Tag: EOIR

How to File a FOIA Request With The Immigration Court (EOIR FOIA Request)

Posted on by Joseph Caraccio

FORMS YOU WILL NEED

> FORM DOJ-361 Certificate of Identity

> EOIR-28 > EOIR-27 (if with the BIA)

WHAT INFORMATION SHOULD I INCLUDE?

A FOIA request should reasonably describe the records sought and include identifying information. For example, if a FOIA request seeks a record of proceedings, your request, if possible, should include the alien’s full name, aliases, immigration hearing location, and alien registration (A) number (if known). If the A number is not known or the case occurred before 1988, please provide the date of the Order to Show Cause, the country of origin, and the location of the immigration hearing.

HOW DO I REQUEST RECORDS ABOUT MYSELF?

To ensure that privacy protected information is not improperly released, a request seeking records regarding yourself must verify your identity. The FOIA Service Center recommends submitting an originally signed and dated DOJ-361 Form Certification of Identity. 

Freedom of Information Act Request Immigration Court

Alternate Certification: when you are requesting your own records, you may verify your identity using your: (1) full name; (2) current address; (3) date and place of birth; and either:

  a. A notarized signature; or

  b. This statement immediately above your signature: “I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. Executed on [date].”

HOW DO I REQUEST THE RECORDS OF ANOTHER PERSON?

Requests for information about a person other than the requester require proper authorization allowing release of the information. If you are seeking nonpublic information, such as the record of proceedings before an immigration court regarding a person that is not you or a person you represent, the FOIA Service Center recommends that you include in your request an authorization to release information from the person who is the subject of the request or an explanation about how the public interest outweighs the privacy interest of the subject of the record. The FOIA Service Center recommends having the person who is the subject of the request complete, sign and date Form EOIR-59, Certification and Release of Records for this purpose. If you are the attorney of record, you may wish to provide evidence of that fact, such as a valid entry of appearance, Form EOIR-27 or Form EOIR-28.

HOW TO SUBMIT A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION OR PRIVACY ACT REQUEST

FOIA requests may be submitted through the Public Access Link.

Alternately, FOIA requests may be mailed to:

Office of the General Counsel
Attn: FOIA Service Center
Executive Office for Immigration Review
5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 2150
Falls Church, VA 22041

FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) 

ICE online change of address tool for noncitizens fully operational (June 13, 2023)

Posted on by newyorkvisalawyer_o0id8f

New tool offers convenient, reliable option for noncitizens to update address information as they await immigration court proceedings.

DHS ICE image U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

ICE has announced that their “online change of address tool” for people in removal proceedings, subject to a removal order or Order of Supervision of some kind, or are otherwise required to keep their address updated with DHS/ICE.

You can find the online tool at this link: https://onlinechangeofaddress.ice.gov/

You can still submit a change of address the old fashioned way using a paper form but it’s strongly encouraged that you do it online so you get instant proof of filing that you can print out to avoid any confusion in the future or being blamed for not informing DHS of the address change.

Finally, it’s very important that you rememeber to also inform the Court of any change of address if you are currently in removal proceedings or required to do so. The Court still uses a  Form EOIR-33, Change of Address/Contact Information available at  through the Department of Justice EOIR website at https://www.justice.gov/eoir/form-eoir-33-eoir-immigration-court-listing.

The Press Release from ICE is available on their website at ICE.gov and has been quoted below:

WASHINGTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s online change-of-address form for noncitizens – first announced in April 2023 – is now fully operational. This new system gives noncitizens the option to update their information online in addition to the existing options of doing so by phone or in-person. It will enable noncitizens to comply with their immigration obligations more easily and improve the accuracy of address information reported to ICE by utilizing address autofill to ensure U.S. Postal Service standardization.

After successfully entering a valid mailing address, if the noncitizen is currently in removal proceedings pursuant to Section 240 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), the interactive online shows the noncitizen information on how to also change their address with the immigration court as required, using the Executive Office for Immigration Review’s (EOIR) Form EOIR-33, Change of Address/Contact Information, which may be submitted by mail, in-person at the immigration court, or online through EOIR’s Respondent Access. The EOIR-33 is currently available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, and Punjabi.

To determine if a noncitizen still needs a notice to appear, ICE will run system checks to make sure the noncitizen is not already in removal proceedings pursuant to Section 240 of the INA, does not have an affirmative asylum application pending with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and does not already have a final order of removal.

Noncitizens eligible for, but who have not yet received a notice to appear – meaning those who were released on conditional parole with an alternative to detention – may be prompted to state whether they want to receive their notice to appear by mail or to in person by scheduling an appointment at an ERO field office.

To process an online change-of-address, the system requires a full name, A-number and validated non-commercial address. It takes approximately one minute to complete the form. All noncitizens in the United States, except A and G visa holders and visa waiver visitors, must also report a change of address to USCIS within 10 days of relocating.

SOURCE: ICE Press Release https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-online-change-address-tool-noncitizens-fully-operational