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
USCIS Reminder to Use Current Form I-821D
USCIS reminder to use the current Form I-821D, Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, dated 6/25/13. USCIS has experienced a high rejection rate as a result of customers submitting outdated versions of the form.
BIA Reopens and Remands Case Involving Maryland Second Degree Assault
Unpublished BIA decision remands proceedings to consider whether Maryland second degree assault is a crime of violence aggravated felony in light of Supreme Court decision in Descamps and Fourth Circuit decision in Karimi. (Matter of Diaz, 11/19/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
Settlement Requires USCIS to Provide Asylum Officer Interview Notes in FOIA Response (Updated 4/29/14)
Settlement agreement reached in a lawsuit challenging USCIS’s policy of withholding of asylum officer interview notes in FOIA responses. On 1/8/14, USCIS instructed its employees involved in processing FOIA requests that asylum officer interview notes generally are to be produced.
CA7 Denies Asylum to Landowners from Honduras
The court upheld the BIA’s conclusions that the squatters, known as “capesinos,” did not act on account of petitioners’ status as land owners and that Honduras is both willing and able to protect land owners from campesinos. (Urbina-Dore v. Holder, 11/18/13)
BIA Finds IJ Erred in Denying Derivative Asylum Claim
Unpublished BIA decision remanding, finding the IJ erred when concluding the respondent could not claim derivative status through her husband’s approved asylum application because she entered the U.S. as a nonimmigrant prior to her husband. Courtesy of Rachel Wilson.
BIA Terminates Proceedings After Conviction Vacated for State Misconduct
Unpublished BIA decision reopens and terminates proceedings after respondent was permitted to withdraw guilty plea because state chemist who tested controlled substances was accused of misconduct. (Matter of Ventura-Arias, 11/18/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
BIA Remands For Failure to Consider Argument Regarding Florida Assault and Grant Theft
Unpublished BIA decision grants motion to reconsider and remands because both the IJ and Board failed to consider arguments that Florida assault and grant theft are not CIMTs. (Matter of Rivero, 11/18/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
BIA Remands Asylum Denial for Bipolar Individual from Ghana
Unpublished BIA decision remanding, finding that individuals from Ghana who suffer from mental illness and are indigent and lack family support constitutes a cognizable particular social group and that the IJ erred in evaluating well-founded fear of persecution. Courtesy of Geoffrey Hoffman.
USCIS Memo on Adjudication of Adjustment Applications for Individuals Admitted to the U.S. Under the VWP
USCIS policy memorandum dated 11/14/13, updating Chapters 10.3 and 23.5 of the AFM and providing guidance on the adjudication of Form I-485 filed by immediate relatives of U.S. citizens who were last admitted under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP).
BIA Finds Single DUI Conviction Does Not Outweigh Positive Equities
Unpublished BIA decision reconsiders sua sponte over DHS opposition and finds adjustment applicant’s positive equities were not outweighed by a single DUI conviction. (Matter of Vasquez, 11/14/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
BIA Remands to Consider Eligibility for Provisional Waiver Despite Criminal Convictions
Unpublished BIA decision vacates denial of voluntary departure and remands to consider whether respondent with theft and DUI convictions is eligible for provisional unlawful presence waiver (Form I-601A). (Matter of Velasco, 11/14/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
AIC Practice Advisory: Motions to Suppress Evidence Unlawfully Obtained by CBP
The American Immigration Council's Legal Action Center (LAC) released a practice advisory with strategic considerations on Motions to Suppress in Removal Proceedings: Fighting Back Against Unlawful Conduct by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
BIA Remands After IJ Failed to Determine if Applicant Experienced Past Torture
Unpublished BIA decision remanding denial of application for protection under the Convention Against Torture because the IJ did not render a determination on whether the applicant established that he was tortured by a Salvadoran government official. Special thanks to Edgardo Quintanilla.
BIA Finds North Carolina Offense Relates to Controlled Substance
Unpublished BIA decision finds maintaining a vehicle/dwelling/place for marijuana under N.C.G.S. 90-108(a)(7) relates to a controlled substance under INA 237(a)(2)(B)(i). (Matter of Santos, 11/13/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
BIA Finds Ineffective Assistance Due to Failure to Submit Adjustment Application
Unpublished BIA decision finds attorney’s admitted failure to file adjustment application by court-imposed deadline made ineffective assistance plain on face of the record. (Matter of Cisneros, 11/13/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
BIA Requires DHS To Disclose Evidence of Admission
Unpublished BIA decision reverses removal order and holds that DHS must disclose any documents in its possession under INA 240(c)(2) regarding respondent’s asserted admission. (Matter of Monjazar-Fernandez, 11/13/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
AILA/SCOPS Liaison Q&As (11/13/13)
Q&As from the 11/13/13 teleconference with SCOPS include an update on FY2014 H-1B processing and H-1B extensions, late filings post-government shutdown, EB-1(3) denials, boilerplate O-1 RFEs, translations, and OPT unpaid employment.
BIA Grants Asylum to Applicant from Republic of Congo
Unpublished BIA decision sustaining appeal of asylum denial, concluding that the IJ’s adverse credibility finding was clearly erroneous and that the harm the applicant suffered on account of her political opinion constituted past persecution in the Republic of the Congo. Courtesy of Toni Maschler.
BIA Remands to Consider Whether New York Second Degree Forgery is CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision remands for further proceedings on whether second degree forgery under NYPL 170.10 is a categorical CIMT. (Matter of Wong, 11/12/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
CBP Service Motion to Reopen Finding Utah Wrong Appropriation Conviction Not CIMT
CBP service motion to reopen on Form I-192, finding that a conviction of wrongful appropriation, in violation of 76 6 404.5 of the Utah Criminal Code, does not constitute a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT) and thus has no effect on admissibility. Courtesy of J. Christopher Keen.
CA8 Denies Asylum to Chinese Christian from Indonesia
The court denied asylum, upholding the findings of the IJ and BIA that the harm Petitioner suffered did not rise to the level of persecution, while also noting State Department reports of decreased violence involving Chinese Christians in Indonesia. (Supangat v. Holder, 11/7/13)
BIA Remands Finding That LPR Abandoned Status Due to Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
Unpublished BIA decision remands for further consideration of whether respondent abandoned LPR status where the prior attorney failed to submit evidence of ties to United States (Matter of Ye, 11/8/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
CA11 Holds Florida Possession with Intent to Deliver Controlled Substance Is Not Aggravated Felony
The court granted the petition, vacated and remanded, applying the categorical approach and holding that a conviction under Fla. Stat. §893.13(1)(a)(2) for the possession of cannabis with the intent to sell or deliver is not an aggravated felony. (Donawa v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 11/7/13)
BIA Holds Pending Application for H-1B Extension Does Not Confer "Lawful Status" Under INA 245(k)
Unpublished BIA decision upholds denial of adjustment application and finds the filing of an application to extend nonimmigrant status does not confer “lawful status” under Section 245(k) of the INA. (Matter of Trupcevic, 11/7/13) Special thanks to IRAC.
BIA Finds IJ Failed to Advise Respondent of Eligibility for Cancellation
Unpublished BIA decision remands record because IJ neglected to advise respondent of potential eligibility for non-LPR cancellation under 8 CFR 1240.11(a)(2). (Matter of Leon, 11/7/13) Special thanks to IRAC.