With daily headlines about immigration, HIAS PA is receiving more calls than ever from not just would-be clients but also the public at large, all circulating around the same question, “can they do that?” Expressions of consternation, fear and anxiety for loved ones, colleagues, friends and neighbors are coming at us almost as frequently as calls from our clients and would-be clients.  While I don’t pretend to be able to explain all of the complexities and nuances of American Immigration Law in one brief column, it does strike me that I could add a little quick enlightenment about the broader context which most nonimmigration attorneys don’t understand.

So, first and foremost, it must be understood that there is no one place that a foreign-born person should go to obtain some kind of authorization to be in the country. While the rest of our civil judicial system is, by comparison, straightforward—a tenant or a landlord with a legal problem relating to the tenancy files petitions in landlord/tenant court, a person with a legal problem relating to his family unit goes to family court and a contractor seeking to be paid or a person who seeks to sue his contractor for violating the contract in some way goes to small claims court (when the payment requested or alleged damage done is below a certain value)—a foreign person seeking to come to this country or remain in this country doesn’t have one specific place to go. Where he files a petition depends on whether he is seeking to come to the country temporarily (as a nonimmigrant) or permanently (as an immigrant), whether he seeks to remain in the country after already having entered (with or without authorization) or whether he is seeking to remain in the country after having been placed in deportation proceedings. Not every person who was not authorized to enter the country is placed in deportation proceedings. Therefore, some persons who entered without authorization but then have a valid legal claim for  remaining in the country can make that claim by filing the appropriate petition with the appropriate administrative agency. So, when a family member, neighbor or colleague confesses to you that he has an immigration concern, know that it is not a simple matter to “go to immigration court” and straighten it out. The person’s circumstances must be evaluated to determine if there is a legal basis for remaining in the country and if there is, there must a determination about where that person should be making that claim.