Immigration questions

[Slippyblade]

Anybody here know immigration laws at all?  I just found out a friend of mine is illegal.  He was brought to the states when he was 3yrs old with his parents.  Technically he is an illegal Mexican.  He's been here since he was 3 though.  English is his first and only language.  He attended school entirely in the US.  He was raised as an American.

Yet if he's ever found out - he'll get deported to Mexico.  A country he knows nothing about and has never even visited.  To make things even worse, this is in Phoenix, Arizona.  One of the worst states in the country for this situation.

I'm looking for info to help this guy out.  Any advice or direction?

[Vigo]

Oh, that sucks. I don't know much about immigration in a sense of his options, but I have been through the immigration/naturalization process and can help in that arena if he files for permanent residency.

[HaRuMaN]

Oh, that sucks. I don't know much about immigration in a sense of his options, but I have been through the immigration/naturalization process and can help in that arena if he files for permanent residency.

I didn't know we let people immigrate from Carpathia... 

[Slippyblade]

I didn't know we let people immigrate from Carpathia... 

It was a trade program.  We sent them slime, they sent us Vigo.  :p

[pbj]

http://www.tiradolaw.com/inmigracion.html

[UEDan]

I know the feeling, half my friends are illegal. I have a very close friend who was petrified to tell me.
If he is under 31 have him apply for DACA.
Reality is unless he has sufficient reason why he cannot leave the US, his process of legalization involves him going back to his country of origin.

All my illegal friends are great people, best of luck to him.

[emphatic]

Damn, that is scary. What a terrible thing to have hanging over your head.

[Slippyblade]

Thanks for being supportive, guys.  It's nice to see that board members don't spend all their time busting balls. 

[yotsuya]

Thanks for being supportive, guys.  It's nice to see that board members don't spend all their time busting balls. 

Of course. We spend it circle jerking. ;-)

Good luck on that, Slippy. If anything, Phoenix is filled with immigration professionals.

[Howard_Casto]

I think you will find that most citizens aren't in favor of deporting hard working Americans on account of a technicality, like they didn't get here legally.  The people that do are referred to as ---Deutsche Frankfurters---.  No ---Deutsche Frankfurters--- on this forum... just ---uvulas---. 

[ark_ader]

If they work and pay their taxes, let them in.

If they work hard and half their pay goes back home, let them in.

If they want a better life, and be free of tyranny, let them in.

America is the melting pot, since when has that identity disappeared?

We have more vacant land in NV,NM and AZ.  What is the problem?  Wasn't it their land in the first place? 

[ChadTower]

America is the melting pot, since when has that identity disappeared?

When the immigrants started coming from places other than Europe.


Tell him to move East.  Nobody gets deported here. 

[Howard_Casto]

Not true.  We have ALWAYS had this problem.  During the potato famine, Irish and Scottish  immigrants were considered filthy thieves and leeches that would only take "our" jobs and hurt the economy.  We had similar hatred towards the immigrations of Chinese and Japanese. 


Keep in mind that, according to census records the amount of legal immigrants, throughout American history, has always hovered around 55%.  So the people that are calling foul have roughly a 50/50 chance of being the descendant of an illegal immigrant. 

Long story short, a vocal minority of "true Americans" being racist ---uvulas--- is nothing new. 

[yotsuya]

Not true.  We have ALWAYS had this problem.  During the potato famine, Irish and Scottish  immigrants were considered filthy thieves and leeches that would only take "our" jobs and hurt the economy.  We had similar hatred towards the immigrations of Chinese and Japanese. 


Keep in mind that, according to census records the amount of legal immigrants, throughout American history, has always hovered around 55%.  So the people that are calling foul have roughly a 50/50 chance of being the descendant of an illegal immigrant. 

Long story short, a vocal minority of "true Americans" being racist ---uvulas--- is nothing new.

Yep. It's the "Know-Nothings" all over again.

[pbj]

Well, I can only speak for my family's experience, but some were amusingly prejudiced against 'Bohemians.'

You see, they didn't start settling in Texas until the late 1800s.  I suppose we're calling them Czechs nowadays.  Still don't trust em.



EDIT - Back on topic, please don't rely on a bunch of arcade enthusiasts for legal advice.  No, we're not marching people out at bayonet point, but your friend shouldn't be messing around with this stuff and he shouldn't be telling anyone besides a lawyer that he's here illegally.

[danny_galaga]

I thought there was a ten year grace period with immigration in the US? That after that, you can apply for a greencard? A friend of mine was an illegal there and after that got his greencard.

[Slippyblade]

Nope.  When did this happen with your friend?  There was an amnesty issued back in 1986 under Saint Reagan, but that's about it.

[JDFan]

Nope.  When did this happen with your friend?  There was an amnesty issued back in 1986 under Saint Reagan, but that's about it.

There is also the DACA program  (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) if he qualifies - but again best to go to a real lawyer and see what they suggest !!

What are the eligibility requirements?

You might be eligible to apply for DACA if all of the following apply to you:

    You arrived in the U.S. prior to your 16th birthday,
    You've continuously resided in the U.S. (lived inside the U.S. without leaving, or took only brief trips away from the U.S.) from January 1, 2010 to the present,
    You were physically present inside the U.S. on June 15, 2012, and are physically present in the U.S. when you file the DACA application,
    You had no immigration status on June 15, 2012,
    You presently attend school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard or U.S. Armed Forces, and
    You haven't been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, or three or more other misdemeanors, and don't otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.

DACA benefits automatically stop if you leave the U.S. without first getting an advance parole document (travel papers), which USCIS sometimes gives for education, employment or humanitarian purposes.

[Slippyblade]

DACA might be his best option, but it costs a good chunk of money to file through that program.  Money which, as a hard working American, he doesn't really have.  We're debating passing the plate to help collect the filing and legal fees.

[Howard_Casto]

Why can't they just do it similar to how child support is done.....  They get the legal stuff done now for free and once they are a citizen a SMALL amount could be deducted from their paycheck each month until it's paid off. 

Ideally it should be free but I suppose I can understand people worrying about the country going in debt from immigration. 

[Slippyblade]

Howard, that would make sense.  But this is a political issue and every single attempt at addressing this stuff has been blocked in Congress for over a decade.  We've had the most useless governmental bodies in the history of useless.