Immigration Benefits and Relief
The immigration laws and regulations provide some avenues to apply for lawful status from within the U.S. or to seek relief from deportation. The eligibility requirements for these benefits and relief can be stringent, and the immigration agencies often adopt overly restrictive interpretations of the requirements. Learn about advocacy and litigation that has been and can be undertaken to ensure that noncitizens have a fair chance to apply for the benefits and relief for which they are eligible. Providing avenues for legal status, protection, and family reunification is vital to ensuring humanitarian protection for immigrants. We are leading policy changes that open more opportunities like asylum, visas for victims of crime or human trafficking, and relief for long-term residents. Explore the resources below to learn more.
AG Jeff Sessions is unfit to decide immigration case, say immigration groups
The American Immigration Council, joined by several other immigration groups, submitted an amicus brief that argues that due process requires an impartial adjudicator and that Sessions’ anti-immigrant statements and actions prevent him from acting as one. The brief lays out Sessions’ decades-long public record of anti-immigrant statements, including specific statements evidencing prejudgment of issues in the case, and urges Sessions to either vacate the referral order or recuse himself from the case. Read More
Brief Argues Attorney General Lacks Impartiality Necessary to Decide Immigration Cases
In a rare move, Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently referred an immigration case to himself, utilizing a regulation that gives attorney generals the power to reconsider cases previously decided by the Board of Immigration Appeals. But Sessions’ hostile anti-immigrant public statements, made over the course of his entire career, make him unfit to rule in an immigration case. Read More
Matter of Castro-Tum
In the case, Attorney General Jeff Sessions referred to himself questions related to administrative closure. This move by Sessions could signal an attempt to end administrative closure altogether—which could force over 350,000 immigrants back into immigration court, exacerbating the challenges of an already overburdened immigration court system. Read More
The Senate Fails to Find a Way Forward for Dreamers
The United States Senate had a golden opportunity this week to legislate a permanent solution for Dreamers—however a week that began full of hope ended as a dud, with no bill passing and the president’s immigration proposal receiving a strong rebuke from Democrats and Republicans alike. The week began with… Read More
The Senate Misses a Key Opportunity to Pass a Permanent Solution for Dreamers
The U.S. Senate failed again to provide a permanent solution for Dreamers on Thursday when it rejected multiple bipartisan bills. The Senate voted on three different proposals that would have provided a permanent solution for Dreamers. One proposal was an attempt to pass the White House immigration framework,… Read More
What Views Do Millennials Hold Around Immigration?
The Millennial Generation constitutes the most racially and ethnically diverse generation America has ever known. Millennials are the largest living generation by population size (79.8 million in 2016) and are the generation with the largest number of individuals who identify as multiracial. A recent study on millennial attitudes… Read More
Bills Introduced in Both Chambers Provide Common Sense Solution for Dreamers
Senators McCain (R-AZ) and Coons (D-DE) introduced the United and Securing America (U.S.A) Act in the Senate this week, which includes a permanent solution for Dreamers as well as border security measures. While the recently released White House immigration framework has not enjoyed bipartisan support, versions of this bill… Read More
DHS Extends Temporary Protected Status for Syrians, but Leaves Some Without Protections
For the first time in many months, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) decided to extend a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation – this time for Syria. With civil war continuing to rage, the Secretary of Homeland Security is permitting Syrians another 18 months to be safe from… Read More
State of the Union Speech Highlights President Trump’s Vision for Massive Reductions in Immigration
President Trump gave his first State of the Union address to Congress this week, during which he shared his vision for America’s future immigration policy—and it’s bleak. The address echoed much of the White House’s restrictive immigration framework released last week, which envisions a path to citizenship for… Read More
Decoding the White House Immigration Framework
After President Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative, he instructed Congress to pass legislation to protect Dreamers. However, Congress had to wait for direction from the White House on what type of legislation the president would sign into law. Finally, on Thursday, his administration released their… Read More
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