Resources from USCIS and ICE Related to CARECEN, et al. v. Jaddou, et al.
On March 21, 2022, USCIS agreed to restore a path to permanent residency for certain Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries. Under the settlement agreement in CARECEN, et al. v. Jaddou, et al., certain TPS beneficiaries will be able to reopen and dismiss their removal orders and apply to adjust their status to become permanent residents.
Practice Alert
If you have impacted clients, make sure that you read this practice alert. AILA warns that because the CARECEN v. Jaddou settlement agreement for certain TPS beneficiaries expires on January 19, 2025, there is no guarantee that OPLA will continue to honor this policy after that date.
USCIS and ICE have since then posted guidance related to this settlement agreement.
USCIS Guidance
You may ask the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (see Prosecutorial Discretion and the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor) to consider joining in a Joint Motion to Reopen proceeding to terminate your order of removal or order of deportation, if you are a TPS recipient with a removal or deportation order who traveled and returned with government authorization while in TPS, and:
- You intend to apply or have filed an application for adjustment of status with USCIS; or
- USCIS already denied your application to adjust status solely because:
- We do not have jurisdiction over your application because of your removal or deportation order; or
- We do not have jurisdiction over your application because of your removal or deportation order and you have waivable grounds of inadmissibility, but a waiver was not filed or adjudicated.
If your removal or deportation order is terminated through this proceeding, and if you have already applied to adjust status with USCIS and been denied solely for the reasons listed above, you may either:
- File a new Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status; or
- Move to reopen your denied application for adjustment of status with USCIS at any time by filing a motion to reopen on Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion. We will accept untimely motions to reopen that meet the requirements above. You should write “TPS Removal Order” at the top of the first page of your Form I-290B to assist with identification and prevent rejection for untimely filing. Any individual in litigation on this basis may work through the government’s representative in litigation.
ICE Guidance
Prosecutorial Discretion (PD) Requests for Certain Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Recipients with Orders of Removal or Deportation
Consistent with its PD practices, the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) may consider filing a Joint Motion to Reopen and unopposed Motion to Dismiss without Prejudice for certain TPS recipients who have been ordered removed or deported from the United States and are seeking to apply (or have applied) for lawful permanent residence with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. More information on which cases of TPS recipients may be eligible for this type of PD can be found here.
If you believe you may be eligible for this type of PD, then you may submit a PD request to your local OPLA Field Location using the applicable local procedures available on OPLA’s How to Submit a PD Request page. OPLA’s Field Locations are aware that they may be receiving this type of PD request and are prepared to process these cases accordingly.
As indicated above, there is no fee to ask that OPLA consider your case for this potential exercise of PD, and you are not required to have a lawyer if you want to make a PD request directly with OPLA. However, you may consult with a legal representative of your choosing. And, while the government does not provide legal representation, a list of free or low-cost service providers is available here.
Template: Joint Motion to Reopen and Unopposed Motion to Dismiss Without Prejudice (Word Document)