Question: I have been here in the U.S. since I was six years old. About 12 years ago, I committed a drug crime of possession for sale. I was sentenced to 4 months. Now, all these years later, I have been put into removal proceedings where INS is trying to deport me. I have been told that I am an aggravated felon and there is nothing I can do. I have further been told that I will most likely be deported away from my family including my U.S. Citizen spouse and three U.S. Citizen Children. I have never done anything else criminally and it was just a stupid mistake when I was young. I have changed, have a good job, a family with U.S. Citizens and many community ties. Is there anything I can do?

Answer: As the law stands now, there is very little you can do. This is a result of the 1996 laws which increased dramatically the laws on what was considered to be an aggravated felony. It has torn families apart for many years since 1996. People who have become long term residents in the U.S. and have their Green Cards found out it did not make any difference. They were still deported. Furthermore, they found out that they were barred from coming back into the U.S. for the rest of their lives. Congress has seen all the suffering caused by the unfair and anti-immigration laws of 1996 and just this week the House Judiciary Committee passed the 2002 Due Process Reform Bill. While it still must be passed by the Senate and signed by the President, it is an excellent step in giving back some of the due process rights lost by long term residents who were put in deportation proceedings because of various crimes.

Question: How does this particular bill help me?

Answer: Please note that the Senate might change some of the provisions, or the President might require some alternate items in the bill. However, as the bill stands now, it applies specifically to people who previously had their Green Cards. They were or are going to be placed into deportation or removal proceedings because of a crime they committed. They are considered to be an aggravated felons and do not qualify for the normal Cancellation of Removal.

Question: What is Cancellation of Removal?

Answer: Prior to this bill there was a section of the bill referred to as Cancellation of Removal for Certain Lawful Permanent Residents. Generally, you had to have your Green Card for at least five-years and be physically present in the U.S. for at least seven-years. Finally, and this is the item that disqualified numerous people, is that you cannot be convicted of an aggravated felony.

Question: What does the new bill allow?

Answer: Basically it deals with the Cancellation of Removal for people who have committed aggravated felonies. In the new bill, it expands the Cancellation of Removal so that it allows people whom have been convicted of aggravated felonies to still keep their Green Cards and stay in the U.S. It deals with three different scenarios. First, people who have been convicted of a non violent aggravated felony. Second, people who were convicted of a violent aggravated felony. Finally, people who have been convicted of an aggravated felony and came to the U.S. as a young child. Each of these provisions allows a person to remain in the U.S. and to not be deported if the Judge grants the Cancellation of Removal. Therefore, this is a very big step toward restoring some of the harsh anti-immigrant provisions of the 1996 law. Hopefully, this trend will continue so that families can be reunited and the tearing apart of immigrant families will stop.

Immigration Law was established because many foreigners wanted to come to the United States to have a better life and they needed to have a standard of law. In the beginning of the countries history there was a open door policy towards immigrants and anybody could come to have a new life. But then in the late 1800′s they started limiting certain groups from coming in and these were mainly savory characters looking for trouble. By the early 20′s the Us had a quota system and this further produces Immigration Law.

Many people that are in the Us need to have a Immigration Lawyer so that they can keep there green card status up to date. If you visa expires you can be asked to leave the country so it is important that you find an attorney that has the knowledge you need to help you stay in the country legally.

If you are found to not have the proper documents to be in this country then you can be deported and sent back to the country of your birth. It is important that you understand how Immigration Law works so that you can obtain citizenship is you are looking to stay in the U.S.

Remember that it is important for you to be legal so that you do not get deported back to your country of birth. You need to understand the Immigration Law’s of this country so you know what you need to do to gain citizenship. It is also a good idea for you to find a good Immigration Lawyer that has the experience you need to help you out. This type of law has been around for a long time and is basically to protect the citizens of this country.

Immigration law is the federal law which regulates immigration to the United States. Immigration law in the United States is governed by federal statutes and determines whether a person is an alien, the rights, duties, and obligations associated with being an alien in the United States, and how aliens gain residence or citizenship within the United States. Immigration laws also deal with asylum seekers. The Naturalization Act of 1790 was the first federal immigration statute.

Modern immigration rules are governed by the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. This Act created the Immigration and Naturalization Service also known as the INS to serve as the federal agency responsible for the enforcement of immigration laws. However post 9/11, the INS was replaced by the Department of Homeland Security. Three agencies of the Department of Homeland Security – U.S. Customs and Border Enforcement (CBE), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) – now perform the duties of the INS. The Immigration Act of 1990 equalized the allocation of visas across foreign nations, eliminating archaic rules, and encouraging worldwide immigration.

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 deals with illegal immigration. This Act imposed tough criminal sanctions on employers hiring illegal aliens. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 regulates the process of an alien entry into the United States.

A person can become a US citizen by birth or by naturalization. Naturalization is the process by which aliens can become US citizens. The process of naturalization is governed by the Immigration and Nationality Act. An alien seeking US citizenship must file an application with the USCIS. The alien must be at least 18 years old and a lawful permanent resident (green card holder) and must be residing in the US for five years immediately preceding the date of application for naturalization.

There are separate rules of naturalization of aliens whose one parent is a US citizen or an alien married to a US citizen. Alien relatives of a US citizen can also apply for US citizenship based on the relation to the US citizen. The USCIS will make a decision on the application and inform the alien of its decision. If the application is denied, the alien can file an appeal and request that the application be decided by another officer. If the second officer too denies the application, the alien can seek a review of the decision in the US District Court.