Texas Immigration Lawyer Blog

Child Status Protection Act Victory in the 5th Circuit

Nation of Immigrants Blog

On September 8, the U.S. Circuit of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, in a unanimous decision, ruled that “contrary to the BIA’s interpretation in Matter of Wang, the benefits of 8 U.S.C. section 1153(h)(3) unambiguously apply to all petitions described in section 1153(h)(2)…”

Family Fights Deportation of Son With Down Syndrome

Change.org 

"Hee Chun Kang's parents are legal permanent residents of the United States, but he faces deportation to Korea because he is past the age of 21. Kang has Down syndrome and needs the support of family looking after him. Our taxpayer dollars are certainly being put to good use.

"Hee Chun and Hyo Chun were 10 and 7 years of age, respectively, when their parents brought them to the United States in 1993. They overstayed their tourist visas, but due to a family petition filed on their behalf, the parents became legal residents last year. However, Hee Chun and Hyo Chun were both over 21 by the time a visa was available, so they aged-out and now await deportation from the United States, away from their parents.

"Congress passed a law called the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) to prevent the tragic breakup of families in the legal immigration system. Using a complex mathematical calculation, certain adult children of legal permanent residents are allowed to stay in the United States even after reaching the age of 21. Congress also provisioned that those adult children who do not qualify under those calculations can nonetheless retain their place in line with the use of the original date of filing and conversion to the proper category (2B-unmarried adult children of legal permanent residents). U.S. Citzenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is now the subject of a nationwide class action lawsuit currently before the Ninth Circuit due to failed to properly apply this provision.

"Deporting Hee Chun Kang from the United makes no sense for several reasons. First, he has Down syndrome and no family relatives in Korea that could take care of him. Second, it is cruel and inhumane to his parents, who have been long-time residents and now legal permanent residents, to have their child deported. In most families, children are not told to provide for themselves just because they reach a certain age, so this system of kicking them off family petitions is altogether bizarre. Third, the Ninth Circuit may deem that the USCIS is wrongly interpreting the law in a manner that is dividing up families, so there would be no legal reason to deport Hee Chun or his brother."