Immigration through Intercountry Adoption
The process varies depending on the origin country.
Ask for a Fee Waiver if you can't afford filing fees
In most cases, you have to pay a fee to file papers with the court. If you can’t afford the filing fee, you can ask the court for a “fee waiver” in order to file for free. With a fee waiver, you also may not have to pay for certified copies, sheriff's service of process fees, or other costs related to starting a case, such as the cost for a court reporter to be at your trial.
Avoiding Fraud by Immigration Consultants
If you're looking for help with an immigration issue and want to hire an immigration consultant rather than an attorney, it's important to understand what an immigration consultant can and cannot do for you. This resource includes a few tips to avoid fraud.
Change My Nonimmigrant Status
You must file a request with USCIS on the appropriate form before your authorized stay expires.
Choosing an Immigration Representative: How to Avoid Fraud
This resource is ideal for individuals who work directly with the immigrant community to raise awareness about immigration provider fraud prevention. In this one-hour video, staff attorney Erin Quinn discusses protections available under California law and how to present information about immigration provider fraud at a community meeting.
Find an Immigration Lawyer
Protect yourself and your family. Get immigration advice from a licensed professional.
Green Card for an Asylee
You are not required to apply for a green card; however, it may be in your best interest to do so.
Green Card for a Refugee
If you were admitted as a refugee, you are required by law to apply for a Green Card (permanent residence) in the United States 1 year after being admitted as a refugee.
Green Card Processes & Procedures
Adjustment of Status, Consular Processing, Concurrent Filing, Visa Availability & Priority Dates, Child Status Protection Act, and more.
Green Cards for Individuals Already in U.S. (Adjustment of Status)
The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) permits the change of an individual's immigration status while in the United States from nonimmigrant or parolee (temporary) to immigrant (permanent) if the individual was inspected and admitted or paroled into the United States and is able to meet all required qualifications for a green card (permanent residence) in a particular category. The common term for a change to permanent status is "adjustment of status."
Have You Been a Victim of Nonattorney or Notario Fraud?
If someone gives legal advice without a license, that is called the unauthorized practice of law (UPL). In California, only attorneys can give legal advice. If an attorney loses their license to practice, but continues to take and advise clients, that is also considered the unauthorized practice of law.
Immigration Preparedness Toolkit
The ILRC’s Immigration Preparedness Toolkit is a resource-packed informational document designed to help immigrants with no legal status or in mixed status families begin to understand the immigration legal landscape and plan for their own journey through an ever-changing, complex system in the United States. This free toolkit offers in-depth, yet easily accessible information that outlines the basics about a variety of topics including: your rights during ICE confrontations, the different types of immigration options available, ideas for building your consultation roadmap, and tips on covering your bases while waiting for relief. This 13-page resource also incorporates links to other helpful reference documents, fact sheets, and tools readers can use to construct their own personalized plan.
Immigration through Intercountry Adoption
The process varies depending on the origin country.
Legal Resources for Immigrants
If you are seeking legal assistance for citizenship or immigration status, this pamphlet can serve as a starting point to find the legal services you need.
Look Up Information About an Immigration Case With an A-Number
You can find your A-Number and Department of State (DOS) Case ID on your immigrant data summary, USCIS Immigrant Fee handout, or immigrant visa stamp. Your A-Number is identified as the Registration Number on your visa stamp. If your A-Number is fewer than 9 digits, insert a zero after the “A”
Remove Conditions on Permanent Residence Based on Marriage
You are given conditional resident status on the day you are lawfully admitted to the United States on an immigrant visa or adjustment of your status to permanent residence.
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJ)
The purpose of the SIJ program is to help foreign children in the United States who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected. If you are in the United States and need the protection of a juvenile court because you have been abused, abandoned, or neglected by a parent, you may be eligible for Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) classification. If SIJ classification is granted, you may qualify for lawful permanent residency (also known as getting a Green Card).
Appeals and Motions: Questions and Answers
You may file an appeal on some unfavorable decisions to the USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) or the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).
Choosing an Immigration Representative: How to Avoid Fraud
This resource is ideal for individuals who work directly with the immigrant community to raise awareness about immigration provider fraud prevention. In this one-hour video, staff attorney Erin Quinn discusses protections available under California law and how to present information about immigration provider fraud at a community meeting.
An Immigration Filing Fee Waiver
Recognizing that some applicants cannot pay the filing fees, USCIS established a fee waiver process for certain forms and benefit types.
Find USCIS Field Offices Near You
Field Offices handle scheduled interviews on non-asylum related applications.
Immigration LawHelp: Find Legal Assistance with Your Immigration Case Near You
This interactive map and search engine that will help you find legal assistance near you.
Immigration Legal Service Providers
List of immigration LS in Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz counties.
An Immigration Filing Fee Waiver
Recognizing that some applicants cannot pay the filing fees, USCIS established a fee waiver process for certain forms and benefit types.
Appeals and Motions: Questions and Answers
You may file an appeal on some unfavorable decisions to the USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) or the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).
Ask for a Fee Waiver if you can't afford filing fees
In most cases, you have to pay a fee to file papers with the court. If you can’t afford the filing fee, you can ask the court for a “fee waiver” in order to file for free. With a fee waiver, you also may not have to pay for certified copies, sheriff's service of process fees, or other costs related to starting a case, such as the cost for a court reporter to be at your trial.
Avoiding Fraud by Immigration Consultants
If you're looking for help with an immigration issue and want to hire an immigration consultant rather than an attorney, it's important to understand what an immigration consultant can and cannot do for you. This resource includes a few tips to avoid fraud.
Change My Nonimmigrant Status
You must file a request with USCIS on the appropriate form before your authorized stay expires.
Check Your Immigration Case Status Service Online
Use your application receipt number to check your case status online.
Choosing an Immigration Representative: How to Avoid Fraud
This resource is ideal for individuals who work directly with the immigrant community to raise awareness about immigration provider fraud prevention. In this one-hour video, staff attorney Erin Quinn discusses protections available under California law and how to present information about immigration provider fraud at a community meeting.
Family Petitions or "Sponsoring" Relatives
Petition for certain family members to receive either a green card, a fiancee visa or a K-3/K-4 Visa.
File Immigration Papers Online
By filing online you can submit and view certain benefit requests, receive electronic notification of decisions, and receive real-time case status updates.
Find an Immigration Lawyer
Protect yourself and your family. Get immigration advice from a licensed professional.
Find USCIS Field Offices Near You
Field Offices handle scheduled interviews on non-asylum related applications.
Find What an Immigration-Related Word Means Here
You can use this dictionary to quickly look up a definition or explanation for a topic.
Green Card for an Asylee
You are not required to apply for a green card; however, it may be in your best interest to do so.
Green Card for a Refugee
If you were admitted as a refugee, you are required by law to apply for a Green Card (permanent residence) in the United States 1 year after being admitted as a refugee.
Green Card Holders: Know Your Rights & Risks During the Second Trump Administration
The National Immigration Law Center urges all green card holders to learn what the law says about who can be deported and make a safety plan if you might be at risk.
Green Card Processes & Procedures
Adjustment of Status, Consular Processing, Concurrent Filing, Visa Availability & Priority Dates, Child Status Protection Act, and more.
Green Cards for Individuals Already in U.S. (Adjustment of Status)
The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) permits the change of an individual's immigration status while in the United States from nonimmigrant or parolee (temporary) to immigrant (permanent) if the individual was inspected and admitted or paroled into the United States and is able to meet all required qualifications for a green card (permanent residence) in a particular category. The common term for a change to permanent status is "adjustment of status."
Have You Been a Victim of Nonattorney or Notario Fraud?
If someone gives legal advice without a license, that is called the unauthorized practice of law (UPL). In California, only attorneys can give legal advice. If an attorney loses their license to practice, but continues to take and advise clients, that is also considered the unauthorized practice of law.
Immigration LawHelp: Find Legal Assistance with Your Immigration Case Near You
This interactive map and search engine that will help you find legal assistance near you.
ImmigrationLawHelp.org
ImmigrationLawHelp.org is a searchable online directory of over 1,000 free or low-cost nonprofit immigration legal services providers in all 50 states. Users can search ImmigrationLawHelp.org by state, zip code, or detention facility. Users can also refine their search by types and areas of legal assistance provided, populations served, languages spoken, other areas of legal assistance, and non-legal services provided.
Immigration Preparedness Toolkit
The ILRC’s Immigration Preparedness Toolkit is a resource-packed informational document designed to help immigrants with no legal status or in mixed status families begin to understand the immigration legal landscape and plan for their own journey through an ever-changing, complex system in the United States. This free toolkit offers in-depth, yet easily accessible information that outlines the basics about a variety of topics including: your rights during ICE confrontations, the different types of immigration options available, ideas for building your consultation roadmap, and tips on covering your bases while waiting for relief. This 13-page resource also incorporates links to other helpful reference documents, fact sheets, and tools readers can use to construct their own personalized plan.
Immigration through Intercountry Adoption
The process varies depending on the origin country.
International Travel as a Permanent Resident
What you should know about leaving and re-entering the U.S.
Legal Resources for Immigrants
If you are seeking legal assistance for citizenship or immigration status, this pamphlet can serve as a starting point to find the legal services you need.
Look Up Information About an Immigration Case With an A-Number
You can find your A-Number and Department of State (DOS) Case ID on your immigrant data summary, USCIS Immigrant Fee handout, or immigrant visa stamp. Your A-Number is identified as the Registration Number on your visa stamp. If your A-Number is fewer than 9 digits, insert a zero after the “A”
Remove Conditions on Permanent Residence Based on Marriage
You are given conditional resident status on the day you are lawfully admitted to the United States on an immigrant visa or adjustment of your status to permanent residence.
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJ)
The purpose of the SIJ program is to help foreign children in the United States who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected. If you are in the United States and need the protection of a juvenile court because you have been abused, abandoned, or neglected by a parent, you may be eligible for Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) classification. If SIJ classification is granted, you may qualify for lawful permanent residency (also known as getting a Green Card).
Sus Derechos
Provides immigrant communities in the tri-county region of Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz with reliable and up-to-date information about their rights in this country. Resources include connections to legal assistance, practical guides, and answers to common questions to help you and your families navigate everything from education and work to accessing essential services.
Temporary Protected Status (TPS): Fact Sheet
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is a government protection granted by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to eligible foreign-born individuals who are unable to return home safely due to conditions or circumstances preventing their country from adequately handling the return.
Tips for Filing Forms with USCIS
Form fees, eligibility requirements, fee waiver eligibility, required documents, and mailing addresses vary depending on the form you are filing and why you are filing.