U.S. Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) With an Ozone Park Immigration Attorney

                                                  https://gehilaw.com/

                 https://gehilaw.com/ozone-park-immigration-attorney/

A person who moves to the US but is not a citizen is considered an immigrant. They can come to the US with or without a visa. The US government decides what status an immigrant has or does not have. An immigrant without legal status or who has overstayed their visa is considered an illegal immigrant.

This means they cannot work or live in the US, and they are always in danger of getting deported. Some illegal immigrants can have legal immigration status. For example, they can get asylum or legal permanent residency through their family or employer. Some immigration routes for immigrant juveniles have specific rules and conditions that must be met.

Kids who do not have legal immigration status cannot get jobs and are always at risk of being sent back home. That is why the US Congress created an immigration category called Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). It is a legal immigration program for kids who meet specific criteria, but must pass through state juvenile courts.

Suppose you are a non-citizen kid who has been mistreated, abused, or left behind by a parent. In that case, you can apply for a green card and become a legal resident of the United States through the SIJS. If you are an immigrant minor living in Ozone Park or other parts of the US, you can get SIJS by applying for it. It is a process that starts when you are a minor, so you need to get it done on time. An immigration attorney in Ozone Park can help you get it done. Since it is such a complex process, it is super important that you get an immigration attorney in Ozone Park to help you.

Here is some info to help you understand the Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS).

What is SIJS?

SIJS is a legal status for kids who are in the US illegally and cannot be reunited with their parents due to abuse, abandonment, or neglect. It is for undocumented kids who are dependents or have been placed in foster care. You can also apply for a green cards through SIJS if you are a minor and your parents have abused, abandoned, or neglected you.

Abusing a child can be physical or emotional. Physical abuse is when a parent hits or kicks a child, while emotional abuse is when a child is called names or made to feel scared or worthless. When a parent abandons a child, it can be physical, like leaving them in an apartment without food or water for days.

It can also be emotional, like telling a child they are never coming back for them or never wanting to see them again. Neglect is when a parent does not care for their child by providing them with food, clothes, shelter, or medical care. Talk with an immigration attorney in Ozone Park to learn more about the scope of SIJS.

Comparing SIJS with Asylum

When trying to figure out what options are available, it is essential to know how SIJS relates to asylum and how it differs from it. Preparing for both will involve talking about and writing about traumatic experiences for the child, but there are also some significant differences.

For asylum, a successful claim is made because the government did something wrong or did not have control over the situation. With SIJS, it is the child’s parents who did the bad stuff, so the child needs to be ready to make these claims against their parents, both in court and in person.

Some kids, even those treated poorly by their parents, may not want to make these claims, at least not immediately. State court papers will usually be served on the parents if they are living. An immigration attorney in Ozone Park will explain this and more to you so you know what is expected of you.

Pros and Cons of SIJS

SIJS has some advantages. First, you do not need to have entered the US legally. Second, you do not have to provide financial support to the child. These two conditions make the child inadmissible for most green cards. Most other grounds for inadmissibility do not apply to SIJS.

Third, you can get your green card application fees waived. Fourth, you must stay in your home country to adjust your status. This means that when entering the US illegally/unsupervised, you do not need to worry about your adjustment of status. Unfortunately, SIJS means you cannot apply for green cards for either parent.

Even if only one of your parents is violent or neglectful, you will not be able to get a green card for the other. It is basically like being an “orphan” for immigration purposes. There are a couple of things to remember when applying for a SIJS. First, your application is public.

If you get denied, USCIS will tell the government that the kid is in the country illegally. Second, USCIS will use the information in your application for removal proceedings. This rarely happens, but it can happen if the kid has a bad criminal record or anything else that counts as a “security risk.”

Immigration law is not always clear on how to look for “red flags,” so it is vital to get an immigration attorney in Ozone Park to look at your petition to see if you are eligible and what risks you could face when applying. If you fail to look at certain things, it could result in deportation.

Who is eligible for SIJS?

You must meet specific criteria to be eligible for SIJS if you are a minor. You must be under 21 years old, unmarried, and declared a dependent in juvenile court. The Family Court has to take jurisdiction over your petition, and you must show that you cannot reunite with either of your parents because of abuse, neglect, abandonment, or any other similar reason.

You must also establish that returning to your home country or your last residence is not in your best interest.

The SIJS application process

The SIJS application process has three steps, and an experienced immigration attorney in Ozone Park can help you through each.