Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Proposed Rule Breakdown
On September 28, 2021, the Department of Homeland Security published a proposed federal regulation announcing its intent to codify Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
Child Welfare Screening Sheet: Determining Potential Avenues for Legal Status
This short screening sheet is designed to help child welfare professionals identify potential avenues for immigrant youth to gain legal status.
Health and Safety for Young Migrants: Recommendations for Supporting Unaccompanied Youth
This resource, written by Human Impact Partners in collaboration with the ILRC and others as part of the Dignity Not Detention Coalition, outlines recommendations for what healthy, just, and supportive immigration policy can look like for unaccompanied youth immigrating to the US, without relying on detention or detention-like facilities. Rooted in the stories, experiences, and recommendations of young people who arrived in the US as unaccompanied youth, this resource draws from public health evidence documenting the health harms of detention in large-scale, restrictive settings. It puts
Special Considerations when Screening Youth for T Visa Eligibility
T visas are a crucial but often underutilized form of relief for youth who have survived trafficking. This advisory gives an overview of special considerations practitioners should keep in mind when screening youth for T visa eligibility. It gives helpful tips that practitioners can use to ensure that they fully assess a child’s eligibility while minimizing retraumatization.
Overview and Cost of Common Immigration Remedies for Youth
Children and youth compose a significant portion of the U.S. immigrant population and often qualify for various forms of immigration relief, many of which involve an application filing fee. Under the Trump administration, USCIS promulgated a final rule intended to dramatically raise fees for many immigration application forms, including those available to young people, and would have limited access to fee waivers. The rule was blocked by federal courts, and after President Biden took office, the Department of Justice decided not to defend the rule, so it never took effect and for now
DACA and Juvenile Delinquency Adjudications & Records: FAQs
In this practice advisory co-drafted with Public Counsel, we answer common questions on how to tackle disclosure of juvenile adjudications and dissemination of court records for individuals interested in applying for DACA. It also includes a sample DACA request packet, which shows various ways to disclose juvenile adjudications and comply with state confidentiality laws.
Immigrants and Marijuana
The majority of states have legalized some use of marijuana, but marijuana remains a federal Schedule I controlled substance. Therefore, any conduct involving marijuana can be very dangerous for immigrants – including conduct that is permitted under state law. Admitting that one has “legally” used marijuana, being employed in the fast-growing cannabis industry, and any conviction can cause serious immigration problems. A prior marijuana conviction must be vacated based on some error; the fact that the state has since legalized the conduct does not erase it, and many state “mass expungement”
Warning for Immigrants About Medical and Legalized Marijuana
This page provides several tools: an updated and a comprehensive Practice Advisory on the legal issues; a Practice Alert on the Policy Manualamendment; community flyers that you can download and use to help warn clients and community; and a sample written warning about working in the industry from the California Employment Development Department.
ILRC Urges USCIS to Roll Back Harmful Trump Administration Policies
In April, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) put out a request for public input regarding Identifying Barriers Across U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Benefits and Services. The ILRC has submitted these comments.
DACA: Continuous Residence
Applicants must meet certain requirements to be eligible for DACA, including showing that they have been continuously residing in the United States since June 15, 2007. Acquiring documents to use as evidence to prove the continuous residence requirement can be tedious. As such, this resource focuses on the types of evidence initial DACA applicants can gather to prove continuous residence and where applicants can get this evidence.
Child Detention: Frequently Asked Questions
This resource, co-written with Detention Watch Network, answers common questions about the increased numbers of unaccompanied children arriving at the border and the government’s opening of “influx facilities” and “emergency intake sites” in response. It also provides guidance for responding to a new facility opening in your community.
Quick Guide: EAD Eligibility for Asylum Applicants
In the summer of 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published two regulatory rules relating to eligibility for employment authorization documents (EADs) for individuals with pending asylum applications. Both rules went into effect in August 2020. This advisory provides a summary of the rules and the preliminary injunction currently in effect for members of Casa de Maryland (CASA) and Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP). The end of this advisory contains a helpful chart for quick reference, outlining current eligibility requirements for an EAD based on a pending asylum
How Can Advocates Ensure that the DJJ Closure Protects Immigrant Youth?
California is in the midst of an historic reform of its youth prisons, known as the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). Failed DJJ facilities will close, creating an opportunity for youth to be cared for close to home through community-based programs and services. This short resource describes steps that community-based advocates must take to ensure that the closure addresses the needs of ALL impacted communities, including immigrant youth.
ILRC Comments re EOIR Appellate Procedure Regulations
On September 25, ILRC submitted comments in opposition to EOIR's proposed rule regarding court procedures. The proposed rule is an unlawful attempt to curb Immigration Judges’ authority, limit case review, and drastically restrict due process for immigrants. The rule undermines the appellate process and curtails the efficient adjudication of the courts.
Close DJJ the Right Way for All
California is in the midst of an historic reform of its Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). Under current plans, failed DJJ facilities will close, creating an opportunity for youth to be cared for close to home through community-based programs and services. But if DJJ closes, it must close justly. Any closure must divest from carceral solutions and invest in restorative and transformative justice rooted in community wellness and safety. Any closure must take into account the needs of all impacted communities, including immigrant youth. This resource highlights the two main ways that noncitizen
Special Immigrant Juveniles & the Grounds of Inadmissibility
This resource provides helpful charts of the grounds of inadmissibility as applied to special immigrant juveniles (SIJs). It also describes the waiver standard and process for SIJs.
ILRC & Public Counsel Comments Submitted on November 15, 2019 to the Proposed Rule Governing the Special Immigrant Juvenile Classification, DHS Docket No. USCIS 2009-0004
On November 15, 2019, the ILRC and Public Counsel submitted comments in response to the re-opened comment period on the proposed SIJS regulations, originally published in 2011. The ILRC and Public Counsel each submitted comments on the proposed rule during the original 2011 comment period, organizationally and as part of the Immigrant Children Lawyers Network. Accordingly, in 2019, we wrote to renew our 2011 comments and briefly supplement them due, in part, to concerns and changes in practice that had arisen in the intervening eight years.
The 2019 DHS U Visa Certifier Resource Guide: What Practitioners Need to Know
For an immigrant survivor of crime to qualify for U nonimmigrant status, they must obtain and submit to USCIS a certification of their helpfulness to law enforcement. A law enforcement agency (LEA) or other certifier must complete Form I-918, Supplement B, “U Nonimmigrant Status Certification,” attesting to the survivor’s assistance. In July 2019, the Department of Homeland Security issued an updated guide explaining the U visa requirements and the U visa certification process and identifying best practices for certifying agencies and officials. The new guide is more anti-immigrant in tone
Protecting Information in DACA Applications Against Deportation in Light of Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of University of California and Existing Policies
This practice advisory discusses the confidentiality policies and practices currently in place protecting information submitted in Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applications in light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of University of California that allowed the DACA program to remain open.
A Guide to State Laws on U Visa and T Visa Certifications
U nonimmigrant status and T nonimmigrant status, often called “U visas” and “T visas,” are humanitarian forms of immigration relief for crime survivors. Congress created these forms of relief with the dual purpose of aiding law enforcement, by encouraging crime victims to cooperate, and providing humanitarian relief for crime survivors. Both forms of relief have a certification process by which applicants request certification from a law enforcement agency to document their cooperation. In recent years, many states have enacted U and T visa certification legislation in order to assist eligible
What Are the Immigration Consequences of Delinquency?
This advisory provides an overview of the immigration consequences of delinquency and helps advocates understand the distinctions between delinquency and crime to be able to assess whether a youth has committed an act of delinquency or a crime. It arms advocates with arguments to protect their noncitizen clients who have engaged in unlawful conduct as minors.
From “Superpredators” to “Migrant Gang Bangers”: The Criminalization of Young People of Color
This one-page resource from the ILRC and the National Juvenile Justice Network illustrates the connections between the criminalization of young people of color in the youth justice system and the current criminalization of young immigrants of color.
Unaccompanied Children and the One-Year Filing Deadline
Although the TVPRA exempts unaccompanied children (UCs) from the one-year filing deadline for asylum, the current administration has been attempting to erode these protections. As a result, many UCs are at risk of losing their statutory protections and being subjected to the one-year filing deadline. This practice advisory provides UC advocates with an overview of the deadline, the exceptions for changed and extraordinary circumstances, and specific tips on satisfying this requirement in UC cases.
ILRC Submits Comment on USCIS Fee Rule
On December 23, 2019, ILRC submitted a comment in opposition of the Department of Homeland Security’s notice of proposed rulemaking titled, “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Fee Schedule and Changes to Certain Other Immigration Benefit Request Requirements,” published in the Federal Register on November 14, 2019, with supplemental information published on December 9, 2019. ILRC submitted supplemental comments in early 2020.
Public Charge Exemptions and Considerations
It is important to remember that immigration law and regulations exempt some categories of immigrants from public charge inadmissibility and provide many types of immigration status that are not subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility. This advisory provides an overview of the exemptions to public charge inadmissibility and the forms of relief a client may seek without being subject to a public charge test. It also discusses public charge issues to keep in mind when advising immigrants who may be considering adjustment of status or consular processing through a family or
Practice Alert: SIJS Policy Updates and Proposed Regulations (November 2019)
This practice alert highlights the key take-aways from three recently adopted AAO decisions and some of the most important elements of the proposed regulations for advocates to challenge through comments, and contains an Appendix with case summaries of the AAO decisions.