Family-Based

One of the most common ways for people to get a green card is through a family member. U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents can help certain family members immigrate to the United States. This is a two-step process. First, the U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident files a family visa petition. Second, the foreign national relative files an application to become a permanent resident. Each step involves different legal and factual issues.

As a national expert on these issues, the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) provides ongoing trainings on the family-based immigration process, answers case-specific questions from practitioners, authors a comprehensive manual, Families & Immigration: A Practical Guide, and advocates locally and federally in support of immigrant families.

Latest in Family-Based

Template Comment to Oppose the DOJ Rule Eliminating the Office of Legal Access Programs (OLAP) and Placing the Recognition and Accreditation Program (R & A Program) Under the Office of Policy

09/16/2019

The Immigrant Legal Resource Center created this template to help you draft your own comments in opposition to this interim rule with request for comment. The new rule can be found here . Comments are due by October 25, 2019. We are very concerned about this rule’s “reorganization” at EOIR that eliminates OLAP, the office that has operated the Recognition and Accreditation (R & A) Program and...

Department of State FOIA Requests for Personal Records

08/14/2019

In certain immigration cases, you may want to submit a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the U.S. Department of State (DOS), such as to try to find information about previous visa applications and passport records. This Practice Advisory will go over the DOS FOIA process in detail and provide practice tips for obtaining personal records from them, including best practices.

Escalating Cases with USCIS and DHS

07/11/2019

This practice advisory provides an overview of ways to advocate with USCIS and DHS components for solutions to individual case problems and systemic issues.

I-601A Provisional Waiver: Process, Updates, and Pitfalls to Avoid

06/27/2019

This advisory is the second in a two-part series on unlawful presence and unlawful presence waivers. This advisory covers the requirements and process for the provisional waiver, as well as updates and pitfalls to avoid in light of recent changes that have made pursuing the provisional waiver process more challenging. These include: State Department updates to public charge guidance and increased...

Practice Alert: Upcoming Elimination of Means-Tested Benefits as Basis for Fee Waiver Requests

06/17/2019

This practice alert provides a brief overview of some of the main changes practitioners can expect with the proposed change to fee waiver eligibility and process, most significantly by eliminating receipt of means-tested benefits as a basis for requesting a fee waiver. Given that these significant changes to the fee waiver process will make it more difficult and time-intensive to establish...