Petitions for Review

The Petition for Review must be filed within thirty days after the date of the final order of

removal, exclusion, or deportation. There are generally no exceptions to this rule, so it is very important that you file timely. This deadline is not extended by filing a motion to reopen or reconsider or by the granting or extension of voluntary departure. It is important to know that the Petition for Review must be received by the clerk’s office on or prior to the thirtieth day. This means that even if you mail the petition prior to the thirtieth day, if it is not received by the thirtieth day it is late. If the last day of the thirty-day period is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the period will extend to the next day that isn’t a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday. For example, if your last day to file is a Saturday, that period will actually be extended to the following Monday. If that Monday is federal holiday, for example, your period will actually be extended to Tuesday.

If the immigration judge ordered you to be removed from the U.S. and you appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and they agree you should be removed, ICE can detain and deport you at any time. One way to try to avoid ICE executing your final order of removal is to file for a PETITION FOR REVIEW and ask for a stay of removal. If you file a PETITION FOR REVIEW and the Circuit Court grants you a stay of removal, ICE cannot deport you from the country while your PETITION FOR REVIEW is pending.

If you lose your removal case and do not file a PETITION FOR REVIEW on time, it will be very difficult to reopen your case and overcome the order of removal. If you file a PETITION FOR REVIEW, often times you can talk to and negotiate with the Department of Justice (DOJ) lawyer who is handling the case. The DOJ lawyer may see the case very differently than the immigration judge or the BIA did and they may agree with the arguments in your PETITION FOR REVIEW. Sometimes, the DOJ lawyer will agree to remand your case to the BIA or the Courts for a new decision. Sometimes the Circuit Court will order your case to be remanded for a new decision. Either way, that is good news and often results in you winning your case, which is the obvious goal of a PETITION FOR REVIEW.

Asylum is a discretionary form of relief, but the Circuit Courts retain jurisdiction to review most

aspects of the asylum determination under INA § 242(a)(2)(B)(ii). However, there are limitations that prevent certain aspects of asylum decisions from being reviewed by the Circuit Court. Some issues that cannot be appealed with a PETITION FOR REVIEW, for example: whether you have established changed circumstances or extraordinary circumstances to excuse the late filing of an asylum application.

But you can always argue constitutional or legal issues through a PETITION FOR REVIEW to the Circuit Court. This means that if you believe that the BIA or ICE made an error that resulted in a violation of the U.S. Constitution or misinterpreted or misapplied the law in your asylum case, you may still file a petition for review.

If you lost your asylum case before the immigration court and lost your appeal to the BIA, you have a very limited time to file a PETITION FOR REVIEW and keeping fighting against deportation. You should speak to an experienced immigration attorney as soon as possible who handles cases in the federal circuit where you went to immigration court. With very limited exceptions, only attorneys licensed/barred with the Circuit Court can file a PETITION FOR REVIEW to help you.

If you recently received a decision from the Board of Immigration Appeals and want to talk about filing a Petition for Review (appeal) of that decision, call Please call, us today.  212.756.3948.