There are 99 major forms used in the immigration process, and contrary to what many Americans believe, the process is not a simple matter of standing in line and filling out forms. The United States government provides no help in properly completing and filing forms. The agency responsible for handling the process, The Department of Homeland Security (and its Immigration and Customs Enforcement division), is more concerned with deportation than assisting immigrants.
For many foreign nationals with limited means, there are free and low-cost immigration services available from reputable groups and trained attorneys, but they are often very limited. That puts many in a position to seek out help from less-qualified sources, who often undermine their efforts.
Linda Vega, an immigration attorney from Houston who often provides pro bono work for foreign nationals needing legal help, has seen their victimization by unqualified lawyers. “Immigrants should go to an attorney specialized in immigration,” she said. “They should make sure their immigration attorney understands the current changes in the law. Immigration law is the most complex law we have in the United States, because it can change so rapidly. It can change with a memo.”
Vega has several cases in which mistakes by non-immigration attorneys have had disastrous consequences for immigrant families. She points out situations in which an attorney or paralegal failed to include the minor children on forms of parents applying for a visa. “Now, years later, when visas become available, those children thought they would be next in line for one, and it wasn’t so,” she said.
Ralph Isenberg, of the Isenberg Center for Immigration Empowerment in Dallas, also sees unqualified lawyers as a problem. His group provides free help to those facing problems with the immigration process. “In our experience, foreign nationals face two major problems: a language barrier that prevents them from properly understanding the system, and errors on immigration forms by attorneys who don’t specialize in that area of law.” Isenberg is currently assisting a foreign national, Sandra Ramirez, who is facing deportation after paying $5,000 to an attorney who failed to file an I-130 on her behalf. An I-130 is an application for a visa or legal permanent residency status for foreign nationals married to U.S. citizens.
Foreign nationals face more problems when they rely on a notary to assist them in filling out immigration forms. While Americans understand the qualifications of a notary, the Spanish word “notario” is used to describe someone in the legal profession. Some unscrupulous notaries take advantage of this perception and sell their services to unsuspecting foreign nationals. “Some people think it’s cheaper to go to a notario because it is just filling out paperwork,” Vega said. “However, the questions on those applications can be very tricky and complicated, and they can land someone in a lot of trouble, even deportation proceedings.” Even the American Bar Association has issued a warning about unscrupulous notarios.
Vega also sees a problem with high school diploma mills: uncredited institutions that offer GEDs or diplomas that are essentially worthless. Young immigrants eligible for DACA (The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program need a diploma or GED to qualify, and some programs that cater to Latinos do not meet government certification standards. As a result, some DACA applications could be rejected, ruining a foreign national's chances at legal residency.
Vega, who founded the political group Latinos Ready to Vote, is being mentioned as a possible U.S. Senate candidate for the Republican Party against John Cornyn. She is already talking like a candidate, noting changes she would make if she could change the system herself. Among those are a relaxing of quotas for worker visas, which would create more jobs and boost the economy. She would also rework the waiver system to reward foreign nationals for the skills and positive impact they offer, rather than creating a sense of co-dependency by rewarding waivers based on the severity of their personal struggles.
Isenberg is disappointed that the current proposed immigration reform plan does nothing to address the failures of the process. He says that will ensure foreign nationals will continue to be victimized by those who take advantage of the system’s complex red tape and bureaucracy.
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