Carl Rothrock is a Florida immigration lawyer licensed since 1989. He has successfully represented thousands of people from more than 100 countries in the world in visa applications. He has successfully filed cases in investor, business, and family matters, including E2 investor visas, L1 investor visas, EB1A extraordinary ability visas, I130 family sponsorship applications, and citizenship cases.  All Immigration Courts in the United States allow Carl to practice before them, and several organizations have recognized Carl’s achievements in immigration law.

Awards, Recognitions, and Memberships

• “AV Preeminent®, the highest-ranking level of professional excellence, skill and integrity under the Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating System. Martindale-Hubbell gave Carl an AV rating.
• Perfect 10.0 score on AVVO.com, a lawyer rating and referral website
• “Top Rated Lawyers in Florida, Immigration,” Lawyers of Distinction
• “Immigration Lawyer of the Year, USA” Lawyer Monthly’s Legal Awards
• “Nations Top One Percent,” the National Association of Distinguished Counsel
• “The Top 10 Immigration Attorneys, Florida,” Best of the Best Attorneys
• “10 Top Immigration Attorneys, Florida,” the American Institute of Legal Counsel
• “Top 10 Immigration Attorneys, Florida,” Attorney and Practice Magazine
• “The Top Immigration Attorneys, Florida,” The Top 100 Lawyers
• “Top Ranking Immigration Law Firms in Florida,” American Association of Attorney Advocates
• Member, American Immigration Lawyers Association
• Member, Academy of International Business

Recent Case Approvals

We received approvals in all of these categories in the last eighteen months:

• EB1A, Extraordinary Ability Green Cards
• EB1C, Executive Green Cards
• EB2NIW, National Interest Waiver Green Cards
• EB2, Advanced Degree Green Cards
• EB3, Skilled Worker Green Cards
• PERM labor certification
• E2 Visas
• E1 Visas
• L1A Visas for Executives
• L1B Visas for Specialized Skill Workers
• H1B Specialty Occupation Visas
• TN Visas for Canadians
• 601 Waivers for fraud, criminal history, and unlawful presence
• Citizenship Applications
• Marriage Based Green Cards (adjustment of status and consular processing)
• Family Based Green Cards
• Fiancée Visas

Florida Immigration Lawyer | Immigration Services Offered

Florida immigration lawyer Carl Rothrock provides several immigration services, including visas for people with extraordinary ability, work visas, investor visas, and family-based visas.

Visas for Extraordinary Ability

EB1A Extraordinary Ability Visa:  In order to qualify for an EB1A visa as an “alien of extraordinary ability,” the applicant must prove that he or she has an extraordinary ability in the fields of science, arts, education, business, or athletics.  The applicant must show that his or her achievements have been recognized in his or her respective field.  The EB1A visa allows an immigrant to enter the country with no job offer or relationship to a U.S. citizen.

EB2 National Interest Waiver: In order to qualify for an NIW visa, the applicant must have an “advanced degree” or “exceptional ability” in the sciences, arts, or business. Further, the applicant must prove that the United States government should waive its requirement of having a job offer because the applicant’s presence in the United States has substantial merit and national importance.  An employer may sponsor an employee for the National Interest Waiver.  In addition, the applicant can self-sponsor. Like the EB1A, the immigrant does not need a job offer or relationship to a U.S. citizen. 

Rothrock Immigration Lawyer Florida | Work Visas

Permanent Work Visas | Florida Immigration Lawyer Carl Rothrock

An employer may sponsor an employee for a permanent job.  The permanent residence card is also known as a “green card.”  If the petition is approved, the employee’s spouse and children under 21 may also receive green cards.  There are three primary categories of business visas.  The first is the “EB1,” visa.  The second is the “EB2” visa.  The third is the “Eb3” visa.  The government limits the number of visas each year in each category by country of citizenship as well as type of visa.  Some of these categories require the applicant to have a job offer while others do not. Visit our work visa web pages for these visas to learn more.

Rothrock Immigration Lawyer Florida | Investor visas

Immigrants have a number of investor visa options to choose from. Some of these options lead to green cards, while others are temporary options. Below is a list of different types of investor visa options. Click on the link for additional details about the individual visa.

Golden Visa | Florida Immigration Lawyer Carl Rothrock

EB5 Visa:  This visa is sometimes called the “Golden Visa” because an investor can obtain a green card by investing a large sum of money. This visa currently requires an investment of $800,000.00 to $1,050,000.00 USD. Depending on the type of EB5 visa selected, the investor may not need to participate in managing the business.

Treaty Visas | Florida Immigration Lawyer Carl Rothrock

E2 Treaty Visa: This visa allows an investor to enter the United States with a smaller investment amount than an EB5. Depending on the investor’s country of citizenship, the investor might be able to own and operate a business with a substantial investment. Although this visa does not lead to a permanent green card, it allows the investor to work in the U.S. for up to five years, and it can be renewed indefinitely. While the investor is running a business in the U.S., he or she might consider another immigration option that leads to a green card.

E1 Treaty Visa:  This visa allows an investor to enter the U.S. for a period of time up to five years to conduct trade. This visa does not require that an individual have an office in the U.S., nor does it require a minimum investment amount.  Rather, the treaty holder must prove active trade between the U.S. and country of citizenship. Like the E2 visa, this visa does not lead to a green card, but it can be renewed indefinitely.

Entrepreneur Visas

L1 Visa.  The L1 visa is a hybrid visa between the E2 and the EB5 visas. Like the E2, it is a temporary visa allowing an entrepreneur to manage a business.   Unlike the E2, the L1 visa is a dual intent visa.  The investor can initially enter the U.S. temporarily but may transition to a permanent green card by filing an EB1C visa application. 

EB1C visa. This visa allows an entrepreneur to manage a company in the United States. Most applicants initially enter the U.S. on the L1 Visa. After they run their business for a year, the can then apply for an EB1C visa to permanently manage the company.

Green Card Through Marriage

An immigrant may obtain a permanent green card by marrying a United States Citizen or U.S. green card holder. In order to obtain a green card through marriage, the immigrant must prove that he or she is legally married to the U.S. citizen or green card holder and that the marriage was not entered into for immigration purposes. The United States government does not recognize “common law” marriages. The parties must be legally married. The marriage green card has the shortest processing time of all the permanent green card options. If a U.S. citizen marries a foreign citizen, the U.S. citizen can sponsor both the spouse and child under 21 for a green card, provided the marriage occurred before the child turned 18.

Other Family-Based Green Cards

An immigrant may obtain a green card if he is the parent, child, or sibling of a US Citizen. An immigrant may obtain a permanent green card if he or she is the child of a U.S. Citizen or green card holder. Note that the parent or sibling of a green card holder may not apply of U.S. residency. In addition, aunts, uncles, grandchildren, and cousins are not eligible to apply for family-based green cards. Processing times vary according to the relation between family members. Visit our family-based green card webpage for additional information.

Biography of Florida Immigration Attorney Carl Rothrock

Prior to practicing immigration law, Carl served as a complex litigation consultant to the defense teams of many Fortune 100 companies, including Shell Oil, British Petroleum, Chevron, Chesapeake Energy, Bank of America, UBS Bank of Switzerland, Johnson & Johnson, American Airlines, and Walmart. He has acted as counsel for over 800 clients in a defective product litigation involving defective construction materials.

Carl has always believed that success begins with hard work.  He started mowing orange groves for his father at the age of 8 and continued working for his father’s construction company through high school. Carl took extra classes throughout high school and graduated from high school at age 16.  While working two jobs in college, he saved enough money to attend law school without applying for a student loan.  He has developed residential and commercial real estate projects and understands the day to day frustrations faced by small business owners.

Carl is a licensed Certified Building Contractor in Florida and is a licensed attorney in the State of Texas. In addition, he is admitted to practice before all Immigration Courts in the United States and the Board of Immigration Appeals.  His unique background and qualifications have enabled him to guide foreign investors through the process of doing business in the United States.  Carl’s hobbies are scuba diving, boating, and rescuing animals.

To schedule a free initial consultation today, call the Rothrock Law Firm at (239) 330-2534.