WITH the immigration system in the United States roiling due to a spate of executive orders set in motion by the Donald Trump Administration, immigration attorney Nikiki Bogle is urging calm as she says there are several options still open to people who want to live in that country legally.

“US Immigration is in a flux, it is day by day, many changes and people are just panicking. I have tonnes of clients who are calling me saying, ‘what can I do to help myself from being removed from the United States, I want to stay here, I want to build a life for my family and my children and I’m afraid of what’s happening’. The concern is absolutely valid but there are things that can be done,” said Bogle, a Jamaican by birth.

Bogle, who was a panellist on a recent forum put on by the law faculty of The University of the West Indies Mona titled ‘Navigating USA Immigration Law in 2025: Viable Immigration Options for Jamaicans and Pitfalls to Avoid,’ said in addition to a slew of visa options, Jamaicans can also look elsewhere.

“There are many countries in the world that welcome Jamaicans. I have been to several countries and I am always welcomed there when I tell them I am from Jamaica and some of them don’t even require a visa. So we don’t know because we are concentrating on the United States, Canada or the United Kingdom, but there are many other countries also with great immigration options for Jamaicans and one example of one of those is Australia,” Bogle said.

In the meantime, however, she said for individuals focused on making America their place of residence, there are several avenues.

“If you don’t have a family member in the US or you don’t want to use a family member in the US to migrate, you don’t want to marry a US citizen and you don’t have a US citizen child, and you want to migrate, if you are a student you can apply for an F-1 student visa,” Bogle said.

She pointed to other options including the O-1 visa for individuals doing “unique work” in their field such as sports, business, art, theatre production etcetera.

“If you want to get the green card (permanent resident card) then you can do a route called an EB1-A (alien of extraordinary ability) it is for folks petitioning for an immigrant green card, you can actually sponsor yourself. You can be scientist, professor, artist, it covers almost every profession,” she explained.

“Singers, songwriters [who do not believe they are at the level of an O -1 visa applicant] can look at the P-1 visa which is for singers, songwriters, artistes and that doesn’t require any extraordinary abilities, it just requires that you are doing that work in that field. If you’re a cultural group, you can go do a P-3 and their entourage is included, athletes as well,” Bogle told the forum.

Individuals operating businesses, she said, can also transition to the United States with their operations.

“Say you want to create a business and you want to do business in the United States, you can use the company that you form in Jamaica to migrate as an intra-company transferee. You can actually be the only person in the company and you can build that company and in two three years say ‘I would like to get an L-1 visa’.

“You can sponsor yourself… In order to do that though, you have to make sure that locally when you form your company it’s a solid company that you are doing what you need to do in terms of financial stewardship because when we file those L-1s we are looking a lot on the finances, the company doesn’t need to be making millions but it needs to be legitimate. No fraud and it needs to be showing a balance sheet,” the attorney said.

Commenting on the current immigration climate in the US, Bogle described as “shocking” the turn by the Trump Administration on February 25 to create a registry for undocumented migrants.

“They are fleshing it out now, so if you are not registered with the United States immigration service, giving them your address and your phone numbers — which truth be told, I don’t think a lot of people are going to be doing this — but if you are not registered they can probably detain or arrest you. Because they will say, ‘Where is your registration card?’ and if you can’t produce one then they can arrest you,” Bogle shared.

The attorney, who is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, said “we will follow and see what is happening”.

“Whenever there is this sort of registry system as you may know, if you don’t comply, it could be a reason for deportations, inadmissibility to the United States or removal from the United States. So this is definitely concerning to all of us. We will see how that fleshes out. It’s very unnerving and scary in many respects for people who are undocumented,” she added.

Bogle urged people in this category to be practical.

“If you are in the US undocumented, or you have family members who are undocumented, and there is a way for them to get status, they need to immediately file, there are times when people are afraid but they don’t file anything, but it’s very important that if you have a way to legalise yourself, you see an immigration lawyer,” she said.

“Don’t just talk to your friends and your neighbour, contact an immigration lawyer, find out what options you have so that you can exercise those options,” said Bogle while reinforcing that arrangements such as business marriages are ‘fraudulent’.

According to an Associated Press Report published on February 26, migration officials say anyone living in the US illegally will soon have to register with the Federal Government, and those who don’t could face fines, imprisonment or both.

The registry will be mandatory for everyone 14 years and older who do not have legal status. Each person must register and provide their fingerprints and address, while parents and guardians of anyone under age 14 must ensure they are registered.