If you attended a merits hearing in immigration court, also known as the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR), and the immigration judge (IJ) denied your case, you most likely have the right to file an appeal. An appeal means asking a higher authority to look at the transcripts and record of what happened and decide if the judge's decision was a mistake. The EOIR is an agency within the Department of Justice, responsible for adjudicating immigration cases. Accordingly, the next stop in your case will also be within the Department of Justice, namely, the Immigration Appeals Board (B, I, A.
Immigration Appeals BoardOffice of Clerk5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 2000Falls Church, VA 22041 This address is the same if you are filing for the U.S. UU. Postal service, courier, next day delivery or some other means. Appeals against orders of an immigration judge must be made on Form EOIR-26, Notice of Appeal from a Decision of an Immigration Judge.
You can submit supporting documents along with this form, but you will have the opportunity, even after you have filed it, to submit a brief, assuming you indicate on your appeal form that you want to do so. It's an excellent idea to file a brief, because this is where you, or more realistically, your lawyer, will state the arguments in your favor and the laws that support it. You might be inclined to accept the immigration judge's decision rather than closely scrutinizing your case. If you are unable to pay the fee, you can request a fee waiver using Form EOIR-26A.
Your attorney or legal representative will also file Form EOIR-27, Notice of Participation as Attorney or Representative with the Board of Immigration Appeals, which basically states that they will represent you during the process. For more information on procedural requirements for filing an appeal, download section B, I, A. The appeal must not only be filed, but it must actually be received by the B, I, A. Within 30 days of the date of the judge's order.
If you received the judge's order in writing and not in a public hearing, your appeal must be filed and received within 30 days of the date the decision was mailed to you. Late filed appeals simply won't be accepted. Therefore, take special care when filling in the mailing label and other materials correctly, and using the correct amount of postage. When calculating your 30-day deadline, you should count Saturdays, Sundays, and other holidays.
However, if the 30th falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or federal holiday, the deadline is extended to the first subsequent business day. Once your appeal is received, B, I, A. will send you an acknowledgment of receipt, usually within two weeks. If you don't hear from him within that time, contact B, I, A.
A schedule of briefings will then be established (if you said you would send a summary). Usually, you will be given 30 days to file your opening brief. The opposing counsel will also have 30 days to file a response. This period can be extended to 90 days if sufficient cause is proven.
After reviewing the submissions of both parties, the BIA will make a decision on your appeal. However, this can take months or years. Even if the immigration judge ordered your deportation, you have the right to stay in the U.S. This is automatic for standard appeals in deportation cases.
However, in other types of cases, such as motions to reopen, such a stay is not automatic; the person must take steps to request it. Before B, I, A. For more information on the different stages and types of Immigration Court hearings, see Immigration Court Procedures. In fact, it's likely that the judge decided that you should be removable and decided against you.
Following the conclusion of an individual or merit hearing (where the IJ focuses solely on your case and hears the evidence), the IJ will issue a decision on the case. This may not happen on the first day of the individual hearing if it takes more than one day to complete all of your testimony, witness presentations, etc. The IJ has the option of issuing the formal decision orally (pronounced aloud in court) or in writing. If the immigration judge says the decision aloud in court, a summary of this decision will be sent to you.
For more information on this stage of the process, see When You Will Receive the Immigration Judge's Decision. An appeal is a request that is sent to a higher court (a court with more authority) asking it to review the decision of a lower court. You will most likely need to file your appeal with the Immigration Appeals Board (B, I, A). Its primary function is to review the decisions of immigration judges.
If the immigration judge says the opinion out loud in court, the judge is likely to follow up by asking something like: Do you waive the appeal? Do you accept this decision as final? , or some variation of one of these questions. Accepting the Immigration Judge's decision as final will have the same result as waiving the appeal. Know that you don't have to decide at that time or that day if you want to appeal. If you think you want another court to review the decision later, you should tell the judge to reserve the appeal.
If you book your appeal, it means you can file it later (but no later than the 30-day deadline listed below). If you receive the immigration judge's decision in the mail, you have 30 days from the date of the decision to appeal it. After the immigration judge issues the decision and before you file an appeal, your departure from the U.S. A waiver of your appeal will be considered and the decision will become final.
There are possible reasons why you might want to waive the appeal or decide not to file the appeal. After all, an appeal will cost additional money in legal fees, etc. You could decide that the cost simply isn't worth it, especially if the legal facts or theories came to light before the judge and that ultimately makes it unlikely to win. You can also decide that you simply want to return to your country of origin.
In addition, if you are in detention, deciding to appeal your case would keep you in detention, so you could decide to waive the appeal simply to get out (but you will also have a deportation order against you, so you will have to leave the U.S. Another reason could be that you are no longer eligible for the relief you were applying for (perhaps because you are no longer married to a qualifying relative, for example). Discuss the appeal option with your lawyer before the last day of your court hearing and don't make the decision to waive the appeal lightly. If you say you don't want to appeal to B, I, A.
At the end of the procedure, you cannot change your mind and do it later. If the 30 days pass without appeal, the IJ's decision becomes final and your case will be transferred to the appropriate authorities to arrange your deportation. If, after an immigration judge has made a decision on your case, new facts or evidence emerges that the IJ did not consider or that you did not think about when deciding your case, you would want to file what is called a motion to reopen. That's just what it seems.
I would ask the IJ to reopen the file and undo the previous decision. Or, if you believe that the IJ made a mistake in the judgment, or that a change in the law would change the decision, you would file what is known as a motion for reconsideration. Similarly, this motion asks the IJ to think about the decision once more and hopefully issue a different one. Again, there are strict rules when filing any of these motions, so it's very important to follow the Immigration Court Practice Manual.
Once your appeal has been filed with B, I, A. More information can be found in Immigration Court Procedures. The decision of the IJ will be final and your case will basically be considered finished if you decide not to file an appeal with the B, I, A. Or file a motion to reopen or reconsider with the immigration judge.
However, there is still a chance that you may still be eligible for an exemption or other form of relief, even if your case seems to have ended, depending on the facts of your case. If you have already accidentally waived the appeal or did not understand what the IJ meant in making the final decision after your case ended, and you did not have an attorney with you at the hearing, then you should consult an attorney to consider your option of filing a motion to reopen with the Immigration Department judge. An immigration appeal can take between 6 months and 1 year to resolve. Immigration appeal is therefore an important part of the law, and in certain modern contexts, such as with regard to the post-Brexit situation in the EU, these particular legal issues are likely to arise more and more.
For more information on how SMA Immigration Solicitor London can help you with an immigration appeal, call 020 8951 9959. The answer to the question of “how long will an appeal take” has no clear answer and is complicated by several factors, only some of which the client or lawyer has control over. In addition, the parties need notice well in advance to arrive at oral arguments, which will sometimes occur in states far from where the immigrant and his lawyers live. As a person who represents themselves and appeals on their own behalf, you will have 14 days after the immigration decision to file an appeal. After an immigration judge renders a final judgment on a case, the alien has thirty days to file an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals.
The Immigration Appeals Board (“BIA) is an administrative appellate body and a part of the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR). If you are seeking immigration advice, you need to know who you are talking to and whether or not you are allowed to advise legally. The record generally consists of (the documents that the government filed with the Immigration Court), (the documents that were filed with the court), (the transcripts of the hearings if it is an appeal of a deportation order) and (the decision of the immigration judge). .
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