A foreign national non-permanent resident or a permanent resident foreign national who is placed in removal proceedings (also known as deportation proceedings) and charged under either Section 212 or Section 237 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (I.N.A.) may be eligible to fight deportation by filing an application for “cancellation of removal.”
See Section 240A(a) and Section 240A(b) of the I.N.A. The application may be filed to waive certain immigration violations , depending on which immigration status the foreign national holds in the United States at the given time.
Some advice for applicants is as follows:
Aliens Eligible for Cancellation of Removal: You may be eligible to have your removal cancelled under section 240A(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). To qualify for this benefit, you must establish in a hearing before an Immigration Judge that:
- Prior to the service of the Notice to Appear, you have maintained a continuous physical presence in the United States for ten (10) years or more, and you have been a person of good moral character as defined in section 101(f) of the INA during such period;
- You have not been convicted of an offense covered under sections 212(a)(2), 237(a)(2), or 237(a)(3) of the INA; and
- Your removal would result in exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to your United States citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse, parent, or child, and you are deserving of a favorable exercise of discretion on your application.
