Resources
Publication Date
09/29/2022
Consular processing is one of ways an individual can obtain lawful permanent residence. This process is often confusing and daunting to individuals who do not regularly work on these types of cases since the process is completed with a U.S. consulate abroad and involves interaction with several government agencies. This practice advisory provides an overview of the steps involved in a consular processing case and some considerations to keep in mind.
Resources
Publication Date
09/28/2022
This practice advisory outlines the requirements and process of enrolling in Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for the first time. It provides an overview of the basic requirements for TPS and identifies red flag issues that require careful analysis. It provides guidance on the TPS application process, including preparing a waiver of inadmissibility. It also offers practical guidance about when to file in immigration court and when an eligible individual may qualify for late initial registration.
Resources
Publication Date
09/27/2022
California has strict confidentiality laws that govern when and to whom records from dependency and youth justice (delinquency) proceedings may be released. Immigration advocates need to be aware of these laws and ensure they are complied with when representing individuals with California juvenile records. This guide provides an overview of the law and practical guidance for how to handle issues of juvenile confidentiality before USCIS.
Resources
Publication Date
09/16/2022
This advisory provides an introduction to the Affidavit of Support including various ways to meet the financial requirements, different types of sponsors who may submit Affidavits of Support, who is considered a “household member” for purposes of the Affidavit of Support, and exemptions to the Affidavit of Support.
Resources
Publication Date
09/13/2022
Because survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other crimes are among the most vulnerable populations in the immigration legal system, numerous laws and policies have been enacted to protect the confidentiality of their information and restrict the disclosure of that information. One source of important protections is codified at 8 U.S.C. § 1367 (Section 1367), which restricts identification of survivors with humanitarian relief claims and disclosure of their information.[1] This practice advisory discusses the ways in which federal law has been designed and implemented to protect information concerning abused immigrants, the policy laid out by U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agencies, and what advocates can do when the protection provisions are violated.
Resources
Publication Date
09/12/2022
The final Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) rule was published on August 30, 2022 and is set to go into effect on October 31, 2022. This rule is an attempt to “preserve and fortify” the DACA policy as directed by President Biden’s January 20, 2021, memorandum titled “Preserving and Fortifying Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).” This practitioner’s guide delves into aspects of the rule and discusses the future of DACA considering the Texas-led lawsuit challenge to the legality of DACA now pending at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the current injunction barring the adjudication of initial DACA requests, and what to expect in the future.
Resources
Publication Date
08/29/2022
This practice advisory explains the various immigration consequences of a conviction for Assault under Texas Penal Code § 22.01 and provides tips for mitigating such consequences in criminal proceedings. This August 2022 update includes analysis of the Texas Assault statute in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in Borden v. United States. The Texas Assault statute is complex and includes several subsections, so we have included a chart in the appendix describing the potential immigration consequences for each subsection of the Texas Assault statute.
Resources
Publication Date
07/12/2022
Thousands of noncitizens in California are at risk of removal or cannot qualify for immigration relief because they have unlawfully imposed criminal convictions. The good news is that there are several options under California law to eliminate these convictions for immigration purposes, using post-conviction relief (PCR). This Advisory can help advocates to identify which of these forms of California PCR may help your client, and direct you to more resources about how to obtain it.
Resources
Publication Date
06/29/2022
Filing an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is a crucial step for many noncitizens facing removal because it is the last opportunity to obtain a favorable decision from the Executive Office for Immigration Review. Often, reviewing the immigration judge’s decision for errors is a daunting task. It can be difficult to separate identifying issues to appeal, from the overwhelming sense of injustice that can result from a negative decision. This advisory will focus on reviewing decisions by Immigration Judges (IJs) and identifying issues to raise on appeal to the BIA. The goal is to equip practitioners with a framework to look for errors where the IJ has denied relief or otherwise ordered removal.
Resources
Publication Date
06/28/2022
Clients with mental illness have needs and vulnerabilities that present unique challenges in immigration proceedings. This practice advisory provides an overview on advocating for clients with mental health issues, specifically focusing on representation in the detained setting. The advisory discusses legal authority that an immigration practitioner can utilize to protect a client’s due process rights and ensure their client’s agency is respected and they have a meaningful opportunity to present their case.
Resources
Publication Date
06/27/2022
This advisory provides detailed instruction on how and where to file a motion to reopen for attorneys who have successfully vacated a conviction for immigration purposes and their client is now eligible for termination or a form of relief. In addition, the advisory addresses the impact of the post-departure bar and reinstatement of prior removal order on post-conviction relief motions to reopen.
Resources
Publication Date
06/23/2022
This advisory provides an overview of ICE’s new “victim-centered” approach to immigration enforcement based on an August 2021 directive, including who qualifies as a victim and which ICE actions are covered. As part of this new approach, ICE officers and agents are instructed to look out for and in various circumstances exercise prosecutorial discretion in favor of noncitizen survivors of crime as part of their decisions to arrest, detain, release, and refer noncitizens.
Resources
Publication Date
06/22/2022
This advisory describes the various ways that persons with disabilities can navigate the naturalization process, including requesting accommodations, seeking an N-648 disability waiver of the English/civics requirement, and applying for an oath waiver. The advisory describes recent changes to the USCIS’s policy manual and upcoming changes to the N-648.
Resources
Publication Date
06/08/2022
This advisory lays out some of the main “pros” and “cons” to applying for U nonimmigrant status for crime victims as they exist now, to help prospective applicants weigh the benefits and risks of applying. “Pros” include direct benefits of temporary lawful status, employment authorization, protection from removal, a pathway to a green card that is not barred by almost any grounds of inadmissibility, and the ability to help family members obtain immigration status. Additional “pros” include special confidentiality provisions, eligibility for public benefits, eligibility for the Central American Minors program, and special consideration by ICE, among other collateral benefits. “Cons” include very long processing times and vulnerability to divergent discretionary decisions during fluctuations in enforcement priorities and other policies in the many years it takes to get a decision.
Resources
Publication Date
06/06/2022
On February 10, 2022, USCIS released several VAWA Self-Petition policy changes. The changes include the nationwide implementation of two circuit court decisions and changes in USCIS’s interpretation of the joint residence requirement for VAWA Self-Petitioners. This practice advisory contains short summaries of USCIS’s VAWA Self-Petition policy changes.
Resources
Practice Advisory for Immigration Advocates: The Biden Administration’s Final Enforcement Priorities
Publication Date
05/04/2022
DHS issued new enforcement and prosecutorial discretion guidance on September 30, 2021. This practice advisory from the ILRC, NIPNLG, and IDP provides immigration practitioners with an overview of the enforcement priorities and other key policy changes described in recent DHS and ICE memos, and discusses strategies to use these priorities to advocate for prosecutorial discretion.
Resources
Publication Date
05/04/2022
This advisory provides practitioners with current information about the public charge ground of inadmissibility, including addressing what is public charge, who does it apply to, how is public charge evaluated, and could being a public charge make someone deportable.
Resources
Publication Date
03/29/2022
This advisory gives an overview of the SIJS-based adjustment of status process. It will give step-by-step guidance for both the affirmative process, for young people who are not in removal proceedings, and for the defensive process, for young people who are in removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review.
Resources
Publication Date
03/25/2022
The domestic violence deportation ground at INA § 237(a)(2)(E) sets out four bases for deportation: conviction of a crime of domestic violence, a crime of stalking, or a crime of child abuse, neglect, or abandonment, or being the subject of a judicial finding of violation of a domestic violence stay-away order. Coming within one of these grounds also can be a bar to cancellation of removal for non-permanent residents or DACA.
Resources
Publication Date
02/11/2022
This practice advisory contains numerous practical examples to assist in understanding how to recapture and retain priority dates in the family immigration context. It includes discussions and examples of how this concept intersects with other provisions of law, such as the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), and adjustment of status under § 245(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). A brief discussion and summary of the utilization of cross-chargeability of priority dates is also included.
Resources
Publication Date
01/24/2022
What are ICE detainers, how do they affect a criminal case, and how can counsel get rid of them? This advisory walks through all the legal and practices issues around ICE detainers, including the role of ICE in issuing them and the role of local or state jailors in responding. We discuss the importance of incorporating ICE detainers into pre-trial strategy, the legal and constitutional issues implicated by ICE detainers, and the various ways to challenge or rescind a detainer. This advisory is national; it identifies various different state laws affecting ICE detainers.
Resources
Publication Date
01/19/2022
This practice advisory discusses the changes to eligibility for derivative T nonimmigrant status for after-acquired spouses in the wake of the ruling in Medina Tovar v. Zuchowski.
Resources
Publication Date
12/17/2021
This practice advisory provides an overview of TPS and focuses on a framework for analysis for the firm resettlement bar to eligibility. It also discusses the impact of dual nationality on TPS applicants.
Resources
Publication Date
12/16/2021
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.
Resources
Publication Date
12/16/2021
Throughout the Trump Administration, the federal government has sought to undermine sanctuary policies by requiring that cities help ICE with immigration enforcement in order to receive certain federal grants from the DOJ. These policies have spurred a dozen lawsuits, almost all of which have ruled in favor of the cities challenging DOJ’s conditions. In 2021, the Biden administration removed all current and prior immigration conditions on federal grants. This advisory explains more about the grant programs affected, the litigation, and what localities should know and do in the current environment.
Resources
Publication Date
12/14/2021
This Chart summarizes the criminal record bars to many forms of relief, to provide a quick way to check whether your client is potentially eligible for relief. See also ILRC, Immigration Relief Toolkit (2018).
Resources
Publication Date
12/03/2021
On June 14, 2021, USCIS announced a new “bona fide determination” process whereby certain U petitioners and their family members with pending U petitions can receive four-year work authorization and deferred action while they wait for full adjudication. This process could be very good for many of the 270,000 folks who have filed for a U visa and are waiting – but there are many folks left out, and of course, much of this depends on how the process is implemented. ILRC and ASISTA wrote this advisory to provide updated information on the new process and discuss eligibility, decisions and renewals, and other issues.
Resources
Publication Date
12/01/2021
DHS issued new enforcement and prosecutorial discretion guidance on September 30, 2021. This practice advisory from the ILRC, NIPNLG, and IDP provides criminal defense practitioners with an overview of the enforcement priorities and other key policy changes described in recent DHS and ICE memos, and discusses strategies to use these priorities to advocate for prosecutorial discretion.