Special Immigrant Juvenile Status or SIJS is an immigration benefit available to certain undocumented immigrant youths who are under 21 years of age, unmarried and who have been abused, neglected or abandoned by one or both parents.
SIJS provides a pathway to legal permanent residence for minors. Under this program, the minor is first granted protection from deportation and later opens the opportunity for the minor to apply for a green card and secure long-term immigration status in the United States.
Before filing anything with the United States Immigration and Citizenship Services, (USCIS), an adult must petition for either guardianship or custody of the minor before a state court that has jurisdiction over the petition and the minor. Working with an Immigrant Attorney’s office can help ease the process as well.
In addition to obtaining either a guardianship or custody order from the court, it is crucial to also obtain a predicate order from the judge articulating the following special findings:
Note that merely obtaining the guardianship or custody order is not sufficient to apply for SIJS relief, and therefore the predicate order with special findings is a necessary requirement to qualify.
Once the state court orders are obtained, a petition can be filed before USCIS for SIJS protection. After the petition is approved, the subsequent step involves applying for lawful permanent residence, allowing the minor to apply for a green card once the priority date of the petition is current.
Fill out the I-360 petition form and include the guardianship appointment and special findings orders granted from the Family Court, and your birth certificate with a certified translation.
This form is then submitted to USCIS. A receipt notice then follows within a month of submitting the petition.
A response from USCIS depends on which processing center it is mailed to; the times of wait can range from 4 to 11 months for adjudication.
On March 7, 2022, USCIS announced a new policy benefiting individuals with an approved SIJS petition. This policy is a form of prosecutorial discretion, providing temporary protection from deportation, particularly for young people waiting for their priority date to become current.
Under this policy, work authorizations can now be granted for a valid period of 4 years, allowing minors to legally work while they wait to apply for lawful permanent residence and secure long-term immigration status.
The policy now grants work authorizations for a valid period of 4 years. The authorization can be granted while you wait for your turn to apply for Legal Permanent Residency.
To learn more, click above for a FREE case evaluation with the U.S. immigration attorneys of Aftalion Law Group.
