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.  

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August 29, 2017

The Trump administration continued its attack on legal immigration this month, announcing that it will start requiring additional in-person interviews for tens of thousands of individuals who have...

August 28, 2017

Hundreds, if not thousands, of noncitizens with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) now are eligible to apply for lawful permanent residence because of a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision. In...

August 25, 2017

There is strong speculation that in the coming days President Trump will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative. If the administration chooses to do so, there are...

August 16, 2017

Hundreds gathered in front of the White House on a rainy Tuesday, not only to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative, but to fight for it...

August 15, 2017

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative celebrates its fifth anniversary on Tuesday. By providing hundreds of thousands of young people temporary relief from deportation, DACA...

August 4, 2017

Diego and Lizandro Claros were deported to El Salvador this week, a country they fled as youngsters and a nation plagued by gang violence and instability. Since arriving in the United States, the...

July 25, 2017

With the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program now at risk of being terminated by the courts or the administration, pressure is building on Congress to pass legislation which...

July 20, 2017

The bipartisan Dream Act of 2017 was just introduced by Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Richard Durbin (D-IL) in the U.S. Senate. The bill provides legal status, as well as a path to...

July 11, 2017

The Pentagon is considering halting a program that allows immigrants with urgently needed skills to serve in the military, putting the thousands of soldiers promised expedited citizenship in...

June 15, 2017

Now marking its fifth year, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative has been a much-needed lifeline for more than one million young undocumented immigrants who were brought to...

August 5, 2019

The Trump administration announced on Friday that it is ending a family reunification program for Filipino World War II veterans. This places a needless burden on our country’s veterans, many of...

July 16, 2019
The statement highlights the Council’s concerns regarding systemic U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services delays in responding to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.
July 8, 2019

The Trump administration is reportedly seeking to end important programs that protect the family members of active duty service members and veterans from deportation. NPR reports that U.S....

July 2, 2019

After months of speculation, last week the Supreme Court agreed to review three cases challenging the Trump administration’s decision to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The...

July 1, 2019
A report on interior immigration enforcement by the American Immigration Council examines newly disclosed government data on the Trump administration’s aggressive enforcement agenda. The report, “Changing Patterns of Interior Immigration Enforcement in the United States, 2016–2018,” reveals that U.S. citizens and immigrant women have become increasingly vulnerable to immigration enforcement actions under the administration.
June 19, 2019

USCIS is beginning to transfer cases out of its busiest offices to even out the processing times across the country. Transferred cases will go to USCIS offices that have more manageable workloads...

June 13, 2019

The U.S. State Department announced a new rule last week that changes the Diversity Visa Program, a lottery system that grants 50,000 foreign nationals the opportunity to apply for an immigrant...

June 7, 2019

Applications for permanent residence and other immigration benefits are taking longer than ever to process. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency responsible for...

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