Migrants in the United States have seen their asylum processes complicated by trusting in the legal advice of people without the certification or experience to conduct a delicate process of this type, warn authorities and lawyers.
Next to paralegals and unqualified “preparers”, there are also registered notaries who charge more for unnecessary or erroneous procedures, which hinder and delay the already cumbersome cases.
“My process got stuck because a woman who calls herself a lawyer recommended that I inflate my testimony of credible fear for asylum,” he explained to the voice of americaVerónica, a Venezuelan who preferred not to use her last name because, according to her, “she is still waiting for the resolution” of her process in the Florida Immigration Court.
Verónica’s testimony was “adorned” with facts that supposedly demonstrated the impossibility of the young woman to return to her country of origin.
In reality, this Venezuelan and Economics student did suffer harassment by the authorities of the government of Nicolás Maduro for his opposition activity in his native Maracaibo, according to what he indicates, but the officers “alarms went off” and they sent the case to review, indicates
“Now I am working with a real lawyer, because it turns out that that person had the license revoked. Because I was confident and wanted to save money, I fell,” he lamented.
Many migrants who cannot pay high fees for a complex asylum case – or who do not have access to organizations and lawyers pro bono– are forced to seek more affordable advice, risking scams or bad practices.
In a similar situation was María Luisa González, who wanted to start a family reunification process to bring her son, Daniel, from the Cuban province of Ciego de Ávila to Miami. “I went to an agency where they do everything for you: tickets, packages and also prepare documents; and due to ignorance I paid without checking properly, and the forms were sent with errors,” she explains.
“I don’t understand English and I trusted that the preparer The person who took care of me was going to make sure that everything was as it should be,” said González, who after five years was finally able to reunite with her son, although she insisted that it could “have been before, if she had all the papers in order.”
Playing with the lives of migrants
Immigration attorney Rosaly Chaviano of Chaviano Law has heard many of these stories. “I see it a lot and sometimes I even have new clients come in and start crying helplessly in front of me and sometimes I want to cry with them,” she confessed.
“I could not tell you for sure if Miami is one of the cities with the highest rate of this type of cases, what does happen is that Miami receives a large number of migrants. Specifically, what stands out here is the number of agencies where suddenly you are going to do your taxes and you go out with a parole application,” Chaviano told the VOA.
The lawyer insists that those who offer legal advice or initiate processes on behalf of people without having the proper qualifications “damage lives, they are playing with the lives of migrants and it is not fair,” she stresses.
“My one hundred percent advice is to seek legal advice from lawyers or representatives authorized to do so and to avoid any type of notary or paralegalspeople who do not have the authorization to give legal advice and it is very important because any error, any fraud at the beginning of their cases can definitely harm their entire future in the United States,” the lawyer drew attention.
Beware of fraud
With the increase in the arrival of migrants to the US in the last two yearshas also increased the demand for professionals to represent newcomers in their legal processes to regularize their status.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) warns about fraud and offers information about who are the “authorized providers of immigration services.”
According to USCIS can only advise and represent an applicant for status or a family member who initiates the process on their behalf, representatives accredited by the Office of Legal Access Programs (OLAP) of the Department of Justice (DOJ), in addition to “lawyers in good standing without restrictions on their ability to practice the profession.
Authorized immigration service providers can: “give you advice on what documents to present, explain the immigration options you may have and communicate with USCIS about your case,” details the institution, which points out that other people can offer “limited help “.
“I would also tell you to read everything they present in your name carefully and to hire someone who comes highly recommended,” said Dariel García, a Cuban who had to wait “almost double” the usual time to receive his Work Permit. because the notary who completed his first application made him “sign various papers that were not necessary” and sent the incomplete form.
New programs, new scams
The application of the humanitarian parole program for Venezuelans and later the extension to Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans also brought a new figure: the false sponsor.
After checking several online proposals offering the mandatory sponsorship in the US in exchange for money, the US embassy in Havana asked on social networks to “be careful with the scams of anyone who asks you for money.”
The new strategy is to offer sponsorship services to those who do not have someone they trust in the United States who represents them and agrees to take care of their expenses during the two years that the residence permit is in force in accordance with the program.
Usually, the sponsors are close to the applicant, although there are also cases of organizations and individuals that offer solidarity support to help migrants.
“If you include in this affidavit of financial support any information you know to be false, you could be subject to criminal prosecution under United States law,” USCIS warns.
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