The Value of Immigration Attorneys: How Lawyers Aid U.S. Newcomers through Bureaucratic Processes and Austere Regulations
The path to becoming a legal United States citizen is not a cakewalk. To the contrary, it can seem more similar to an obstacle course complete with challenging tasks that can discourage one at any given stage in the process. Additionally, legal matters involving immigration have become more stringent and subject to frequent change under President Donald Trump’s administration, with many doubting their ability to stay in the U.S. or living in fear of being separated from family. The necessity and importance of immigration attorneys has thus never been more pronounced, as their ability to assist clients in navigating the visa system, applying for citizenship, and defending their rights is paramount to newcomers’ survival in an America more hostile to those born outside its borders.
The United States has many different visas, but they are broadly organized into two different categories; nonimmigrant visas for temporary stays, and immigrant visas for permanent residence. Nonimmigrant visas may be granted for reasons such as business (B-1), education (F-1 or M-1), being the spouse or child of a legal permanent resident (V), journalism (I), and exchange visitation as an au pair, intern, physician, or professor (J-1). Immigrant visas are also numerous, and are subdivided into three categories: “immediate relative/family sponsored”, “employment sponsored”, and “other immigrants”. The family sponsored category includes visas for the fiancés, spouses, and children of U.S. citizens (IR1-, CR1, K-1, K-3), orphans adopted by citizens (IR-3, IR-4), and the extended family members of citizens (F1, F2, F3, F4). The employment sponsored category includes priority workers (E1), professionals with advanced degrees or exceptional abilities (E2), skilled and unskilled workers (E3), religious workers (SD, SR), and Iraqis and Afghans who worked for the U.S. government (SQ). Lastly, the other immigrant category includes diversity immigrants (DV) and returning residents (SB) (“Directory of Visa”). With such a plethora of visas and application requirements, having the assistance of a trained immigration lawyer can reduce the stress and confusion of this cumbersome process. An attorney can identify the visa that is most pertinent to the applicant’s profile, locate which forms need to be filled out, provide an overview of the necessary fees and medical examinations, and aid sponsoring residents in completing affidavits of support.
The Permanent Resident Card, or Green Card, allows its holders to live and work permanently in the U.S. Generally, applicants must meet certain requirements before applying, such as having established permanent residency for at least three years, residence in the state in which one is applying for at least three months, a mastery of basic English, and an understanding of American history and government principles (“Naturalization Eligbility”).
In addition to the application, sponsors must often complete an immigrant petition form that varies based on their relationship to the applicant. A biometrics appointment where the applicant’s fingerprints, photograph, and signature are taken is the next step, followed by an interview. After these processes have been completed, the applicant receives one of three decisions: they can either be granted naturalization, denied it, or given “continued” status, whereby additional evidence or documentation will be necessary (“Ten Steps”).
Though immigrants may come across a number of sources offering help, only attorneys can provide proper legal advice about what to include to make for the best possible application. They are also the only professionals who can correspond with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) about a case (“Questions and Answers”). Immigration lawyers are thus vital for smoothing what can be treacherous terrain on the path to citizenship, and for effective communication between applicants and government officials.
America’s current political climate has made the already arduous process of legally establishing oneself more complicated. A Presidential Memorandum signed on March 6th, 2017 requires federal agencies to evaluate costs of the U.S. refugee resettlement program and to publish the number of visas issued by each consular office in the previous month. As a result of this, the Secretary of State issued “a series of memoranda to consular officials on strengthening screening procedures and developing criteria for identifying ‘populations warranting increased scrutiny’” (Cowger et al. [2]). Additionally, executive orders issued by President Trump have sought to ban entry into the U.S. for individuals of certain heavily Muslim countries, though they are ever-changing as they are repeatedly challenged in court. With the instability and unpredictable nature of our current system, immigration attorneys are more important than ever. This is true not only for the immigrants themselves, but for the system as a whole. A CBS News article citing Syracuse University’s TRAC (Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse) states that immigration courts are now handling a “record-breaking level of cases, with more than 533,000 cases currently pending” (Picchi). This number of cases has forced immigrants to suffer an average wait time of 678 days until they are seen in court. The article does, however, paint a less bleak picture for those who choose to use legal representation. The 2011 New York Immigrant Representation Study is cited, and three-quarters of immigrants who had attorneys and were never detained were found to have successful outcomes. By comparison, only approximately one in ten immigrants who lacked legal representation and weren’t detained had successful outcomes (Picchi).
When attorneys help immigrants through the red tape of a bureaucratic system that seems designed for discouragement, they are moving them one step closer to the security of having a permanent place to call home. Relieved of the anxiety brought on by more temporary living situations, these immigrants have a comfortable springboard from which they may launch into any number of endeavors. They may open businesses that introduce the food of their home countries to the American palette. They may become leaders in their communities, working to solve the issues that plague their neighbors. Perhaps they will dream up the next life-altering invention right within our borders. In all cases, the work that immigration lawyers engage in goes beyond helping the immigrants and their families – it enriches our society as a whole.
Works Cited
Cowger, Sela, et al. The First 100 Days: Summary of Major Immigration Actions Taken by the Trump Administration. Migration Policy Institute, Apr. 2017.
“Directory of Visa Categories.” U.S. Visas, U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs,
travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/general/all-visa-categories.html. Accessed 1 July 2017.
“Naturalization Eligibility Worksheet Instructions.” M-480. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security, www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Resources/Citizenship%20&%20Naturalizatio n%20Based%20Resources/A%20Guide%20to%20Naturalization/PDFs/ M-480.pdf. Accessed 1 July 2017. Picchi, Aimee. “Overloaded U.S. Immigration Courts a ‘Recipe for Disaster.'” CBS MoneyWatch, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2017, www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-us-immigration-courts- deportations/. Accessed 1 July 2017.
“Questions and Answers about U.S. Citizenship.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,
Department of Homeland Security, www.uscis.gov/citizenship/learners/learn-about- naturalization/questions-and-answers-about-us-citizenship. Accessed 1 July 2017.
“Ten Steps to Naturalization: Understanding the Process of Becoming a U.S. Citizen.” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security, www.uscis.gov/citizenship/learners/apply-citizenship. Accessed 1 July 2017.
