By Elizabeth Klarin ( January 15, 2024, 12:56 PM EST) -- Every day, I field calls from individuals and professionals looking to come to or stay in the U.S. permanently. The volume of these inquiries has only increased as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, as individuals were forced to choose where they prefer to live due to restrictions and constrictions to cross-border travel. Likewise, U.S. Citizenship and Immigrations Services (USCIS) has seen increased volumes of green card benefit applications, resulting in longer average processing times. USCIS’ average processing times for regular processing of employment-based immigrant worker petitions increased by nearly 40 per cent from 2019 to 2022....