When you apply for a green card (permanent residency) from inside the US, you have to show you are admissible as if you were outside the US trying to come in. It's on Form I-485, which used to be 6 pages long and would ask you all kinds of questions about your criminal record, address and work history, immigration history, and whether you intended to spy on the government.

The new version is 18 pages long. Mostly yes/no questions, but a lot more of them.
The new I-485 asks if you have plans to engage in espionage, torture, genocide, narcotrafficking, and if you've committed a crime for which you weren't arrested. Who actually says yes to these?

Obviously very few people. But the length of the I-485 - which we call the "Mother of All Inadmissibility Lists" at our firm - shows something important. There are a lot of traps. Each one of those questions has law behind it.

• Ever claimed to be a US citizen? No? Are you sure? Do you remember every I-9 you ever filled? Did you ever check the box for "citizen"? Or did you accidentally register to vote when you got your first driver's license?
  
• Ever been associated with a group, party, fund, society, or other organization? No? Well, it doesn't just mean you paying dues to some organization. It's actually nearly impossible to answer this question with 100% accuracy.
  
• Ever violated the terms of your nonimmigrant status? Don't be too sure. It's not just overstaying. Delivering pizzas on an F-1? Violation. Cash payment on a B-2? Violation. H-1B but on the bench? Violation.
  
• Ever benefited from a crime committed by your spouse or parent? Yes, this can cause denial, even if you didn't specifically intend to benefit.
  
• There are open and ill-defined terms like "potential serious adverse foreign policy consequences," or "endangering the safety, welfare, or security of the U.S." - terms which could mean very different things to different people.

So bottom line: all immigration forms are going through a massive expansion, and more and more information is being collected on every form. Each one of these questions has law and purpose behind it.
Don't think of these forms as boilerplate. You have to put some thought into each question and really think, "Could the answer to one of these questions be yes?" because if the immigration agency thinks so, you'll have a very nasty problem.

"Know your rights" has become a hashtag, and for good reason. Where your civil and constitutional rights are questioned or threatened, you have to, at a minimum, know what those rights are.

But this isn't enough. It does no good to know your rights if you're not going to use them.

Yesterday, one client I met with had been arrested (and then released) by ICE when he was out taking the trash - they were looking for someone who looked like him. Another raised a family here and had tried numerous times to obtain lawful status, but was misled by a "notario" who filed a frivolous petition for him. I also heard from a law enforcement officer who indicated a third client's citizenship application was "in a holding pattern" and wanted to "ask some follow up questions" to move things along.

Fear kills your intelligence. It's hard enough to know the right thing to do. That's what we lawyers try to do: we try to figure it out for you. Make a plan. We want to empower you to "tome su caso en sus proprias manos" - take your case into your own hands. But that means it's not enough to just know your rights. You have to use them, claim them.

I know that's a lot easier said than done, but knowing your rights is only the first step. Using them is what really matters. Your rights don't apply only when the FBI calls, or when ICE arrests you. They exist around you, all the time. You might be undocumented - but have an asylum case like the first client. You might have tried numerous times before, but then discover you have a U visa case, like the second client. And you have a right to have a lawyer present when law enforcement contacts you, like the third client.

You shouldn't wait until ICE knocks before using your rights.

It has been a fulfilling and eventful 2016 at the HMA Law Firm! In our main office in Northern Virginia:

• We represented approximately 350 people in complex matters ranging from asylum to employment-based immigration, citizenship, and criminal immigration matters.
• We advised nearly one thousand other people, providing them with case-specific advice that helped them navigate the US immigration system and avoid pitfalls
• We provided over 200 hours in pro bono immigration legal services, including a week spent in Dilley, Texas advising women and children asylum seekers from Central America
• We contributed 10 op-eds in papers around the country such as The Hill, Counterpunch, and The Progressive.
• We were quoted 7 times by national media including The Washington Post, CNN, and BBC News.
• We presented at 5 seminars before immigration professionals and the general public, including the Federal Bar Association, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and the University of Maryland School of Law.
• We counseled community leaders and politicians throughout the year on local and national immigration issues related to driver's licenses, registries, the refugee crisis, and Dreamers.
• We advocated with the legislature (both in our home state of Virginia and federally) to push for common-sense immigration reform and humane policies, visiting elected officials in their offices.
• We achieved 3 remands from the Board of Immigration Appeals, winning "second chances" for clients who had all but given up hope
• We fought for citizenship for over a dozen people with "complex" cases that may have otherwise been denied
• We won asylum or other relief for nearly 30 of people who no longer have to worry about being deported
• We helped investors create dozens of jobs using the US immigration system

2017 will be a year of many changes, and it's hard to know what to expect. But we are ready: with our over 30 years of combined experience, we are ready to protect our clients, persevere through the hard times, and help them prosper.

Visit our blawg to keep up with the latest trends in the law, and to read about what we're dealing with.