Table Of Contents
- Understanding Immigration Law
- Are Immigration Laws the Same Everywhere?
- Consequences of Breach of Immigration Laws
- Can Immigration Laws Change Over Time?
- How Does The United States Immigration System Work?
- 1. Family-Based Immigration:
- 2. Employment-Based Immigration:
- 3. Refugee and Asylum:
- 4. Diversity Visa Lottery:
- Can You Stay in the USA Without a Visa?
- Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
- Humanitarian Parole
- Deferred Enforced Departure (DED)
- When Do You Need an Immigration Lawyer?
- Your Exclusive Rights as an Immigrant in the United States
- Read Also:
Immigration Law: What are Your Rights as an Immigrant in the United States?
Immigration law is a wide range of law that encompasses such a wide range of situations.These situations involve a person coming to the United States or leaving the country.There are many situations that form the grounds for such a case like seeking a job and others.
If you are moving to the US in search of a job for instance, you might be a huge subject of the Immigration law. If you are seeking to leave the US again you might have a bone to chew with the immigration as well.
What the immigration bureau seeks to do is make sure that all the immigration activities are guided by the law.
This is aimed at helping curb any cases of illegal immigration in America.If you are honest enough, then you might know that this has been such a big problem in the USA.
Understanding Immigration Law
Many people still do not see the need to have all the immigration activities well regulated and guided. Well, there are quite a number of cases that make this case.
One of these reasons is to help make sure that any illegal immigration cases are curbed. To make it even much better, there has been the formation of the immigration law.
This law seeks to bring control to all the matters of immigration in America. If you are looking for employment in America, for instance, you might have to consider immigration law. The law will give proper guidelines on what exactly you need to do.
Why immigration, or why did this law come into being? There could be many reasons why immigration is essential.
However, the most important of them all is that immigration refers to the national statutes. This law also applies to the legal precedents that govern the immigration process.
For instance, these laws apply to how people can move into and out of the country. The immigration law is very different from other processes like naturalization and citizenship.
Even though these laws are sometimes conflated, they are not the same.
Are Immigration Laws the Same Everywhere?
The immigration laws are not the same, they vary greatly from one country to the other. Depending on the immigration situation, these laws might vary greatly. Thus, it might be easy for you to get to one country but fail to get to the other altogether.
In fact, there are some countries that make it very hard for people to get into and out of. To make this possible, they set very draconian immigration laws that have to be abided to by anyone seeking to get into the country.
Therefore, before considering getting into any country it is very important for you to consider what the immigration laws of that particular country talk about.
This way, you will be best placed to make the right choices and moves that will enable you to have such a seamless process.
If you disobey some of these laws, you might find yourself in some kind of problems in the end.
Consequences of Breach of Immigration Laws
Immigration laws are to be adhered to by all people to whom they apply. In fact, immigration laws are some of the few that are strictly enforced in the US and even other places. Breaching these US immigration laws comes with some serious consequences.
For instance, if you get into a country without going through the immigration then that translates to a breach.
Such actions will be regarded as a breach of the law and come with some serious punishments that include deportation.
In fact, many of the people who enter a country without adhering to the immigration laws are deemed to be illegal immigrants.
The consequences of such an action in many cases is deportation. In other countries, you might even be denied entry into your preferred country completely.
This is why it is very important for you to follow the immigration law in whatever you do.Doing so will save you so much time and money in the end which is very important.
Can Immigration Laws Change Over Time?
If you left America in the 80s and you think the immigration laws in the country are still the same, you are wrong.
These laws change over time and so rapidly depending on the circumstances that prevail.Thus, it is very important for you to keep checking the updated immigration laws at any given time.
How Does The United States Immigration System Work?
There are a few principles based on which the immigration system of the United States works. These are basically:
- Reunification of families.
- Humanitarian protections.
- Promoting diversity.
Governed by the Immigration and Nationality Act, the immigration system of the United States works in a lot of different ways. For instance, some of them include:
- Family-Based Immigration.
- Employment-Based Immigration.
- Diversity Visa Programs.
Each of the categories that I have mentioned above works differently. Additionally, there are different requirements that are specific to these categories.
1. Family-Based Immigration:
U.S. citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (green card holders) can sponsor immediate relatives (spouses, parents, children) for permanent residency.
Certain relatives who are U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (green card holders) are also eligible for family preference visas; however, they are commercially available in limited quantities.
2. Employment-Based Immigration:
The employers can petition for the foreign workers that are mandatory for specific skilled or unskilled industries in the U.S where there is a dearth of manpower.
The process includes labor certifications and petitions to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
3. Refugee and Asylum:
The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program is based on the principle of admitting refugees who are at risk of persecution or having a well-founded fear of persecution in their home country.
Asylum is also available for those individuals who are currently in the U.S. and due to fear of persecution, do not want to go back to their home country.
4. Diversity Visa Lottery:
Each year, this procedure, provided in the Immigration and Nationality Act, selects migrants from the countries whose immigration rate to the U.S. is small by random computerized draw, and then, a limited number of green cards are offered to them.
Can You Stay in the USA Without a Visa?
- Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
- Humanitarian Parole
- Deferred Enforced Departure (DED)]
Well, this might surprise you, but YES. You can apply for a Visa Waiver Program (VWP) if you want to stay in the United States without a Visa. However, keep in mind that the law will only allow you to stay there for 90 days.
Generally, these are for business or tourism purposes only. However, not everyone can apply for the VWP. Here are the countries from which the USA lets people stay in the country without a Visa:
- A: Andorra, Australia, Austria.
- B: Belgium, Brunei.
- C: Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic.
- D: Denmark.
- E: Estonia.
- F: Finland, France.
- G: Germany, Greece.
- H: Hungary.
- I: Iceland, Israel, Ireland, Italy.
- J: Japan.
- L: Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg.
- M: Malta, Monaco.
- N: The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway.
- P: Poland, Portugal.
- Q: Qatar
- R: Republic of Korea, Romania.
- S: San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland.
- T: Taiwan.
- U: The United Kingdom.
Apart from these, there are certain Humanitarian Relief programs that let people stay in the US temporarily without Visas. These are:
Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
When people cannot return to their home country because of a natural disaster and get stuck in the United States, the government allows them to stay.
Generally, people can stay for 6, 12, or 18 months without a Visa. However, this duration is extendable if the “unsafe” conditions persist.
Humanitarian Parole
Secondly, this one is an executive authority that lets certain people enter the States even when they do not meet the definition of an immigrant or refugee. The government and law enforcement use or grant this relief program in urgent cases and situations with the aim of public benefit.
Deferred Enforced Departure (DED)
Third on this list, a DED protects individuals from facing situations like deportation when they are unsafe in their own country.
While it might sound or look similar to TPS, it is not the same. While TPS is a statute, DED is a protection from the executive branch.
When Do You Need an Immigration Lawyer?
- Complex Cases
- Deportation Proceedings
- Criminal History
- Employer-Sponsor Cases
- Family-Based Immigration
- Naturalization Process
- Time-Sensitive Applications]
There are many immigration lawyers worldwide. Their role is to ensure they offer the best counsel on immigration matters. Thus, they are the best people you can consult on immigration matters and get timely assistance.
Before moving to any country, it is important for you to get in touch with an immigration lawyer. The immigration lawyer will take you through all the immigration laws of the country you wish to move to.
They will even guide you accordingly on what exactly you need to do to carry out this process in the perfect way.
Depending on the country you wish to move to, consulting with a lawyer is very important. The lawyer will take you through all the applicable laws and help you carry out this process seamlessly.
Where necessary, you can ask them to help you carry out this process.The important thing for you in all this is to make sure that you have a proper understanding of all these laws.
Your Exclusive Rights as an Immigrant in the United States
In conclusion, understanding the basics of immigration law in the United States is extremely important. Moreover, it is essential not just for people who wish to shift countries but also for others. Doing so keeps you on the safe side and enables you to avoid problems with immigration.
However, knowing your rights as an immigrant is equally important. If you are living in the United States, you have the right to life, freedom, and security. Additionally, you also have to protection fro detention and mistreatment.
Furthermore, as an immigrant living in the United States, under the immigration law, you have the freedom to travel anywhere in the country. However, ensure that you are carrying your documents and ID that verify your legal status!
