Tiffney Johnson

Attorney · University of Arizona College of Law

Tiffney Johnson served as a consular officer with the U.S. Department of State for 15 years. Her postings include Honduras, Australia, Cuba, Juarez, Mexico, New York, and Washington D.C. After a domestic tour in the Visa Office Legal Directorate in Washington, D.C., her first assignment abroad was to Juarez, Mexico, where she also served as the Deputy Fraud Prevention Chief. In Havana, Cuba, she served as the Immigrant Visa Chief and implemented the Cuban Family Reunification Program. In Sydney, Australia, she served as Deputy Consular Section Chief, started the first fraud prevention unit, and interviewed applicants from almost every country. She also served as Deputy Consular General in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. In her last tour, Tiffney was the Assistant Director of the New York Passport Agency; the largest passport agency in the U.S., where up to 400 emergency same-day passports are processed. In her career, she interviewed over 150,000 immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicants, completed the Advanced Consular Course, and trained over 60 junior Foreign Service officers.  

Tiffney has significant experience in the field of consular "crimmigration" (visa eligibility consequences of criminal convictions), complex citizenship issues, and visa and passport policy. She also focuses her practice on O visas for performing artists and procuring national interest waivers for self-employed professionals applying for immigrant visas. 

Tiffney graduated summa cum laude from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law and has a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a fluent Spanish speaker and currently works as an immigration attorney and freelance legal writer in Tucson, Arizona. Find her at tiffneyjohnsonlaw.com.


Articles By Tiffney Johnson

Is It Harder to Get a U.S. Visa Coming From Certain Countries?
Wide variation exists in the rates at which people in different countries are granted nonimmigrant visas to visit, study, or work in the United States.
Eligibility to File for an I-212 Waiver to Reenter the U.S. After Deportation
Eligibility rules to apply for permission to reapply for admission into the United States after deportation or removal.
Applying for a U.S. Green Card After Abandonment of Residence
As a green card holder, if you are overseas and wish to return to the United States, but realize that you might have a problem with appearing to have abandoned your U.S. residence, you can potentially apply for what's called a returning resident (SB-1) visa.
Automatic U.S. Citizenship for Children Born to or Adopted by Citizen Parents (Acquisition)
A child can, under certain circumstances, acquire U.S. citizenship automatically through birth to U.S. citizen parents, no matter where the birth took place.
Can I File an N-600 for My Children to Get Certificates of Citizenship?
You can file an N-600 on behalf of your minor children if they have acquired or derived U.S. citizenship through you.
Getting a U.S. Visitor Visa With a Criminal Record
The process to obtain a B visa can be difficult for anyone, but especially challenging for a foreign national with a criminal record.
Entering the U.S. on an Immigrant Visa and Passing CBP Inspection
What to expect when you arrive in the U.S. on an immigrant visa to claim your lawful permanent resident status.
Getting a K-1 Visa for a Fiance With a Criminal Record
Depending on the crime, it might be possible to bring a fiancé into the U.S. who was convicted of only one crime and meets certain other criteria for the“sentencing exception.”
Filing for an I-192 Waiver: "Forgiveness" of U.S. Inadmissibility
Form I-192, the Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Nonimmigrant, is to be used by foreign nationals wishing to obtain forgiveness of a ground of inadmissibility and enter the U.S. on a temporary, nonimmigrant basis.
Green Card Application Process After Winning the DV Lottery
The first big question is, where should you file your green card application? At a USCIS office in the United States or at a U.S. consulate outside of the United States?