#494 NIWs, the 2-Year I-130 Wait and more with Beatriz Ballerini, Esq.
The Immigration Lawyers Podcast | Discussing Visas, Green Cards & Citizenship: Practice & Policy · Sep 17, 2026 · 45:16
The Immigration Lawyers Podcast | Discussing Visas, Green Cards & Citizenship: Practice & Policy
The Immigration Lawyers Podcast | Discussing Visas, Green Cards & Citizenship: Practice & Policy · Sep 17, 2026 · 45:16
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On this episode of The Immigration Lawyer's Toolbox Podcast, host John Khosravi sits down with Beatriz (Trillos) Ballerini, Esq., a Houston based immigration attorney, AILA Region 4 Director, and immediate past chair of the Texas AILA Chapter, to talk about the 54% NIW denial rate and why she's stopped taking new NIW cases, the growing uncertainty around adjustment of status and I-130 processing times, how she's rebuilt her retainer agreements for this administration, what's ahead for the Texas AILA Chapter including its November 18 to 20 conference in Santa Fe, the political shift underway in Colombia, and her own family's immigration story from Cali, Colombia to holding three passports today.
Timestamps:
00:00 Opening
00:33 Intro
03:58 Welcoming Beatriz to the show
04:20 Growing up in Houston and finding immigration law
04:49 Her earlier career litigating international plane crashes
06:31 Launching her own practice in 2006
08:14 From family cases to 80% business immigration
10:18 Firm size, staffing, and long-tenured team members
12:11 Why NIW cases are so stressful right now
13:04 Adjustment of status and detention risk uncertainty
16:00 Managing client expectations and putting it in writing
16:26 Retainer updates with ethics counsel Craig Dupzyk
18:08 AILA's lawsuits pushing back on policy changes
18:34 Her role as AILA Region 4 Director
19:26 Leading the Texas AILA Chapter
20:12 Texas Chapter conference, November 18 to 20 in Santa Fe
23:05 Coordinating a chapter spread across Texas, Oklahoma & New Mexico
27:44 A growing chapter and mentoring new members
29:20 What's stressing Beatriz: the 54% NIW denial rate
30:00 Worrying about approved EB-1A clients stuck in limbo
31:00 Colombia's political shift under President de la Espriella
32:13 Direct filing I-130s at consulates for exceptional circumstances
34:10 USCIS's overseas offices and the new Ethiopia unit
34:43 Deportations to third countries and the human toll
36:07 Increased ICE activity around Houston
37:14 Holding three passports and dual citizenship through marriage
38:22 Her family's immigration story from Colombia
39:15 Discovering her own immigration history through a FOIA request
40:52 Her father's decision to naturalize after being strip searched
41:13 Comparing notes on growing up in immigrant families
43:08 The unpredictability of 30 day RFE deadlines
44:33 Where to find and follow Beatriz Ballerini
44:50 Closing thoughts
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