Removal proceedings (in Polish: postępowanie deportacyjne) is a formal process before the immigration court where the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) attempts to deport you from the USA. You receive a Notice to Appear (NTA) — this is the official document that starts the case.
This is the MOST SERIOUS immigration situation. Without a lawyer, you are likely to lose in 90% of cases. With a good lawyer, there are real paths for defense.
EOIR — what is it
Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is an administrative "court" run by the Department of Justice (not a regular federal court). EOIR has 3 parts:
- Immigration Courts (IC) — 70 local courts in the USA. First instance.
- Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) — appeals, one nationwide body
- Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer (OCAHO) — special cases (employer sanctions)
Notice to Appear (NTA) — what to do
What is NTA
- Document Form I-862
- Issued by: ICE, USCIS, or CBP
- Contains: your information, charges (how you violated immigration), legal provisions, date and place of hearing
- Delivered: in person, by mail, sometimes through a lawyer
What to do after receiving NTA
- DO NOT PANIC — you have rights
- NOTE THE HEARING DATE — absence = automatic deportation
- DO NOT SIGN "voluntary departure" without a lawyer
- IMMEDIATELY contact an immigration lawyer — preferably within 7 days
- DO NOT TRAVEL abroad — leaving during removal = self-deportation
Your rights in immigration court
You have the right to:
- Representation by a lawyer — but at YOUR OWN EXPENSE. The USA does not provide free lawyers in civil cases (immigration is civil, not criminal).
- Interpreter — if you do not speak English, the court provides one (free of charge). A Polish interpreter is available in major courts.
- Appeal to BIA — 30 days after decision
- Bond hearing if you are in detention (ICE)
- Submitting evidence and calling witnesses
- Confronting witnesses against you
- Access to records (with certain limitations)
You do NOT have the right to:
- Free lawyer (immigration = civil) — unless a non-profit organization helps you
- Jury trial — the judge decides alone
- Bond for certain categories (e.g., agg felonies, terrorism)
Hearings — types and process
Master Calendar Hearing (MCH)
First hearing — administrative:
- The judge confirms presence
- Asks if you have a lawyer
- Asks about an interpreter
- Reads the charges and asks if you agree/disagree
- Sets deadlines: time for a lawyer, next MCH, individual hearing
- Duration: 5-15 minutes per case, the court has dozens in one day
What to respond:
- "I am here, Your Honor."
- "I do not have an attorney yet, I need more time."
- "I need a Polish interpreter."
- DO NOT admit to the charges without consulting a lawyer!
Individual Hearing (or Merit Hearing)
Main hearing — substantive:
- Duration: 2-8 hours (typically a full day)
- Lawyer (or you) presents the defense: application for asylum, cancellation, adjustment
- Witnesses testify
- DHS attorney (prosecutor) challenges
- The judge decides — sometimes immediately, sometimes in writing later
Forms of defense — your options
1. Asylum
For individuals fleeing persecution:
- Race, religion, nationality, particular social group, political opinion
- Form I-589
- High evidentiary standards
- See [[how-asylum-works-in-usa]]
2. Withholding of Removal
- Lower standard than asylum but narrower benefits
- Does not grant GC, only prohibits deportation to a specific country
3. Convention Against Torture (CAT)
- For individuals at risk of torture in their home country
- Narrowest scope
4. Cancellation of Removal — LPR
For Green Card holders:
- Minimum 7 years in the USA continuous residence
- Minimum 5 years as LPR
- No agg felony
- The judge weighs "positive vs negative factors"
5. Cancellation of Removal — Non-LPR
For individuals without a Green Card (e.g., undocumented):
- Minimum 10 years continuous physical presence
- "Good moral character"
- Exceptional and extremely unusual hardship for USC/LPR family (spouse, parents, children)
- VERY difficult to prove
- Limit: 4,000 grants per year
6. Adjustment of Status (AOS)
- If you qualify through a marriage/family petition
- Can be filed during removal proceedings (the judge adjudicates)
7. Voluntary Departure
- "I will leave voluntarily"
- Pre-conclusion (60 days) or post-conclusion (120 days)
- NOT a deportation on record — you can return
- BUT: you must leave at your own expense + bond
- Sometimes a good choice if other options are lost
8. Prosecutorial Discretion (PD)
- DHS can "unilaterally" close the case (administrative closure / dismissal)
- Usually for "low priority" cases: no criminal record, long presence, USC family
- Lawyer submits a request to DHS attorney
Bond — release from detention
If you are in ICE detention, you have the right to a bond hearing:
- The judge decides if you can be released on bond
- Typical amounts: $1,500 - $15,000
- The lawyer proves:
- YOU are not a "flight risk" (you will not flee)
- YOU are not a "danger to the community"
- You have family ties, a job, an address
- Bond must be paid in cash or through a bond agency (typically 10% non-refundable + collateral)
- After the case, the bond is refunded (if you appeared for all hearings)
Detention — where you are held
- ICE facilities, county jails, private detention centers
- Often hundreds of miles from home
- Poles in detention: rare, but it happens
- The Polish consulate can help (communication, monitoring)
Appeal to BIA
If you lose in immigration court:
- 30 days to file Form EOIR-26
- Fee: $110
- BIA review is paper-based (rarely a hearing)
- Time: 1-3 years
- If BIA upholds → possible Federal Court (Court of Appeals)
Federal Court (Petition for Review)
- 30 days from BIA decision
- Filing in the appropriate Circuit Court of Appeals
- Very expensive — requires a complicated lawyer
- "Standard of review" is very narrow — Federal Court rarely changes BIA
What NOT to do in removal proceedings
- DO NOT FAIL TO ATTEND the hearing — automatic in absentia order = deportation
- DO NOT sign "voluntary departure" without a lawyer — it could be a trap
- DO NOT lie under oath — federal crime
- DO NOT go into hiding — ICE will find you (sometimes after years)
- DO NOT apply for asylum on your own without a lawyer — mistakes can kill the case
- DO NOT pay unlicensed "notarios" promising results
- DO NOT answer ICE questions without a lawyer
- DO NOT leave the USA — that is self-deportation
Special situations for Poles
Visa overstay from the 90s/2000s
Many Poles came on tourist visas and stayed. After years:
- USCIS may issue an NTA during an AOS attempt (e.g., after marriage to a USC)
- A lawyer may try for an I-601 waiver for unlawful presence
- Also help with 3/10 year bar waiver
- Sometimes PD (administrative closure)
DUI / criminal
- DUI is not always grounds for removal, but aggravated DUI / repeat may be
- Drug offenses + theft + violence = high risk
- Sealed records may be used by DHS
- Consult with a criminal + immigration lawyer (post-conviction relief)
Practical tips for hearings
- Dress formally — shirt, blazer
- Arrive 30 min early
- Turn off your phone
- "Your Honor", "Yes, Your Honor"
- Do not argue with the DHS attorney
- Listen carefully to the interpreter
- Notes may help
Pro bono help
Catholic Charities
Available throughout the USA, immigration department, for low-income individuals
HIAS
Refugees + asylum
AILA Pro Bono
Polish American Center / local Polonia orgs
Sometimes help find a Polish lawyer pro bono
Official links
- EOIR — Executive Office for Immigration Review
- List of Immigration Courts
- EOIR Automated Case Information (check case status)
- U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
- AILA — Find an Immigration Lawyer
Related: [[immigration-lawyer-how-to-find-and-choose-in-usa]] · [[deportation-from-usa-rights-defense-options]] · [[ice-check-what-to-do-rights]] · [[how-asylum-works-in-usa]]
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