New Policy Is Not Amnesty, LIRS Warns
“While Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) applauds the Administration’s recent enforcement and deportation policy announcement, we are concerned that unscrupulous individuals may try to use the new policy to defraud immigrants. Scams may not only result in wasted money, but could have significant consequences for legal cases. Here is some general guidance:
- Immigrants cannot sign up to get their cases dismissed or to receive a work permit. Anyone who claims you can sign up should not to be trusted.
- There is no safe way for undocumented immigrants to turn themselves in to immigration authorities and there is no guarantee that all cases will be considered a “low priority.”
- If immigrants have questions about their cases or their rights, they should seek the advice of a qualified immigration lawyer.
“LIRS encourages you to read and share this consumer warning* published in English and Spanish by the American Immigration Lawyers Association.”
Find additional articles about the new deportation policy linked from this warning on the LIRS blog. The warning, “Obama’s New Deportation Policy Not Amnesty,” was originally posted by LIRS to their Welcome Spoken Here blog on 8/31/11. The * indicates a link to a pdf file.