Law Office of Channa M. Gordon LLC

10/16/2026

Family in another country? Your estate plan needs to know. 🌍
This is where my two practice areas meet, and where standard documents often fall short:
🏠 Property abroad may be governed by that country's rules, not just a Connecticut or New York will.
👨‍👩‍👧 Heirs abroad may need clear instructions and contact details so the court and your executor can reach them.
✍️ Your agent and executor should be someone who can actually act here, in person, when it counts.
💍 A spouse who is not a U.S. citizen can be treated differently under federal estate tax rules.

As an immigrant myself, I plan for families whose lives span more than one country. Clients in Meriden, Wallingford, Hartford, across Connecticut and New York.

How many countries does your family live in?

General information, not legal advice.

10/15/2026

🚨 Some USCIS fees go up for filings postmarked Oct. 16, 2026 or later.
If your package goes in the mail on or after the 16th with the old fee, USCIS rejects it and sends the whole thing back, unprocessed.

What's going up:
📄 Parole (I-131): $1,020 → $1,050
📄 TPS (I-821): $510 → $520
📄 First work permit for asylum, parole or TPS: $560 → $570
📄 Annual asylum fee: $102 → $105

Not changing in this notice: work permit renewals, green card fees, citizenship fees. The initial asylum filing fee stays at $100.
Already wrote a check or money order for the old amount? Replace it before it goes in the envelope.

I help clients in Meriden, New Haven, Hartford, across Connecticut and the U.S file correctly the first time.

Filing something this month? Tell me which form 👇

General information, not legal advice. Confirm current fees at uscis.gov/g-1055 before filing.

10/14/2026

Who can you name as your power of attorney? 📝

Any adult you trust to manage your finances and paperwork if you become unable to. Most people choose a spouse, a grown child, a sibling, or a close friend.
What matters more than the relationship:
✔️ They are organized and honest with money
✔️ They live close enough, or are comfortable handling things remotely
✔️ They are willing. Ask them first.

Two things people miss:
1️⃣ Name a backup agent. If your only choice is unavailable, the document can stall.
2️⃣ A financial power of attorney does not cover medical decisions. In Connecticut that is a separate health care document.

I prepare powers of attorney, wills and health care directives for families in Meriden and across Connecticut and New York.

Who would you name?

General information, not legal advice.

10/12/2026

What actually happens at your naturalization interview? 🇺🇸

It follows a predictable order:
📄 You are placed under oath, and the officer goes through your N-400 with you. Expect questions about your travel, addresses, work, and anything you answered "yes" to.

🗣️ The English test: reading, writing, and speaking, which is mostly your conversation with the officer.

📚 The civics test. If you filed on or after October 20, 2025, you are asked up to 20 questions from a bank of 128 and need 12 correct. Earlier filers take the older 10-question version.

Bring your appointment notice, green card, photo ID, and passports.

If your history has anything complicated in it, review your file with an attorney before the interview, not after.

I help clients in Meriden, New Haven, Hartford and across Connecticut prepare for naturalization.

Have a citizenship interview coming up?

General information, not legal advice.

10/08/2026

That thick envelope from USCIS is not always bad news. ✉️
A Request for Evidence means they need more proof of something before they can approve your case. It is not a denial.

Three things to do:
1️⃣ Note the deadline. It is firm, and missing it can mean a denial.
2️⃣ Read exactly what they asked for. Not what you think they meant.
3️⃣ Answer all of it in one response. Partial answers lead to more delay.

People often send what feels relevant rather than what was requested. That is the most common reason a second RFE arrives.

Ever received one? How long did it take you to understand what they wanted? 👇

Immigration attorney in Meriden, Connecticut.

General information, not legal advice.

10/07/2026

People ask why I practice immigration law.

I am an immigrant myself. I know what the forms feel like, what the waiting feels like, and what it is like to have your whole future sitting in an envelope somebody else has not opened yet.
That is why I explain every step in plain language, and why I will tell you honestly when something is not worth filing.

Before opening this office, I worked as an immigration defense attorney for a non-profit and as a child welfare attorney for the Department of Social Services. Both taught me that the people in front of you are having the hardest week of their lives, and that how you treat them matters as much as the paperwork.

If your family is somewhere in that process right now, you are not alone in it.

Channa M. Gordon, Esq. | Meriden, CT

10/06/2026

If you die without a will, you do not avoid the decision. You just hand it to someone else.

Connecticut law decides who inherits your property. The probate court decides who raises your minor children. Neither one asks what you would have wanted, and neither knows your family.

A basic plan is a will, a power of attorney, and a health care directive. Most people are surprised how quickly it comes together once they start.

What is stopping you? I hear "I keep meaning to" more than any other answer 👇

Estate planning for families in Meriden, Wallingford, New Haven, Hamden, across Connecticut and New York.
General information, not legal advice.

10/05/2026

10/02/2026

Fill in the blank 👇

"The person I'd trust to make decisions for me is ____________."

Most people can answer that in about two seconds. Almost nobody has written it down anywhere official.

That is exactly what a power of attorney and a health care directive do. They take the name that is already in your head and give it legal weight, before anyone needs it.

Happy Friday from Meriden. 🍂

Law Office of Channa M. Gordon LLC | Meriden, CT