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
BIA on 5-Year Statute of Limitations for Rescission of LPR Status
The BIA held that the five-year statute of limitations in §246(a) does not bar removal of an alien admitted on an immigrant visa because that section relates only to rescission of LPR status acquired through adjustment. Matter of Cruz de Ortiz, 25 I&N Dec. 601 (BIA 2011)
CRCL Releases First and Second Quarterly Reports for FY2011
DHS Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) combined quarterly report to Congress, dated 9/20/11, providing data and analysis regarding the office’s activities during the first and second quarters of FY2011 and a flow chart of the CRCL process.
CA9 Rejects Challenge to §212(c) Special Motion to Reopen Deadline
The court held that the April 26, 2005 deadline to file motions to reopen for §212(c) relief is a constitutionally sound procedural rule and that absent exceptional circumstances, petitioners that miss the deadline are not entitled to relief. (Luna v. Holder, 9/19/11)
CA2 Says Firm Resettlement Inquiry Is Not Limited to Post-Persecution Ties
The court held that the firm resettlement inquiry requires consideration of all ties established by an alien in a third country before entering the U.S., including ties formed prior to the persecution giving rise to the asylum claim. (Tchitchui v. Holder, 9/19/11)
DHS HSAC Secure Communities Task Force Report
DHS Homeland Security Advisory Council’s Task Force on Secure Communities report recommending ways ICE may improve the Secure Communities program.
CA9 Rejects Leap Year Argument in Defining “One Year” Term of Imprisonment
The court held that for purposes of INA §101(a)(43)(F), a sentence of 365 days qualifies as a “term of imprisonment [of] at least one year,” even when the sentence was served in whole or in part during a leap year. (Habibi v. Holder, 9/14/11; amended 12/8/11).
BIA Says IJ Scope of TPS Review Is Not Limited to Evidence Submitted to USCIS
The BIA held that the IJ may consider any material and relevant evidence in support of a TPS application that is renewed in removal proceedings, regardless of whether the evidence was previously considered by USCIS. Matter of Figueroa, 25 I&N Dec. 596 (BIA 2011)
BIA Says IJ Scope of I-751 Review Is Not Limited to Evidence Submitted to DHS
The BIA held that the IJ should consider new evidence submitted in support of a renewed I-751 with a waiver of the joint filing requirement regardless of whether the evidence was previously considered by DHS. Matter of Herrera Del Orden, 25 I&N Dec. 589 (BIA 2011)
CA9 Says BIA Erred in Refusing to Permit Withdrawal of Prior Attorney’s Admissions
The court held that the attorney’s admission of the NTA’s allegation that Petitioner smuggled his brother was the result of ineffective assistance. The BIA erred in not permitting Petitioner to withdraw the admission. (Santiago-Rodriguez v. Holder, 9/9/11)
TRAC Report on Removal Proceedings in the Decade since 9/11
A Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) report, dated 9/9/11, providing an overview of removal proceedings initiated in the Immigration Courts, and comparing data on removal proceedings from the decades before and after 9/11/01.
CA9 Says Incorrect Standards Were Applied in Refusing to Excuse Late Asylum Application
The IJ applied incorrect legal standards when finding Petitioner had not shown changed or extraordinary circumstances to excuse his late application and the IJ erred in finding that the application was not filed in a reasonable time period. (Singh v. Holder, 9/8/11)
CA3 Sets Standard for Determining Whether LPR Is an Applicant for Admission
The court held that the standard for determining whether an LPR should be treated as an applicant for admission, and thus paroled for prosecution, is probable cause to believe he has committed a crime under INA §212(a)(2). (Doe v. Att’y Gen. of the U.S., 9/8/11)
CA6 Joins Sister Circuits in Upholding Matter of Acosta Hidalgo
The court upheld Acosta Hidalgo’s interpretation of 8 CFR §1239.2(f), that removal proceedings may only be terminated under that provision where DHS affirmatively attests to the alien’s prima facie eligibility for naturalization. (Shewchun v. Holder, 9/8/11)
CA5 Rejects BIA’s Interpretation of CSPA in Matter of Wang
The court held that the automatic conversion and priority date retention provisions of INA §203(h)(3) unambiguously apply to the entire universe of petitions described in INA §203(h)(2), including fourth preference petitions. (Khalid v. Holder, 9/8/11)
BIA Refuses to Apply Frivolous Asylum Bar to Derivative Child
In an unpublished decision, the BIA held that as the minor derivative of her mother's application, the respondent did not receive the necessary advisals, and held that the frivolousness finding applicable to her mother should not be applicable to her. Courtesy of Alan Lee.
CA7 Remands Colombian/FARC Asylum Claims for Further Proceedings
The court found that the BIA inexplicably focused only on the FARC’s burning of Petitioner’s trucks in concluding he was not persecuted and rejected the Board’s finding that even if he was persecuted, it was not due to a protected ground. (Escobar v. Holder, 9/7/11)
CA10 Rejects Political Opinion and Social Group Claim in MS-13 Case
The court found that Salvadoran women aged 12 to 25 who have resisted gang recruitment is sufficiently particular for purposes of a social group claim, but found that the proposed group failed the social visibility test. (Rivera-Barrientos v. Holder, 9/7/11)
Audio: AILA Issues a Spanish Language PSA
In response to the White House announcement on 8/18/11, and in conjunction with a written Consumer Advisory, AILA issued a Spanish language audio PSA that was distributed nationally to Hispanic radio outlets and also online media. This is the audio recording.
CA9 Limits CSPA Auto-Conversion and Priority Date Retention to F-2A Petitions
The court found reasonable the BIA’s decision in Matter of Wang that the CSPA under INA §203(h)(3) does not permit automatic conversion and/or priority date retention for derivative beneficiaries of F-3 and F-4 petitions. (De Osorio v. Mayorkas, 9/2/11)
CA7 Recognizes Threat of “Honor Killing” as Basis for Social Group Claim
The court found that Petitioner is a member of the particular social group of women in Jordan who have flouted repressive moral norms and face a high risk of honor killing. (Sarhan v. Holder, 9/2/11)
CA8 Says Evidence of Alienage was Lawfully Obtained
The court found no need for an evidentiary hearing where the record did not support Petitioner’s belief that his arrest was racially motivated, and found no evidence that Petitioner’s statements regarding alienage were involuntary. (Lopez-Gabriel v. Holder, 9/2/11)
CA6 Finds No Jurisdiction to Review Decision to Enforce Removal Order
The court rejected Petitioner’s argument that the government’s act of enforcing a 1996 deportation order in 2009 amounted to a de facto final order of removal and dismissed the petition for lack of jurisdiction. (Casillas v. Holder, 9/2/11)
VOICE: September/October 2011
AILA kicks off the fall season with a new issue of VOICE: An Immigration Dialogue! Be sure to check out articles on the U.S. Military’s Selective Service requirement, the long wait for immigrant visas, our new “Pass the Mic” and “Poetic Justice” columns, and more!
CA7 Dismisses Petition for Review of U Visa Denial for Lack of Jurisdiction
The court found no jurisdiction to review the denial of Petitioner’s I-192 waiver as an ancillary decision made outside removal proceedings, and reaffirmed its prior holding that it lacked jurisdiction to review a U visa denial. (Torres-Tristan v. Holder, 9/1/11)
CA9 Finds Jurisdiction to Review Denial of Relief Despite BIA Remand on Collateral Issue
The court found jurisdiction to review the BIA’s denial of relief where the BIA remands under 8 CFR §1003.1(d)(6) for completion of background checks that are required before alternative relief may be granted. (Li v. Holder, 9/1/11)