Employ at least 2 full-time employees when the business starts up and by the end of the third year employ at least 3 full-time employees.

· People already in America on an E-2 Visa, would have to have a minimum continuous presence of 5 years in the U.S. and have a continuous operation of a business.

If you are an E-2 visa holder …ACT NOW.

(Actual letter from an Iowa resident and sent to his senator)

The Honorable Tom Harkin
731 Hart Senate Office Building
Phone (202) 224 3254
Washington DC 20510

Dear Senator Harkin:

As a native Iowan and excellent customer of the Internal
Revenue Service, I am writing to ask for your assistance. I have
contacted the Department of Homeland Security in an effort to determine
the process for becoming an illegal alien and they referred me to you.

My primary reason for wishing to change my status from US
Citizen to illegal alien stems from the bill which was recently passed
by the Senate and for which you voted. If my understanding of this
bill’s provisions is accurate, as an illegal alien who has been in the
United States for five years, all I need to do to become a citizen is to
pay a $2,000 fine and income taxes for three of the last five years. I
know a good deal when I see one and I am anxious to get the process
started before everyone figures it out.

Simply put, those of us who have been here legally have had to
pay taxes every year so I’m excited about the prospect of avoiding two
years of taxes in return for paying a $2,000 fine. Is there any way that
I can apply to be illegal retroactively? This would yield an excellent
result for me and my family because we paid heavy taxes in 2004 and
2005.

Additionally, as an illegal alien I could begin using the
local emergency room as my primary health care provider. Once I have
stopped paying premiums for medical insurance, my accountant figures I
could save almost $10,000 a year.

Another benefit in gaining illegal status would be that my
daughter would receive preferential treatment relative to her law school
applications, as well as “instate” tuition rates for many colleges
throughout the United States for my son.

Lastly, I understand that illegal status would relieve me of
the burden of renewing my driver’s license and making those burdensome
car insurance premiums. This is very important to me given that I still
have college age children driving my car.

If you would provide me with an outline of the process to
become illegal (retroactively if possible) and copies of the necessary
forms, I would be most appreciative.

Thank you for your assistance.

Your Loyal Constituent,
Donald Ruppert
Burlington, IA

Get your Forms (NOW)!! Call your Internal Revenue Service
1-800-289-1040.

Youtube founders video…:-)

http://soapbox.msn.com/video.aspx?vid=1f01fb3d-e43c-4760-abd0-1b88e7aa2a4b

Expect to book for exact hour, then wait 20 minutes and after several reminders to the staff at the front desk you will find out that there is no one available to give you massage. I was offered option to wait (probably another 40 minutes).

If you do not have time to waste I recommend to stay away from Just Massage.

eBay is a great place where to buy cheap cell phones. The problem is that many of these phones are imports from Malaysia or Indonesia, which will not work correctly on T-Mobile network.

I don’t think it applies to all types of phones. I had very good experience with Nokia bought in Malaysia and working perfectly in the U.S.A. On the other hand Motorola Pebble gave me a lot of problems.

- Phone didn’t recognize new voice message in the phone menu.
- Whenever I call my own voice mail I get instantly blank text message. Very annoying.
- Internet doesn’t work.

Is there an easy way to change the settings? I couldn’t find any easy solution. There is a Wireless Configuration Device, where you can pick your phone model and have text message sent to you. The text message will automatically configure your phone for T-mobile Internet. Unfortunately there is no Motorola Pebble option.

These guys will install shower door and when the door fall down they tell you that they don’t have any responsibility for it. Stay away from them. They think that 70 pound glass door will hold screwed to just two tiles.

Now I understand why they accept only checks and no credit cards. You will not get a chance to call credit card company and get the money back.

Here is my experience with insurance companies in California.

State Farm - couldn’t even find my driver record based on my driver license number. They cannot insure me and said go to competition.

Mercury thinks that it is illegal to have insured car in California while having Nevada drivers license. They don’t understand that people might have more than one home in different states and wanting to have  licensed and insured car in each home.

Geico - the cheapest and the easiest way to sign up. All done in minutes. No personal visits to agent are required. Great service. Totally friendly website and great phone support. No auto attendants. When you call you go straight to person who can help you. Very impressive.

- Executive suites in smaller buildings.
- Free Internet
- Free phones including long distance.
- Furnished or unfurnished
- Virtual offices and mail forwarding

Executive office suites - http://myofficeplex.com/

Be very careful when ordering from company http://www.modernbathroom.com/. They have shipped nice vanity to me, but the mirror was missing. When calling them back they first said they didn’t ship the mirror, but later got attitude and refused any responsibility. I had to pay the full price again and deal with really bad attitude customer service. Even their products are nice I will NEVER buy from them again.