By US Attorney Gloria Ananaba
Immigration issues, attendant questions, and confusion abound in the United States right now. To aid with clarity, I will present this article in a question and answer format.
1. HOW CAN I PROTECT MYSELF OR MY FAMILY FROM BEING PICKED UP BY ICE?
You do NOT have to open your door to ICE in all cases. An ICE agent should have a warrant. Ask for the warrant to be slipped underneath your door. Here’s the distinction:
a) An ICE agent can actually sign their own warrant — an ICE warrant. If the warrant
is signed by an ICE officer, Immigration officer or Dept. of Homeland Security, you
are NOT obligated to open your door. This type of warrant does not authorize ICE to
enter your home. Tell the officers through the door to come back with a judicial warrant.
b) The second type of warrant is a judicial warrant. If the warrant slipped under your
door is signed by a judge — it is a judicial warrant, and authorizes ICE agents to
enter your house, and basically grab people.
2. DO I NEED TO CARRY IDENTIFICATION AROUND WITH ME?
a) If you are not a U.S. Citizen, you are actually required by law, to carry around a
copy of your ID, e.g. Green Card or Employment authorization Document (EAD).
b) What if I am a U.S. Citizen? There have been reports of U.S. citizens getting
swept up in ICE raids. Therefore, the safest option is to carry a copy of your
passport; not the original, with you, especially if you look ethnic.
c) What if I have no legal status? You have the right to remain silent. You do NOT
have to answer any questions — it will prove unhelpful to your case if you do. Ask to
speak to an Immigration attorney.
d) What if I have a case in process? Carry your Receipt Notices around. It will not
stop you from getting arrested, but it will aid your attorney in getting you out.
3. WHAT IF I HAVE PROBLEMS RE-ENTERING THE U.S. AFTER TRAVELING?
a) What if I have Advance Parole? This is not a good time to travel. Immigration
officers have wide discretion, and can decide to give you problems upon re-entry to
the U.S.
b) What if I am a Green Card holder, and upon return to the U.S., the Immigration
Officer is detaining me, and asking me to sign a document? Do NOT be fooled –refuse to sign any document. It is probably a Form 407, Record of Abandonment of
Lawful Permanent Resident Status. Tell the Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
officer that you would like to be placed in proceedings and go before an Immigration
Judge — that way you would be let back into the U.S., but placed in proceedings,
which would give you a chance to keep your Green Card.
c) What if I have a Criminal Record? Do NOT travel right now. Expungement is for
the general public. The government can see all criminal history; it would just raise a
lot of red flags now.
d) What if I have dual citizenship, and traveled with 2 passports? It is perfectly
alright to have dual citizenship and travel with 2 passports. Having citizenship of
another country does not affect your U.S. citizenship. However, note:
i) All U.S. citizens are legally required to enter and depart the U.S. with a U.S.
Passport. See § 215(b) INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1185, 22 CFR 53.1. This law is for entry
into the U.S. only; the U.S. is NOT concerned with what passport dual citizens
use to enter and leave another country.
ii) The only exceptions to the above requirement of entering and departing the
U.S. with a U. S. passport is specifically delineated in 22 CFR 53.2 e.g. U.S.
citizens who are members of the U.S. Armed forces on active duty traveling
under official orders.
- WHAT IF I WAS BORN ON A U.S. MILITARY BASE OR BORN TO A NATURIZED CITIZEN?
a) Children of U.S. citizens born on a US military base or born to a U.S. Naturalized
citizen abroad are generally U.S. citizens. However, paperwork errors can create some
disastrous results. An example — A Jamaican born US soldier had a son with a Kenyan
born wife at a US Military base in Frankfurt, Germany in 1986. The soldier became a
naturalized US citizen in 1984 — 2 years prior to the child‟s birth. However, on the
family‟s return to the U.S. in 1989, the 3-year-old was listed as a Jamaican and he
entered the US as a Legal Permanent Resident. On growing up, this man got a criminal record due to mental issues and homelessness, and ended up with a deportation order.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against him, and the U.S. Supreme Court
declined to hear his appeal. He was deported to Jamaica — his father‟s country of origin
that he had never visited, and has no significant connections to. Statelessness means no ID, no ability to work, no housing — you live on the fringes of society.
b) The correct paperwork to file if your minor child was born abroad while you are a
U.S. citizen, is a Form N-600, Application for Certificate of Citizenship. A child can also
acquire U.S. citizenship after birth, if under 18 years of age when parent naturalized or
became a citizen. The Application for Certificate of Citizenship must be signed by the
applicant (qualified child) if such child has turned 18, prior to the submission of the
Application.
- WHAT IF I AM MARRIED TO A US CITIZEN
AND MY GREEN CARD APPLICATION IS IN PROCESS?
New guidance issued by USCIS states that Federal immigration authorities may
begin removal proceedings for immigrants who lack legal status and apply to become
residents through a spouse or other family members. The guidance went into
immediate effect and the change affects both pending requests and those filed after
August 1, 2025.
The USCIS policy manual states thus: “Immigrants and the family members who
sponsor them should be aware that a family-based petition accords no immigration
status, nor does it bar removal.” According to USCIS, this policy is to deter fraudulent,
frivolous or otherwise non-meritorious family based petitions and increase benefit
integrity, screening and vetting opportunities, by providing direction on adjudication and
decision issues.
- I HAVE HEARD ABOUT THE ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT (OBBBA) PASSED
RECENTLY, DOES IT AFFECT ME AS AN IMMIGRANT?
The short answer is yes. This bill hits immigrants‟ purses hard, moneywise, and
some immigrants may not even have work permits, and rely on relatives to fund their
applications. Fighting deportations are now 400% more expensive. Here are some
common ways this new bill makes obtaining Immigration benefits a lot more expensive.
a) All non-immigrant visa applications now attract a fee of $250, per person — so for
a family of 4, it would be $1,000. This is on top of other visa fees. It is called a „visa
integrity fee.‟ It may be reimbursable if the non-immigrant complies with conditions, e.g.
does not work while in the U.S., and leaves within 5 days of their departure date.
Visa fees are usually handled by the U.S. Dept. of State. However, this new fee will
be charged by USCIS, and the refund can only be applied for, at the expiration of the
visa. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that this fee could net the U.S. 29
billion dollars. There are no clear modalities in place for applying for, processing, and
obtaining a refund yet.
b) The cost for Form EOIR-29 for fighting deportation has risen from $110 to $1,010.
c) Form I-881 which also seeks a suspension of deportation previously $340, now
costs $700.
d) There is now a new $1,050 fee for certain forms which were free when applying
for a green card like I-131, Application for Travel Documents, and I-765, Application
for Employment Authorization, if the case is adjudicated by the immigration courts.
e) There are also new fees for challenging when USCIS issues a “grounds of
inadmissibility” order, adding another $1,050 on top of the same amount already
charged.
3f) The fee for I-601, Application for Waiver of Ground of Inadmissibility is now $2100.
g) There is a $5,000 fee if you miss your deportation hearing.
h) There is another $1,500 fee if you win your adjustment of status hearing before an
immigration judge.
i) There is a $50,800 fee if you are caught entering without inspection (EWI). How is
that even going to work? Will you be held in jail until you pay it? Or, will they release
and deport you, then go after you for the money in your home country? Go figure!!
j) There is now a $100 fee to apply for Asylum, and a $100 annual fee thereafter.
k) There‟s a $550 fee to apply for a work permit through Asylum or Temporary
Protected Status (TPS).
l) The fee is $250 if you come as a minor, and apply for special immigrant juvenile
status. Never mind where the kid would get the money from!
m) There is a $250 minimum fee for a non-immigrant student visa.
This Bill also approved massive funding for new border walls, immigration detention
facilities, and quadrupling ICE officers. Some examples: $45 billion for a new ICE
detention facility, 31 billion for more ICE officers, more deportation lawyers and funding
removals, 12 billion for ICE, 12 billion to Dept. of Homeland Security, $6.2 billion for
surveillance, drones, sensors and facial recognition technology.
- WHAT IF I HAVE BEEN VISITING THE US ON NON-IMMIGRANT VISAS?
Effective July 8, 2025, the U.S. has shifted from multi-entry visas for Nigerians to
single-entry visas with a three-month period validity (based on principles of
reciprocity). Visas issued prior to this date remain unchanged.
In conclusion, be aware that applicants completing DS-160 — Online Non-Immigrant
Visa Application are now required to list all
media usernames or handles on every
platform they have used for the past 5 years on the DS-160 Application form.
Applicants have to aver that the information on their application is true and correct.
Consequently, omitting social media information may lead to visa denial and ineligibility for future visas.
Attorney Gloria Ananaba writes from Nashville, Tennessee, USA, and can be reached at gloria@tn-laws.com
