Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0
The U.S. immigration court system plays a critical role in upholding due process and ensuring fair hearings for individuals facing deportation. However, since January 20, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has implemented significant changes that challenge the structural integrity of these courts. This page aims to provide up-to-date information on the policy and legal shifts affecting the U.S. immigration court system.
Latest Updates
Updates from EOIR
Browse the Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0 collection
Adjectives Matter: What Does “Exceptional and Extremely Unusual Hardship” Mean?
AILA Member Eva Loney writes about the importance of adjectives in immigration law, specifically what “exceptional“ and “extremely unusual“ mean when considered in a removal case, highlighting why her article on the topic in the Spring AILA Law Journal was important to share.
ICE Provides Data on Detention, Alternatives to Detention, and ICE Facilities
ICE provided searchable and sortable data tables with detention statistics, including the number of people in ICE detention, initial book-ins, average length of ICE custody, and more. In addition, ICE also provided data on Alternatives to Detention and ICE facilities, including address and type.
CA9 Defers to BIA’s Permissible Interpretation of Ambiguous “Date of Admission” Phrase in INA §237(a)(2)(A)(i)(I)
The court held that, for purposes of removability for crimes involving moral turpitude (CIMT), the phrase “the date of admission” in INA §237(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) is ambiguous, and the BIA’s interpretation of the phrase in Matter of Alyazji was permissible. (Route v. Garland, 5/6/21)
AAO Finds Director Did Not Fully Evaluate Favorable Factors in Denying Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission
In a nonprecedent decision, the AAO withdrew the Director’s decision denying the applicant’s Form I-212 and remanded, finding that it did not reflect a proper analysis of the favorable and unfavorable factors in the applicant’s case. Courtesy of Alan Lee. In Re: 5511191 (AAO 5/6/21)
Senators Request $200 Million for Services Within EOIR to Provide Legal Representation to Vulnerable Individuals
Twenty senators sent a letter to the Senate Subcommittee on Appropriations for Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies requesting that $200 million be appropriated to DOJ for legal services within EOIR to provide legal representation to vulnerable populations.
Senators Urge $300 Million in Funding for Legal Services for Unaccompanied Children
Twenty-one senators sent a letter to the Senate Subcommittee on Appropriations for Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies requesting no less than $300 million in funding for legal services for unaccompanied children through the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).
EOIR Announces 17 New Immigration Judges
EOIR announced 17 new immigration judges, including one assistant chief immigration judge and six unit chief immigration judges. The notice provides the judges’ names, courts of appointment, and biographical information.
DHS Issues Statement on the Expiration of 100-Day Removal Pause
DHS issued a statement on the expiration of the 100-day pause on removals. Per the statement: “DHS does not intend to extend or reinstate a policy requiring a pause on the execution of final orders of removal for any noncitizens.”
Iranians Forced Into Military Service Face Immigration Blockade
AILA member Scott Emerick details litigation recently filed to ensure Iranian nationals forced to serve in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aren't harmed by the U.S. government's decision to retroactively name it a terrorist organization.
CA3 Holds That IJs and the BIA Have General Authority to Administratively Close Cases
The court held that 8 CFR §§1003.10(b) and 1003.1(d)(1)(ii) unambiguously grant IJs and the BIA general authority to administratively close cases by authorizing them to take “any action” that is “appropriate and necessary” for the disposition of cases. (Arcos Sanchez v. Att’y Gen., 5/5/21)
CA3 Says IJs Have Jurisdiction over Removal Proceedings Started by a Notice of Referral to an IJ Lacking Time and Place Information
Denying the petition for review, the court held that an IJ is not deprived of jurisdiction under 8 CFR §1003.14 over removal proceedings commenced by a Notice of Referral to an IJ that lacks time and place information. (Mejia Romero v. Att’y Gen., 5/5/21)
CA8 Says a Grant of TPS Does Not Excuse INA §240A(a)’s Admission Requirement for TPS Recipients
The court held that petitioner’s grant of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) did not remove the need for him to show that he was admitted in order to be eligible for cancellation of removal, and that his grant of TPS was not an admission for cancellation purposes. (Artola v. Garland, 5/5/21)
CA9 Holds That Petitioner’s Asylum Application Was Abandoned Based on Her Failure to Submit Required Biometrics
The court upheld the BIA and IJ’s conclusion that the petitioner’s application for asylum and related relief had been abandoned under 8 CFR §1003.47(c) based on her failure to submit biometrics or establish good cause for her failure to do so. (Gonzalez-Veliz v. Garland, 5/4/21)
CA3 Finds That Conviction for Second-Degree Robbery in New Jersey Is an Aggravated Felony Theft Offense
The court held that the petitioner’s 2000 conviction for second-degree robbery in New Jersey constituted an aggravated felony theft offense under INA §101(a)(43)(G), and thus found that the petitioner was ineligible for asylum and withholding of removal. (K.A. v. Att’y Gen., 5/4/21)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Arguing Iowa Theft Statute Is Indivisible
AILA and partners submitted a brief responding to BIA’s amicus invitation on the divisibility of Iowa’s theft statute. The brief argues that Iowa Code §714.1 is a single offense, and, therefore, indivisible, and highlights the categorical approach’s demand for certainty in the divisibility analysis.
ICE ERO Northern Florida NGO Contact Sheet - Jacksonville (May 2021)
ICE ERO Jacksonville contact information for Northern Florida NGOs for Detained Case Management, Non-Detained Case Management, and Alternatives to Detention as of May 2021.
ICE ERO Northern Florida NGO Contact Sheet - Tallahassee (May 2021)
ICE ERO Tallahassee contact information for Northern Florida NGOs for Non-Detained Unit and Alternatives to Detention as of May 2021.
DHS OIG Finds Violations of ICE Detention Standards at Pulaski County Jail
DHS OIG identified several violations of ICE detention standards at the Pulaski County Jail. The jail did not enforce COVID-19 precautions, which may have resulted in repeated transmissions at the facility, and did not meet standards for medical care, segregation, or detainee communication.
SCOTUS Rules NTA Sufficient to Trigger the Stop-Time Rule Must Be a Single Document
The Supreme Court held that a notice to appear (NTA) sufficient to trigger the IIRIRA’s stop-time rule is a single document containing all the information about an individual’s removal hearing. (Niz-Chavez v. Garland, 4/29/21)
Members of Congress Send Letter Supporting Funding for Providing Legal Representation to Individuals in Removal Proceedings
Forty-eight House representatives, led by Congresswoman Norma Torres (D-CA), sent a letter to the House Committee on Appropriations to support funding to expand federal programs that provide legal representation for individuals facing federal immigration court removal proceedings.
CA4 Says Petitioner Failed to Exhaust Argument That Pardoned Offenses Do Not Qualify as Convictions Under the INA
Where the petitioner had been pardoned by the state of Georgia for drug and firearm offenses after DHS had sought to remove him based on his convictions, the court held that he did not exhaust his argument that pardoned offenses do not qualify as convictions. (Tetteh v. Garland, 4/27/21)
ICE Acting Director and CBP Acting Commissioner Issue Memo on Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions In or Near Courthouses
ICE Acting Director Tae Johnson and Acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller issued a memo to ICE and CBP personnel pertaining to the limited circumstances in which civil immigration enforcement actions may be carried out in or near a courthouse. This policy supersedes an ICE directive issued in 2018.
EOIR 60-Day Notice and Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Form EOIR-26A
EOIR 60-day notice and request for comment on proposed revisions to Form EOIR-26A, Fee Waiver Request. Please see editor’s note regarding comment period end date. (86 FR 22266, 4/27/21)
ICE 60-Day Notice and Request for Comments on New “Flight Manifest/Billing Agreement”
ICE 60-day notice and request for comment on a new information collection titled “Flight Manifest/Billing Agreement,” which will be used to confirm Space Available passengers on any ICE-chartered flight and to bill for their airfare. Comments are due 6/28/21. (86 FR 22246, 4/27/21)
ICE Rescinds Civil Penalties for Failure to Depart
DHS announced that ICE has rescinded two delegation orders related to the collection of civil financial penalties for noncitizens who fail to depart the United States. ICE had initiated enforcement of civil penalties in 2018; as of January 20, 2021, ICE ceased issuing these fines.