Immigration FAQs

If you have children that are US citizens, they can petition for you when they are 21 years old. Under Immigration Services, a child is considered an adult once they reach 21 years of age. If your children are younger than 21, they are considered minors, and minors can’t petition for their parents.

In order to apply for a waiver, you are going to need to have a family member that we refer to as a qualifying family member. Not all relationships qualify for this waiver. If you must apply for a waiver to reenter the United States and you do not want to spend more than10 years in your country, you are going to have to be petitioned for by your spouse – a US citizen or legal permanent resident or your parent. If you have a child that is petitioning for you, you won’t be able to do a waiver based on this relationship. Make sure to consult an attorney before moving forward in the process.

The 10 Year Law is a defense against deportation. If you’re in a process of deportation and have been in the US for more than 10 years, together with other requirements such as having children born here or a significant other that is a legal resident or US citizen you could qualify for this benefit. It’s a humanitarian visa and you will need to prove that your family will be facing extreme difficulty if you’re deported. Thus, the 10 Year Law does exist, but it’s only a defense against deportation.

If you have DACA, you could qualify for a permit to travel outside the country. It’s very important that if you do this, you do it through an immigration attorney and that and you can prove the reason for which you are traveling outside the country. It’s good for you if in the future you have the chance to adjust your status, if you were to travel outside the US. So it’s very important to note that if you have to take care of personal things in your country of origin, and if you need to leave the US for some reason, that you contact an attorney because this is something that can help you in the future.

If you have a criminal case, and you are found guilty, you will be at the disposal of the court. If your case is very serious, you will have to look for an option. Normally, you could request – depending on the county and type of case – a modification of disposition.

Then, if you have an immigration case and are being petitioned by your spouse or you have a case in court, it’s very important to get help from an immigration attorney. They might be able modify those charges against you to avoid harming your immigration case.

If you missed your biometrics appointment, you are at possible risk of losing your immigration case. It’s very important to contact Immigration Services if you can’t make it and let them know so that they can reschedule your appointment. Now, if you lose your appointment you could face serious problems due to Immigration Services becoming very restrictive when it comes to appointments. They are allowed to question you as to why you missed the appointment. If you do miss your appointment, contact your immigration attorney right away.

If you don’t show up to your immigration appointment with the court, you run the risk of being deported. This is what is called an Order of Removal in Absentia. If for some reason you didn’t make it to your appointment, you have 180 days to request the reopening of your case. If you didn’t receive a notification to go to court, and you didn’t show up, you could possibly request your case to be reopened even if it’s been more than 180 days. Requesting a new case in the absence of a notification of court is something that must be consulted with your immigration attorney.

If you entered the US as a minor and your parents are not in the US, you could qualify for a Special Juvenile Immigrant Status. This is a humanitarian visa given to children that have been abandoned by their parents. If you know of a child whose parents are outside of the US and want to know if they qualify for this benefit, speak to an immigration attorney. A case must first be filed with the Juvenile Court and then an application can be submitted with Immigration Services.

Having a Tax ID will definitely help your immigration case because it will allow the government to see that you are a responsible individual that pays their taxes. If you’re working inside of the US you must demonstrate that you are paying taxes and if you do not have a social security number the best option is to use a Tax ID.

This is going to help you if you have a hearing before the court date as they will be judging whether or not you have good moral character. If you are paying your taxes and are being responsible on that end it will be a positive contribution to your case.

The Trump administration wanted to change the citizenship test to 20 questions where you had to pass the majority of the questions and they also wanted to change the context of the questions. Under the new administration, the old citizenship exam is back where you only have to pass 6 out of the 10 questions they ask and write a sentence.