“ADMIN CLOSE”
Is short, for “administrative closure” – a procedure used by Immigration Judges to stop, or “pause”, Removal/Deportation cases without actually terminating the case.
It used to be that if an Immigration Judge saw that the non-citizen “in proceedings” has a way to legalize status, the judge would stop the deportation case and give the person time to obtain legalization outside of the court process. This was called “Admin Close”.
Then came President Trump and his Attorney General who decided that Immigration Judges had no authority to halt, or pause, deportation cases. This put an end to “Admin Close” for several years.
Last week came Attorney General Merrick Garland, who was appointed by President Biden, and restored, gave back, the power of “Admin Close” to Immigration Judges.
At least some good was done.
U.S. PASSPORTS
News broke last week about the current difficulty in getting American passports.
It seems that the Passport office (a branch of the U.S. Department of State) is so over-loaded with passport applications, that it takes them now 12-18 weeks to process and send a passport. In other words: 3 – 4 1/2 months.
It is possible to get an emergency appointment within 72 hours (3 days) before traveling, but only for “life or death” emergencies.
One consolation: If you are overseas and your American passport has expired, you are permitted to board a plane and return to the U.S. on the expired passport. For this you must have in your hands an undamaged U.S. passport with original validity of ten (10) years (or 5, if you are under age 15). Warning: this accommodation expires on December 31, 2021.
Be careful in planning your overseas travel.
FEES: IMMIGRATION COURT
Shortly before the end of the Trump administration, the fees to file appeals and motions to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and to Immigration Courts were raised by huge amounts.
