Category Archives: immigration reform

Beware of immigration scams!

Beware of notarios and scammers trying to take advantage of President Obama’s recent executive actions on immigration.

AILA National revamped its print Public Service Announcements (PSAs) that AILA members and the public can use to warn consumers about immigration scams.

The PSA is available in English and Spanish.

Only a licensed lawyer or accredited representative is authorized and qualified to help you with your immigration case. Unlike consultants,  immigration lawyers are licensed to represent clients.

Accredited representatives (who are not licensed lawyers but may provide limited assistance in immigration matters) must work for a Recognized Organization and be authorized by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).  Recognized organizations that appear on this list may help with immigration matters. These organizations must either provide their services for free, or must only charge a nominal (small) fee for their services.

Notarios are neither lawyers nor accredited representatives. They often use the term “notario publico” in the Hispanic community. That title is not recognized in the United States as it is in some Latin American countries.

It is against the law for notarios to give you immigration advice. Even preparing immigration forms or green card applications is something that only a licensed immigration lawyer or accredited representative should do.

Lawyers from another country who are not licensed in the United States also are not authorized to provide immigration services within the United States.

In some cases, a law student participating in a law school clinic or legal aid program or through a non-profit organization may represent a person as described by regulation.

For more information, go to Stop Notario Fraud.

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Photo by: Richard Artschwager at Wadsworth Atheneum

Tune in for Obama’s address on immigration action

The White HouseTune in at 8 pm (ET) tonight (Thursday, November 20) for President Obama’s address on immigration action.

“Tomorrow night I’m going to be announcing here from the White House some steps I can take to start fixing our broken immigration system,” Obama said in a video posted on Facebook Wednesday afternoon.

Democratic leaders strongly support executive action on immigration. Republicans in Congress strenuously oppose Obama taking any unilateral action.

It’s not clear which groups of undocumented immigrants or how many will benefit from Obama’s executive order. Parents of U.S. citizens are likely to be included. Up to 5 million undocumented immigrants could be granted work permits and be shielded from deportation.

One thing’s certain: executive order alone cannot provide long-term immigration reform.

Although executive action shapes the way existing law is enforced, it does not create new law.  It would not provide undocumented immigrants with permanent resident status or a pathway to citizenship, which was proposed in the Senate bill that stalled in the House.

The Obama administration deported a record 438,421 unauthorized immigrants in fiscal year 2013, continuing the trend of increased enforcement that has resulted in more than 2 million deportations since Obama took office. Immigration advocates have dubbed Obama the “deporter in chief,” while Republicans in Congress have not complained about the stepped up enforcement.

Obama may use his executive authority to focus on deporting violent criminals and repeat offenders, instead of undocumented immigrants who pose little threat to the community and have strong family ties in the U.S.

But long-term, comprehensive immigration reform must come through Congress. Executive action by Obama would provide only temporary relief, not a lasting fix.

Watch Obama’s address online at White House Live.

This article provides general information only. Do not consider it as legal advice for any individual case or situation. Each legal case is different and case examples do not constitute a prediction or guarantee of success or failure in any other case. The sharing or receipt of this information does not create an attorney-client relationship.

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Top Democrats Support Obama on Immigration

Top Democrats in both Houses support President Obama’s plan to take executive action on immigration. Obama is considering an executive order that would protect up to 5 million undocumented immigrants from deportation and grant work permits to many of them.

In a November 17 letter to the President, current Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and five other top Senate Democrats said they will “stand behind [Obama] to support changes to keep families together.”

“Immigrant communities have waited too long for House Republicans to catch up with the American public’s support for comprehensive immigration reform,” the letter to Obama states. “We strongly support your plan to improve as much  of the immigration system as you can within your legal authority, and will stand behind you to support changes to keep families together while continuing to enforce our immigration laws in a way that protects our national security and public safety.”

In a November 13 letter to the President, 117 House Democrats, led by Representatives Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL) and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), called on Obama to take “bold and meaningful executive action” on immigration.

Meanwhile, some 59 House Republicans, led by Arizona Congressman Matt Salmon, issued a letter calling on House leaders to “prohibit the use of funds by the administration for the implementation of current or future executive actions that would create additional work permits and green cards outside of the scope prescribed by Congress.”

Senate Democrats are likely to block any bill that contains such language and Congress needs to extend funding by December 11 to keep the federal government running.

Keeping the threat of a government shutdown alive, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said, “We’re going to fight the president tooth and nail if he continues down this path.” He added, “This is the wrong way to govern.”

Unlike President Reagan’s 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, executive action by Obama would not provide sweeping immigration reform. Reagan’s bill granted “amnesty” to nearly 3 million undocumented immigrants who entered the country before 1982. An executive order by Obama would not create a path to citizenship or permanent resident status, but could grant temporary relief to millions of undocumented immigrants.

This article provides general information only. Do not consider it as legal advice for any individual case or situation. Each legal case is different and case examples do not constitute a prediction or guarantee of success or failure in any other case. The sharing or receipt of this information does not create an attorney-client relationship.

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Photo by: Shubert Ciencia

Obama pledges immigration fix by executive order

Now that Republicans control the U.S. Senate in the wake of Tuesday’s midterm elections, President Obama promised to use executive orders to implement immigration reform.

In an interview on CBS’ Face the Nation, Obama said he had waited long enough for Congress to act. “I’m going to do what I can do through executive action,” Obama said. “It’s not going to be everything that needs to get done. And it will take time to put that in place.”

The U.S. government does not have the capacity to deport an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants.  This year’s upsurge in apprehension of unaccompanied children from Central America at the Southwestern border put further strain on the immigration system.

Th U.S. Department of Homeland Security estimates that 68,541  unaccompanied children from El Salvador, Honduras, and other Central American countries have been apprehended this year, compared to 38,759 last year.

Although the numbers have since declined, the crisis sparked growing public concern over illegal immigration and weakened support for legalization of undocumented immigrants, according to some polls.

Immigration reform

 

 

 

“Everybody agrees the immigration system’s broken. And we’ve been talking about it for years now in terms of fixing it,” Obama said.

“I’d prefer and still prefer to see it done through Congress,” Obama added. “But every day that I wait, we’re misallocating resources, we’re deporting people that shouldn’t be deported, we’re not deporting folks that are dangerous and need to be deported.”

For national policy change to occur,  Congress must usually approve a bill before the president signs it into law. An executive order allows the president to bypass the legislative process to meet limited policy objectives.

The U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan immigration reform bill in July 2013, but it was not taken up by the U.S. House of Representatives, led by Speaker John Boehner.

In his first press conference since Tuesday’s midterm elections, Boehner said Obama will “poison the well” and “there will be no chance for immigration reform” if he pursues unilateral, executive action.

Executive orders provide only a temporary, short-term fix.  They can also be revoked by Congress, a federal appeals court, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Ultimately, Congress has to decide whether it will pass a bill to deal with permanent immigration reform.

Obama said that if a bill gets passed, “nobody’s going to be happier than me to sign it, because that means it will be permanent rather than temporary.” He noted, “the minute they pass a bill that addresses the problems of immigration reform, I will sign it and it supersedes whatever actions I take.”

Watch the full interview on CBS’ Face the Nation here.

This article provides general information only. Do not consider it as legal advice for any individual case or situation. Each legal case is different and case examples do not constitute a prediction or guarantee of success or failure in any other case. The sharing or receipt of this information does not create an attorney-client relationship.

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Photo by: SEIU