Robert Gaffney Attorney

First Admitted: 1980, California

Professional Webpage: https://www.usvisanet.com/attorney/robert-p-gaffney/

Bar/Professional Activity:

Member of Immigration Law Panel of Bar Association of San Francisco Lawyer Referral Service
Member of the San Francisco-Shanghai Sister City Committee
Member, American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Special Licenses/Certifications:

California State Bar Association Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law, 1988

Pro bono/Community Service:

Member of the Immigration and Nationality Law panel of the Lawyer Referral Service of the San Francisco Bar Association

Honors/Awards:

Rated “AV,” Martindale-Hubbell
Super Lawyers of Northern California

Educational Background:

University of California, received his B.A. degree in Chinese Studies with highest honors, 1973, 1973
National Defense Foreign Language Fellow, Center for Chinese Studies, University of Michigan, Horace Rackham School of Graduate Studies (1974-75 Inter-University Program for Chinese Language Studies/Stanford Center - Taipei, Taiwan)

Scholarly Lectures/Writings:

USCIS adjudicators have approved thousands of I-526 petitions involving various versions of these solutions but over the recent past we have seen an increased focus by adjudicators on issues related to currency exchange and remittance transactions. Despite absence in the language of the regulations or the precedent decisions of requirement that in addition to proving the investment of capital “obtained” or “acquired” through lawful means, USCIS adjudicators are also requiring a petitioner to establish the lawful means of the transfer or exchange of the foreign capital. Due to absence of a template for requesting evidence on informal value transfers individual adjudicators are left to establish their own criteria for such requests, leading to different evidence requests, and sometimes different adjudication results, often for the same remitters. Petitioners should expect that they will need to document the means of remittance of funds and also called upon to show the legitimacy of the transfer and the lawful source of funds used to complete the transfer. , Featured Speaker, Source of Funds and Foreign Currency Exchange Issues in Direct EB-5, EB5 Affiliate Network - Live Webinar, Immigrant Investor Community, 2021
Co-author, Overview of Current Challenges in Representing EB-5 Investors/Entrepreneurs, 29th Annual AILA California Chapters Conference Handbook, 2017
On July 14, 2020, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Hong Kong Normalization. This panel discussion explored the legal and historical context of the order and its broad impact on the manner of treatment of Hong Kong persons under U.S. immigration laws. , Panel Participant, Virtual EB-5 and Uglobal Immigration Expo (Hong Kong and Vietnam), EB-5 Process: The Impact of Trump's Executive Order on Hong Kong Nationals for EB-5, Immigrant Investor Community, 2020
This article provides practical advice for I-526 filing attorneys based upon the experience of counsel who have successfully overcome legal challenges raised by IPO adjudicators in RFEs issued in response to the recent surge of I-526s filed by minor petitioners. It also addresses ancillary issues relevant to minor EB-5 petitioners, including the ability of minor petitioners to engage in the management of the EB-5 enterprise as required by the regulations, and what limits, if any, USCIS regulations or policy may place on the minimum age of a petitioner. , Author, Issues and Approaches to the Preparation of I-526 Petitions for Minor Petitioners, Immigration Options for Investors & Entrepreneurs, 4th Edition, American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2019
Advanced Source of Funds and Path of Funds Issues, Panelist/Discussion Leader: December 8, 2017., American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2017 AILA EB-5 Investors Summit, Las Vegas, NV, AILA, 2017
San Jose, CA Event with Indian H-1Bs - April 28, 2018 , Moderator, ILW.com Conference on “H-1B to EB-5”, San Jose, CA, 2018
EB-5 Program Update, 2017 Hurun China Immigrant Investment White Paper Shanghai/Beijing, Hurun Research Institute, 2017
Combining AILA’s experience in offering world-class continuing legal education and unparalleled networking events for immigration law professionals and IIUSA’s unmatched expertise on the EB-5 investor visa program, this two-day conference promises to be the most important EB-5 event of the year!, Speaker, October 2018 AILA & IIUSA EB-5 Industry Forum, AILA, IIUSA, 2018
Advanced Panel Speaker, Impacts of Visa Retrogression: Project Structuring, Investor Demand and Exit Strategies, EB5 Investors Magazine’s Third Annual Southern California EB-5 Conference, 2014
Panel Speaker, China Issues, AILA EB-5 Investors & Regional Centers Conference, 2014
Speaker, Immigration Options for Entrepreneurs and Investors, The Immigration Section of the Barristers Club of the Bar Association of San Francisco and the Northern California Chapter of AILA, 2014
Speaker/Panelist, Advanced Issues in Representing Individual Investors, AILA EB-5 Investors Summit: Representing EB-5 Investors & Regional Centers, 2015
Television Appearance, US - Vietnam: Enhanced Opportunities for Trade, Investment and Global Mobility after TTP, Vietnam VTV1, 2016
Television Appearance, Issues Related to Due Diligence and the EB-5 Program, VTC8 View 24, 2016
Discussion Leader, ILW.com EB-5 Summit for Attorneys and Developers in San Francisco, 2016
Panel Participant, China-Focused Issues, AILA EB-5 Investors Summit: Representing EB-5 Investors & Regional Centers in a Time of Upheaval, 2016
Discussion Leader, ILW.com EB-5 Summit in San Francisco, 2015
Panel Participant, Current Issues with EB-5 Investor Visas, 29th Annual AILA California Chapter CLE Conference, 2016
Co-author, Can a Minor Child File an EB-5 Petition?, EB5 Investors Magazine, 2016
EB-5 Foreign Investors Seminar, Presenter, Usadvisors.org and International Immigration Services, 2010
AILA Fall 2009 CLE Conference, Presenter, "Lawful Source of Funds and Other Considerations for EB-5 Investors from China, Korea, Russia, Iran, and India", AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association), 2009
Immigration Options for Investors & Entrepreneurs, Author, "Country Specific Issues and Challenges in Representing EB-5 Petitioners from the People's Republic of China", American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2010
Author, Practical Approaches to Lawful Source of Funds Issues, The EB-5 Book, published by ILW.com, 2012
Webinar Presenter, Ethical Issues in EB-5 Practice, California State Bar, International Law Section, 2013
Presenter, Special Issues Inherent in Direct EB-5 Filings, EB-5 Conference, AILA, 2013

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