Publications

July, 2006

IMMIGRATION REFORM BILL DELAYED

House leaders have announced that instead of a reform of the immigration law, which the President supported, they will conduct public hearings throughout the country over the next few months to assess public opinion.  This is a delaying tactic and a reprimand to the President who needs a reform bill to sustain the viability of his administration.

Although these House leaders maintain that the public is only interested in deporting
illegal aliens and in constructing walls at the Mexican border, reliable opinion polls show that a majority of voters overwhelmingly support immigration reform.  The public wants to provide a way for the 12 million undocumented aliens to become legal.  They believe a permanent underclass is distasteful and unworthy of our traditions.  The poor of the U.S. should be helped by the Government providing the skills to escape poverty, and not by suppressing the undocumented poor.

Natrualization: Oath Taking

If the United States Citizenship and Naturalization Service (USCIS) does not make a
decision within 120 days after a naturalization interview, an applicant may apply to a U.S. District Court for a hearing, to provide the District Court jurisdiction over the case.

The USCIS has heretofore waited for the FBI to conclude as investigation before
scheduling a naturalization interview.  Investigations usually take a few weeks but in
unusual cases the FBI has taken longer.  Still where undue delays occur the
Courts may order the FBI and the USCIS to observe deadlines in which to complete
background checks.  Federal Courts have had to face an increasing case load especially because of failure to schedule oath taking after a naturalization application has been approved.

Rules Change for Arriving Alien in Deportation Procedures Barred from Adjustig Status

Recently, the Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit decided that arriving aliens in removal
proceedings are ineligible for adjustment of status as well as for cancellation of removal.  The Department of Homeland Security and the Attorney General have reversed this decision allowing arriving aliens the right to apply for adjustment of status and cancellation of removal even though they are in Removal Proceedings.

The petitioner had attempted to enter the U.S. by using another person’s passport and
visa.   After removal proceedings were started, he was released on parole after posting a bond. Although removable, he applied for asylum from Pakistan and a year later married a U.S. citizen, and had a child by her.  The Immigration Judge denied the petitioner’s Motion to Reopen the case to allow him to adjust status because the Judge found that the petitioner was an arriving alien in removal proceedings and hence was not eligible to adjust status.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals noted that 4 circuits had invalidated the regulation that precluded an arriving alien from applying for adjustment of status, but the Eighth Circuit upheld the regulation.

On May 12, 2006, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and the Attorney General, to resolve this inconsistency, jointly published regulations removing the bar for arriving aliens to adjust status, notwithstanding they entered while in removal proceedings.

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New York Immigration Lawyers > Immigration Publications > July 2006