Immigration attorney is the type of lawyer who inspects and decodes the immigrational processes of its client, in a certain country.
What is an Immigration Attorney?
The lawyers of a country studies immigration law which tells about the immigrants entering the country from other countries and how their problems of getting nationality or citizenship card, can be solved legally according to an immigrant law of the country.
Families or businesses which intend to settle in foreign countries as the legal citizens of the country, seek help of the immigration attorney to get them settled legally through issuance of legal documents or green cards.
What is meant by ‘Immigration’ ?
In simple words, the word immigration can be defined as a desire of a person to leave its own country and to live and settle down permanently, in a foreign country. To control the process of immigration of non-citizens and to provide them with a permanent nationality card as citizens of the country, is controlled by legal immigration laws and by immigration officers who work under government.
The permission of settling down in a foreign country as a legal citizen, is granted by the immigration officers under immigration laws. Legal documents of a person will be investigated thoroughly by the immigration officers, to decide whether the requested candidate is deserving for the nationality label or is not deserving according to its information and documents.
To make the applications and documents get accepted under the immigration laws of the country, the foreign people seek help from the experienced immigration lawyer. The lawyer is well-known about the country’s immigration laws, and can easily make the application get accepted through granting extra legal documents.
What type of issues an immigration attorney deals with:
Like any other lawyer in the country, immigration attorneys also study law and order of the country before they become eligible enough to gain the power which allows them to defend and protect the citizens from illegal rights and injustice, in its own country.
Like any other type of lawyers, immigration attorneys also deal and specialize expertise in certain specific issues of the citizens. As their title name itself is specifying it, they deal with the immigration issues of the country. Some of the issues are described in the list below:
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People or families who desire to work, live and earn in a foreign country as a legal citizen with all the rights and values, seek help from an immigration attorney. Immigration attorneys help them in settling down in the country with a nationality visa from the government and as a citizen of the country.
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An immigration attorney advises and educates the other types of lawyers such as criminal defence lawyers who deal with the non-citizen clients, about the consequences the client might face during court pleas, convictions and sentences. The law of any country is never the same for an immigrant and for the citizen. That is why immigration laws are taught by immigration lawyers to avoid any inconvenience.
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Deportation issue of a person is handled by its immigration attorney. Issue of deportation is a very sensitive situation which requires a strong strategy and an experienced lawyer, to get accepted in another country because deportation from your own country only happens when a person is considered as a threat to the welfare of his country.
Accepting a non-citizen who was thrown out of its own country and was considered as a threat, is a difficult decision. That is why, the process of deportation to having a legal nationality takes a long and crucial time. These types of issues are handled by hired expert immigration attorneys, which focus into the matter and build up strategies to take up the person in the country, as a legal citizen.
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Immigration attorneys help the married couple of two different countries, in wanting to settle down in the country as its spouse is in. They look into the matter of making legal nationality papers or the green card for the wife or the husband who wishes to live in its spouse country, legally.
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Immigration attorneys also deal with issues like political asylum. Political asylum is an action of leaving your own country due to severe circumstances or harsh, strict government.
Immigration attorneys file documents and paperwork for gaining their citizenship and plead the court to give them a place to live in the country, as legal citizens.
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They also look through the matters of employment for an individual living in a country as a non-citizen. The immigration lawyers make special legal documents for them which define the loyalty or a person and how he can be trusted for a certain job.
Or, immigration lawyers also help to indulge non-citizens of the country in the certain visa programs that are designed for the non-citizens, only for the purpose of getting a worthy job. Like in the United States, H-1B visa program provides a substructure for the American employers to hire the non-citizens of the United States.
Immigration attorney job description:
Immigration attorneys like criminal attorneys, are the lawyers who in one or other way defend and protect their clients from the illegal acts. Immigration attorneys job description can be discussed as:
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Immigration attorneys first go through all the important documents of the clients, needed for the immigration process. The documents may contain nationality papers of the current country, passports and Visas copies, national ID cards, the application slip stating the reason to settle down in the desired country, etc.
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The attorney will then guide its client about the whole immigration procedure and what are the legal laws that must be followed to be a legal citizen of the country. The lawyer will guide the steps that should be taken by the client in the immigration office regarding the question on migration.
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The attorney must clear out its charges before taking up any issue. The charges must be bargained and should be decided mutually to avoid misconceptions and arguments.
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After making necessary documents and after applying for the citizenship documents, a lawyer then proceeds to teach some basic replies to the questions which can be asked by the immigration officers.
Immigration officers look through the applications filed by the non-citizens for the nationality card of the country. The accepting process goes as they investigate the basic information of the applicant such as parents and spouse name, current nationality card, etc. They investigate and see that whether the information provided to the immigration system through the application and forms, is true or fake.
To get settled in another country as a citizen, some people choose the easiest way that can lead the process quickly and smoothly. For example, a citizen can claim its close friend who wants to settle in the country, as its spouse or fiancé. This certain reason can move the process of immigration faster than the reason of settling down in an economic growth country, to earn money and to stabilize the lifestyle.
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For the process of deportation, the attorney looks through important documents to try to build a strong plan and strategy, to defend his client from deporting to another country. A skilled immigration attorney tries to find evidence in favor of its client, to provide it in the court to cease the deportation decision taken by the judge.
An experienced immigration lawyer tries to convince the judge to postpone or close the case of deportation. He tries hard to defend his client through providing its security check and by showing his honesty through some evidence. Even if the judge’s final decision is to deport the person, a skilled attorney will always try to convince the jury to not ban the visit of the person, into his own motherland.
How to choose the best immigration attorney?
Who will not desire to settle down abroad easily, quickly and smoothly? And that there should be no chance of a mistake, that can ruin all the life planning and dreams. Choosing the highly qualified and experienced immigration attorney should be the first and the most important step, for an immigrant. Well experienced and specialized immigration attorneys should be chosen wisely to avoid any inconvenience of documents and information, being passed to the immigration offices.
To avoid this, there are some vital steps which should be considered before hiring any immigration attorney.
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Choose an experienced immigration attorney wisely and beware of the immigration lawyers who pretend to have well earned knowledge on immigration laws and documents, but in reality they are just the normal lawyers who do not study much about immigration issues.
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Choose an immigration attorney who practices in this field everyday. The lawyers who had specially studied immigration law and had sincerely practiced it for a long time, are the best fit for your immigration processes.
To examine the everyday practices of a lawyer, its 80% income generation source can be tracked to see if he earns the great amount of its income by practicing in immigration field or has earned by practicing his profession in any other field of law.
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An immigration attorney must have at least five years or more experience, in the immigration field. He should be aware of the situations like your case and must have solved a case with the same situation before. This will automatically show his expertise in solving the issue.
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It will be considered as a best decision if the lawyer is referred by one of the family members or friends. Due to this, the client will have a clear idea about what type of lawyer he is or how he works. The client will have a clear view of the lawyer’s experience and success, in the cases. The referring friend or colleague will give the honest feedback and can tell about its own experience with a certain lawyer.
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Choose a type of immigration attorney who shows dedication and passion for his work. The attorney must be able to give his full time and attention to its client. A person should choose a lawyer who is regular to reply and update him regarding the situation and must not choose a lawyer who is unable to reply promptly, when the person is in urgent need for the advice.
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A person should choose an immigration attorney who will look through its matter individually and specifically. A lawyer already piled up with numerous cases should never be hired as they become less focused towards the new case. As the focus distributes from one case to another, it is impossible to build a strong strategy to avoid strict immigration processes.
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An immigration attorney must charge the reasonable and the most affordable fees. The one must hire a good lawyer, under its budget. Immigration attorneys are not much expensive as criminal attorneys are. If an immigration attorney charges the lowest fee, he might leave out the important things. But if a lawyer is charging a high fee to its client it might be overcharging its clients, which is not legal. The fee charge must be normal as the set rates.
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An immigration attorney who is aware of the latest knowledge and continues its regular legal study, is the best fit to hire. An attorney, well known with the modern societies and types of people and their thinking can easily adjust and understand the ways to structure and mould the situation according to it.
Immigration attorney vs immigration consultant:
Immigration consultants are mainly the primary immigration lawyers. They are new in the field and need much practice and experience to reach the level of a skilled immigration attorney.
Immigration attorneys have the power to represent its clients in the court of law, before the judge. They can easily and skillfully convince the judge into the favor of its client. While the immigration consultants can only reach the court of justice. They are hired to solve simple easy immigration matters and to make necessary documents and paperwork, for the immigration process of their clients.
Immigration attorneys are well-knowledge lawyers with a study experience of more that 3 years, in various types of law. They had studied in law school for some few years. On contrary to this, the immigration consultants have a specialization in only immigration studies for over 6 to 12 months.
Immigration attorneys generally charge higher pay, for the completion of the case. While the immigration consultants charge lower for the same type of case.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs):
How much do immigration attorneys charge?
Charges of an immigration attorney is set depending on the type of service they provide. Immigration attorneys deal with vast types of issues and situations concerning immigration. For example, settling an individual in a foreign country as a legal citizen and with nationality documents, may charge less than dealing with the case of deportation as it is a more complex case and requires time, energy and expertise.
A typical set prices of immigration attorney upon dealing different types of situations, is as follows:
Nationality application: $500-1200
Green Card petition: $800-1500
Employment-based application: $1500-5000
Asylum application: $1000-3000
Adjustment of status application: $600-1200
Deportation defense case: $2000-10000
Do illegal immigrants have the right to an attorney?
Yes, according to any constitutional law in the world the illegal immigrants have a legal right to hire an attorney in defence of its case. Aspects of the constitution define clearly that certain human rights apply to each one of the citizens, even the non-citizens without proper documentation. The same rule applies under the constitution of, United States.
What does it take to become an immigration attorney?
An immigration attorney takes up to 7 years to study law after completing its high school, as a full-time student. It is granted with a Juris Doctor degree after completion. A lawyer will require a few months time to pass the bar exam and to start practicing the degree from scratch. It must be able to fulfill local bar association requirements.
Conclusion:
The job of an immigration attorney is a bit complex as it deals with the legal documentations, all the time. This field requires patience as you deal with hopeless and sometimes the depressed clients. Filing and submission of documents requires a lot of time and energy for an immigration attorney. Lastly, an immigration attorney is honest and confidential for its client and provides its best to defend and secure it under the legal laws.