Omiga C. Cape
Ms. Cape is the attorney founder of Cape Immigration Law Group, PLLC
in Alexandria, Virginia, close to the Washington, D.C. Metro
area. Prior to establishing her immigration firm, Ms. Cape successfully managed the corporate
immigration account of a Fortune 500 company and its
subsidiary companies. Ms. Cape is a long-standing member of the
American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA).
Law Degrees and Education
Ms. Cape obtained her J.D. degree from the prestigious
George Washington University Law School in Washington D.C.,
and her B.S. degree in Marketing, with a minor in
Psychology, from Georgetown
University in Washington, D.C.
Immigration Work Experience:
This lawyer began her journey in the field of immigration
law while still in law school, during which time she took
several courses in the area of immigration and asylum law.
Ms. Cape also participated in the Immigration Law Clinic and
represented individuals seeking asylum status in the U.S.
Ms. Cape is an attorney specializing exclusively in the area
of immigration. Ms. Cape has been helping clients resolve
their immigration cases since 1997.
Ms. Cape has successfully obtained nonimmigrant visas and
green cards for IT workers, hospitality workers, university
teachers, business professionals, foreign medical doctors
and entertainment professionals. Ms. Cape has assisted
individuals in obtaining H-1B, E-3, TN, O-1, L-1A and L-1B
visas. Ms. Cape is a superb legal writer and has
successfully obtained green card status for individuals in
the extraordinary ability category and through the
PERM/labor certification process. Ms. Cape has also
successfully represented individuals and families obtaining family-based visas and U.S. citizenship.
Immigration Lawyer Omiga Cape:
The attorney Omiga Cape is admitted to practice law in the state of
Maryland. Because immigration law is a federal matter, this attorney is able to represent companies and
individuals without regard to their location. Further, she is
allowed to represent individuals before the USCIS, the
Department of Labor and other government agencies. Ms.
Cape is a long-standing member of AILA, the American
Immigration Lawyers Association. Her law firm has clients
from the areas of Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C.
She has represented individuals across the mid-Atlantic
and tri-state area around Washington, D.C., including
Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Reston, McLean, Falls
Church, Annandale, Woodbridge, Culpepper, Centreville,
Springdale, Potomac, Chevy Chase, Bethesda, Rockville,
Gaithersburg and Baltimore; and in Arlington County,
Alexandria County, Fairfax County, Montgomery County, Prince
Georges County and Prince Williams County.
This Lawyer can assist clients
about various immigration
cases including green card, visas, labor certifications,
citizenship and naturalization.
Sample Questions and Answers from Omiga C. Cape, Esq.:
Question: Dear Immigration Lawyer, I am a British citizen currently studying business administration at a university in New York. I have an F-1 visa, and I will finish my studies and obtain my bachelor degree in the next couple of months. I have been offer a full time job at a large management company in New Jersey. I would like to know if I can stay in the U.S. and work with this company now that my university studies are finished
Answer: In order to remain in the U.S. and work, you will need to change your status from F-1 to H-1B. There is a limit on the number of H-1B petitions that are available each fiscal year. There are 65,000 visas available under the regular H-1B quota. If you have never been in H-1B status before, you will be subject to the H-1B quota.
In recent years, there has been a random lottery selection process for the available H-1B visas because more people apply than there are visas available. If you are selected to receive an H-1B visa and it is approved, you will be eligible to start working on October 1.
Question: I heard from other students that people that obtained a bachelor degree from a U.S. university have priority when applying for a work visa, is this true?
Answer: This is not true. Actually, there is a separate Master’s quota (20,000 H-1B visas) for those individuals who have obtained a U.S. Master’s degree. These individuals have two chances at getting selected in the random lottery selection process because they are placed in the random lottery process under the Master’s quota and if not selected there, are then placed in the random lottery selection process under the regular quota. So, they are given priority in the sense that they have two chances at getting selected. Whereas in your case, you have only one chance.
Question: What do I have to do to apply for a work visa so that I can accept this job offered that I just received?
Answer: The U.S. employer must file an I-129H Petition, Labor Condition Application (LCA), along with supporting documents with a USCIS Service Center.
Question: Do I have to return to my country to apply for the work visa? or can apply and wait from inside the U.S. until the visa is approved?
Answer: If your F-1 status (which includes OPT status and a 60 day grace period), bridges you to the October 1 start date, then you can wait inside the United States and can start working on October 1.
If on the other hand, your F-1 status does not bridge you to October 1, you will be required to exit the U.S., apply for the H-1B visa at an Embassy and then re-enter the U.S. in H-1B status before you will be able to start working.
Question: I also heard that if I am able to
receive a work visa, later I could apply to become a
permanent resident and receive a green card. Can you please
give me more information the possibilities of having a green
card through my employment in the future?
Answer: he H-1B visa is a dual intent visa, which means that you are allowed to pursue a green card while working in H-1B status. Your U.S. employer must be willing to sponsor you to start the green card process.
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