Tag: Filipino World War II Veterans

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Tancinco Law 4.0: 2023 Onwards. The Era of a Hybrid Law Firm.

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Typewriters, copier machines, telephone landlines and stack of legal pads..these were the initial office tools that we had when Tancinco Law opened in May 1992.  The office was located at the center of downtown San Francisco on Fifth and Market.

In 1992, Tancinco Law was founded by two alumni of the University of the Philippines College of Law, spouses Rey and Lourdes Tancinco. Equipped with a law degree, Philippine and California bar licenses, they started their own practice to provide legal services to their fellow immigrants in their adopted land.

F.B.I. were the initial areas of practice:  Family Law, Business Law and Immigration. As the years passed and as the client base increased, it found itself practicing 80% immigration law with clients mainly from the first generation of Filipino immigrants.

The First Decade: 1992-2002 “Baby Steps” Years

Just like a toddler learning to walk, the first 10 years were marked with baby steps to building clientele. Family and close friends were indispensable to building the practice. In fact, the first few attorneys and staff were close friends. It was during this first decade that Attorney Lourdes Tancinco (Atty Lou) engaged voluntarily in community service by providing pro bono legal services to Filipino World War II veterans who were new immigrants then arriving under the IMMACT90. Through the free legal clinic, thousands of elderly veterans were able to reunite with their spouses and other family members.A 501(c)(3) organization was co-founded by Attorney Lou, the San Francisco Veterans Equity Center (SFVEC).

Tancinco Law’s immigration practice took on general immigration cases such as family and employment based visas. Highlights of the practice was the increase of the healthcare workers being petitioned by hospitals and health care agencies. During this decade the H1A visas, specifically created for registered nurses, were issued to many Filipino nurses assisted by the firm.  The firm also assisted with getting visas for managers and employees of businesses in the Philippines extending their operations in the United States. In 1997, a legislation was passed resulting in the major overhaul of the Immigration & Nationality Act making it more difficult for those with prior fraud immigration violations and criminal cases to legalize their stay in the United States.

While no legalization law was enacted, Section 245i was enacted giving opportunity for those in unlawful presence to adjust status as long as they have approved petitions filed before April 30, 2001. Thousands of Filipino clients took advantage of this legislation.

Second Decade: 2002-2012 “Expansion Years”

The second decade is about expansion. Physical locations of the Tancinco Law were established. First with the Manila office in 2007, Vallejo in 2008, Milpitas in 2012. With the physical offices in various locations Tancinco Law attorneys were able to reach more clients in close proximity to the office location.

With no new legislation affecting immigrants coupled with the 2008 Recession, the practice of law was somehow adversely affected. Nonetheless, the firm continued its immigration advocacy as Atty Lou continued to engage in educational campaigns through her newspaper columns published weekly in Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippine News and Filipino Guardian. It was also during this second decade that Attorney Lou embarked on a non-traditional lawyering project, that of a Host and Producer of an Immigration TV show known as GMA’s Pusong Pinoy Sa Amerika. Pinoy Panawagan at TFC’s Balitang America was also launched where she appeared on TV answering viewers’ questions on immigration matters. 

One of the historic moments during this decade was enactment into law of the Filipino Veterans Compensation Act of 2009. Atty  Lou through the San Francisco Veterans Equity Center, and other community advocates actively lobbied for the passage of this Act which benefited thousands of Filipino veterans who fought during World War II.

The Third Decade 2012-2022 “Survival Years & the Birth of the New Normal”

With four physical locations in existence, a fifth location was established in 2015. The goal was to reach more clients in the Los Angeles area. The law firm became busy this era not because we had more clients availing of services but because we had more inquiries about consequences of Trump’s anti-immigrant policies. Restrictive deportation rules were enforced. The firm was able to assist clients in their removal cases and successfully got their green cards despite the lengthy wait.

This decade experienced the worst and unexpected crisis: the COVID-19 outbreak in the early months of 2020. The firm closed all of its 4 physical locations. Operations of Tancinco Law were done remotely. Attorneys and staff using technology were all working from home but efficiently reached out to clients and completed tasks more productively. The pandemic years gave way to the new normal, the hybrid law firm where the practice will continue to use technology to provide efficient service to its clientele.

The physical location of the office moved from the City of  San Francisco CA to Burlingame CA (near SFO Airport about 20 minutes away from the City). Tancinco Law remains very accessible to existing and potential clients. On its website, clients may reach attorneys and schedule appointments. The phone number and email addresses are the same.

2023 will be the beginning of its 4th decade. No more typewriters and paper files. It is an operational hybrid firm that has adopted the new normal of being a paperless office, staff working remotely and communicating more efficiently using different platforms. Tancinco Law is moving forward and continuing its commitment to provide services to the immigrant community especially now that it has retooled using new and best digital technology. 

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Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act Reintroduced in May 2021

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On May 19, 2021, Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawaii), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), and Representatives Ed Case (D-Hawaii) and Don Young (R-Alaska) reintroduced the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act (S.1708), legislation that would speed up the visa process for children of Filipino World War II veterans.

Immigrant visa backlogs had resulted in separation of aging Filipino World War II veterans with their sons and daughters for several years. Many veterans passed away waiting for the visas of their children to become available. 

The Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act, if passed into law, would provide a permanent solution by amending the Immigration and Nationality Act to exempt from the  numerical limits the sons and daughters of Filipino World War II veterans who were naturalized under the 1990 law or other specified laws. Essentially, green cards or immigrant visas will be made available to them after approval and processing of their visa petitions. This proposed legislation will not only assist our veterans during their twilight years but also it is considered a recognition of their critical services during World War II. 

This bill is scheduled for mark up on committee level in July 2021 and more Republican co-sponsors are needed to support this bill.  We urge community members to contact their legislators to support the passage of this bill.

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USCIS officials, Fil-Am leaders explain Filvets parole program

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SAN FRANCISCO — Just as the euphoria over the recently implemented Filipino World War II Veterans Parole (FWVP) program is beginning to rise, a very timely warning was aired by the panelists at a “Talakayan” hosted by the Philippine American Press Club (PAPC) and the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco: Scammers are lurking in the shadows, waiting for victims.

The complexities that may await veterans of advanced age, who may not have heard of the news about the program could provide scam artists opportunities to strike.

No less than the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) San Francisco District Director John Kramar delivered the alert, especially to the elderly whose first language is not English.

“So we have a double vulnerable population here. It is very important for all of us, the civil servants, those working for the community, it is also the responsibilities of the media, to put the word out to be very careful about who you go to,” cautioned Kramar.

“USCIS.gov is the website for U.S. citizenship immigration service. No other site is the official site showing what the forms are, what the fees are, what the process is. Just make sure that you look at the correct USCIS website and nothing else,” he added.

Kramer also explained that there are licensed attorneys with the U.S. Bar Associations and accredited representatives of the Department of Justice that can be relied on.

“That list is available is available in our website and through the Department of Justice website for everyone to check. There are well-meaning advocates in the community. Go to the right persons and if you are not certain, check it out,” Kramer advised.

Accurate information available

Veterans Equity Center Board President and immigration lawyer Atty. Lou Tancinco stated that accurate information must be disseminated by reputable organizations, encouraging them to rely only on USCIS published information.

“Opportunism arises when unscrupulous individuals demand money from family members who are not even qualified for the FWVP,” Tancinco warned.

“When someone promises to deliver a service that seems to be too good to be true, that is a red flag and the veterans’ family should be wary of the existence of these scammers,” Tancinco further cautioned. “Hence, as attorneys we need to be working together with the USCIS and the Philippine Consulate to outreach to the stakeholders.”

Talakayan venue host Consul General Henry Bensurto Jr. admitted that not too many people are well informed yet on the FWVP even if the information had been available for more than a month.

“Please read the regulations, talk and consult with the right people who know the regulations well. We want you to get the right information by consulting the right people,” exhorted Bensurto who also plans to use the consulate website.

The FWVP program was borne out of an initial policy announced in July 2015 by the Obama administration. The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) worked on the policy which is now in effect.

Kramar hailed it as a measure that honors the thousands of Filipinos who bravely enlisted to fight for the United States during World War II. “It is extremely important for the USCIS service and to me as director of the San Francisco district to be here to recognize the extraordinary contributions and the sacrifices of Filipino veterans who fought for the United States during World War II. So it is my pleasure and an honor to be here and talk about this program.”

He added: “This policy will allow certain Filipino American family members that have been waiting so long for American visas to come to the U.S. to be with their loved ones. For many it will also allow them to lend support, care and companionship to their elders in honor of all their services, including the survivors’ spouses.”

‘75 years in the making’

In an exclusive interview during the Kalayaan 2016 in Union Square in San Francisco, Maj. Gen. Taguba (Ret.), an veterans’ advocate seeking the Congressional Gold Medal for the veterans, strongly believes that the parole program had been 75 years in the making.

“People had to wait for 75 years for that parole program, the first 50 years for U.S. citizenship of the veterans themselves and another 25 years for the children to be able to apply. The children have become adults and the 75 years have become more than a lifetime. And those veterans are in poor health, some of them need medical care and given care of by their children,” Taguba rued, citing veteran Art Caleda in Hawaii who is 96 years old and will finally get his wish that two of his sons can come to Hawaii to live with him.

Veterans Equity Center (VEC) Executive Director Luisa Antonio, reported that about 30,000 World War II Filipino veterans came to the U.S. after the 1990 Immigration and Nationality Act. “In the Bay Area there are now fewer than a thousand veterans who have lived on supplemental security income. A lot of them do not have family members to take care of them. And this makes the parole program more important.”

The federal register presently estimates that between of 2,000 to 6,000 Fil-Am veterans are U.S. citizens in the U.S.

Concerns over reentry

Kramar and Tancinco also expressed concern for family members from the U.S. who may have problems on reentry should they be required to apply for the benefit outside of the U.S. because they had overstayed in the U.S.

“Parole is not a visa but a window of relief for those who cannot in any way come here immediately in a legal way. It is a travel document, a temporary permission to come here and not a substitute for an immigrant visa or a non-immigrant visa. The short five-year parole program is not an immigrant visa and is good only for three years,” Tancinco stressed.

Tancinco also strongly bats for extension of the program beyond five years because some visa petitions may not yet be current in five years and the family members may need to be in the US on parole to wait longer.

Also, Tancinco stated that the biggest challenge is a change in administration in the U.S. since the program is only a policy and not a piece of legislation. It would be good to have a new president who is an ally of the previous administration since there would be a bigger chance the policy would continue.

Here is a presentation prepared Atty Lou Tancinco on the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program (FWVP).

Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program (FWVP) from tancincolaw
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USCIS, magsasakatuparan ng Programang Parole para sa mga Beteranong Pilipino ng Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig

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WASHINGTON — Simula Hunyo 8, 2016, ang U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) ay papayagan ang ilang benepisyaryo ng aprobadong family-based immigrant visa petitions na magkaroon ng pagkakataong mapagkalooban ng parole base sa kani-kanilang kaso upang sa gayon ay makarating sa Amerika habang hinihintay ang kanilang immigrant visa na magagamit sa tamang panahon.

Ang mga detalyeng patakaran sa nasabing parole ay matatagpuan sa ulat ng White House, na nailathala nuong Hulyo 2015. Mayroong tinatayang bilang na 2,000 hanggang 6,000 na beteranong Filipino-American na nakipaglaban sa Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig ang kasalukuyang naninirahan sa Amerika ngayon. Bukod pa sa mga ilang bagay, ang patakarang ito ay maaari din magbigay sa karapat-dapat na indibidwal na sumuporta at kumalinga sa mga nakatatandang beteranong U.S. citizens o permanenteng residente na miyembro ng kanilang pamilya.

“Ang Programang Parole para sa mga Beteranong Pilipino ng Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig ay nagbigay dangal sa mga libo-libong Pilipino na buong loob at tapang na nakipaglaban para sa bansang Amerika sa panahon ng ikalawang digmaang pandaigdig,” ayon kay USCIS Direktor Leon Rodriguez. “Bilang pagkilala sa mga kontribusyon at sakripisyong ginawa ng mga kinikilalang beterano, ang patakarang ito ay nagbibigay daan sa mga miyembro ng pamilya ng naturang Filipino-American na naghihintay sa kanilang immigrant visa upang makapunta sa Amerika at muling makapiling ang bawat isa. Sa mga nakararami, ito ay magbibigay daan rin upang makapagbigay ng suporta at pangangalaga sa mga nakatatandang beterano o nang kanilang nabubuhay na asawa.

Maliban sa mga immediate relatives ng mga U.S. citizens, ang numero ng ibang family-based immigrant visa na magagamit ayon sa bansang pinagmulan sa anumang naibigay na taon ay limitado ayon sa batas. Ang mga resulta ng limitasyong ito ay magbibigay ng mahabang panahong paghihintay sa mga miyembro ng pamilya na makapiling ang mga nagpitisyong U.S. citizens o permanenteng residenteng kapamilya na nasa Amerika at upang maging ganap na permanenteng residente rin sila. Sa mga Filipino-American, ang paghahantay ay maaaring umabot hanggang sa 20 taon.

Sa ilalim ng patakaran, ang ilang miyembro ng pamilya ng beteranong Pilipino ng Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig ay maaaring mapagkalooban ng parole upang makapunta sa Amerika bago maging available o magamit ang kanilang visa.Sa mga limitadong kaso, ang mga kuwalipikadong kamag-anak ay maaring makahanap ng parole para sa kanilang mga sarili kapag ang kanilang kamag-anak na beteranong Pilipino ng Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig at ang kanyang asawa ay pareho nang namatay.

Sa ilalim ng Programang Parole sa mga Beteranong Pilipino ng Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig, ang USCIS ay susuriin ang bawat kaso upang malaman kung ang pagpapahintulot ng parole ay sadyang angkop.Ang bawat indibidwal na dumating sa U.S. Port of Entry ay susuriin ng U.S. Custom and Border Protection para malaman kung pwedeng mabigyan ng parole ang nasabing indibidwal.

Ang legal na kapangyarihan sa patakaran ng parole ay nanggaling sa Immigration and Nationality Act, na nagpapahintulot sa Sekretarya ng Homeland Security na bigyan ng parole sa Amerika ang mga kwalipikadong indibidwal base sa kani-kanilang kaso, para sa madaliang makataong dahilan, o kaya naman ay sa makabuluhang pampublikong benepisyo.

Ang karagdagang inpormasyon tungkol sa Programang Parole sa mga Beteranong Pilipino ng Ikalawang Digmaang Pandaigdig at ang mga pamamatnubay para sa mga naayong gawin, proseso ng aplikasyon at kung saan maaring isumite ang aplikasyon ay matatagpuan sa binagong Form I-131 instructions at ng Federal Register notice na nailathala kahapon. Hindi po kami tatanggap ng aplikasyon sa ilalim ng patakaran bago mag Hunyo 8, 2016. Ang USCIS ay matinding hinihikayat ang mga kwalipikado at interesadong indibidwal sa paghiling ng parole sa ilalim ng FWVP Program na isakatuparan sa loob ng 5 taon mula Hunyo 8, 2016.

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USCIS to Implement Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program

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WASHINGTON—Beginning June 8, 2016, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will allow certain Filipino World War II veteran family members who are beneficiaries of approved family-based immigrant visa petitions an opportunity to receive a discretionary grant of parole on a case-by-case basis, so that they may come to the United States as they wait for their immigrant visa to become available.

This parole policy was announced in the White House report, Modernizing and Streamlining Our Legal Immigration System for the 21st Century, issued in July 2015. An estimated 2,000 to 6,000 Filipino-American World War II veterans are living in the United States today. Among other things, this policy will enable many eligible individuals to provide support and care to their aging veteran family members who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.

“The Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program honors the thousands of Filipinos who bravely enlisted to fight for the United States during World War II,” USCIS Director León Rodríguez said. “This policy will allow certain Filipino-American family members awaiting immigrant-visa issuance to come to the United States and be with their loved ones. For many, it will also allow them to provide support and care for elderly veterans or their surviving spouses.”

With the exception of immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, the number of family-sponsored immigrant visas available by country of origin in any given year is limited by statute. These limits result in long waiting periods before family members may join petitioning U.S. citizens or permanent residents in the United States and become permanent residents themselves. For some Filipino-American families, this wait can exceed 20 years.

Under the policy, certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans may be eligible to receive a discretionary grant of parole to come to the United States before their visa becomes available. In limited cases, certain eligible relatives will be able to seek parole on their own behalf when their Filipino World War II veteran and his or her spouse are both deceased.

Under the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program, USCIS will review each case individually to determine whether authorizing parole is appropriate. When each individual arrives at a U.S. port of entry, U.S. Customs and Border Protection will also review each case to determine whether to parole the individual.

Legal authority for this parole policy comes from the Immigration and Nationality Act, which authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to parole into the United States certain individuals, on a case-by-case basis, for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.

Additional information about the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Program—including guidance on eligibility, the application process and where to file—is available in the revised Form I-131 instructions and the Federal Register notice published today. We will not accept applications under this policy until June 8, 2016. USCIS strongly encourages eligible individuals interested in requesting parole under the FWVP Program do so within 5 years from June 8, 2016.

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Global Pinoy

Challenges in applying for Filvets US parole visa

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Henry was petitioned by his father who was a Filipino World War II veteran. Sometime in 2000, his father suffered a heart attack in the U.S., and Henry traveled on a visitor visa to take care of him. He extended his stay as a visitor for another six months until his father passed away.

Henry stayed beyond his authorized stay in the U.S. and incurred unlawful presence. He heard about the parole program for children of Filipino World War II veterans and is excited to apply for parole. Will Henry be eligible to apply for parole?

Henry meets most of the requirements of the Filipino World War II Veterans Parole Policy or FWVP as released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on May 9, 2016. Henry is already in the United States; will he still be allowed to apply for the parole and eventually be eligible for employment authorization?

Those presently in the U.S. must depart and process for the parole abroad (U.S. Embassy in Manila). But if Henry departs from the United States, he will face the 3 to 10-year bar to inadmissibility.

This means that since he has been out of status for more than one year, he will not be able to return to the U.S. for 10 years, defeating the purpose of the parole. Henry may just want to take at the legal option of a humanitarian reinstatement of the revoked petition and subsequently apply for adjustment of status.

There are several benefits of FWVP as thousands of family members may take advantage of this program in the next five years. But there are also anticipated challenges. One is the requirement that veterans or their surviving spouse must be the petitioners for parole if they are still alive. With their advanced age and declining health, they will need assistance to locating and putting together the supporting documents needed to file parole for their children.

Another major challenge is a situation where both parents are deceased and the children are allowed to self-petition for parole. In this case, they have to request for the humanitarian reinstatement of the petition before they may be granted the parole. This request for humanitarian reinstatement is very discretionary and usually the standards are very high unless special consideration are given to children of Filipino veterans.

As mentioned by the USCIS in its May 9, 2016 announcement of this parole program, the FWVP is a discretionary determination that will be made on a case by case basis. While it is understandably a discretionary matter, in delineating the parameters and in the implementation of this parole program USCIS should be liberal in the exercise of their discretion. They should take into account not just the policy behind the parole program, but also its humanitarian nature, recognizing the extraordinary contributions and sacrifices of these Filipino veterans during World War II.

(Atty. Lourdes Santos Tancinco, Esq. is an immigration attorney with the Tancinco Law Offices, a San Francisco CA based law firm. She may be reached at 1 888 930 0808, law@tancinco.com , facebook.com/tancincolaw, or through her website tancinco.weareph.com/old)