The Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA) was signed into law on October 21, 1998. To implement this act, the USCIS had established procedures for certain nationals of Haiti who have been residing in the United States to become lawful permanent residents of this country. The HRIFA regulations are located at 8CFR 245.15. They allow certain Haitians to apply for lawful permanent resident status without having to first apply for an immigrant visa at a United States consulate abroad. They also waive many of the usual requirements for immigration. Principal applicants wishing to apply for lawful permanent residence under HRIFA initially had until March 31, 2000 to file for adjustment of status.
After March 31, 2000, only dependents are able to apply for lawful permanent residence under HRIFA, unless the alien is eligible to file a motion to reopen his or her removal proceedings as a result of the enactment of the Legal Immigration Family Equity Act (LIFE) Amendments to section 902 of HRIFA. Click here to read the latest on the USCIS' implementation of the LIFE Act.
The enactment of the LIFE Act Amendments on December 21, 2000, removed certain barriers to adjustment under HRIFA 902. To take advantage of these amendments, the legislation affords nationals of Haiti who were made eligible for HRIFA adjustment by the LIFE Act Amendments a limited opportunity to reopen their proceedings to apply for such adjustment or seek reconsideration of a previously denied HRIFA adjustment application. All motions to reopen must be filed on or before June 19, 2001. The motion to reopen must be filed with whichever entity has jurisdiction or made the last decision in the alien's case, either the local USCIS office, the Nebraska Service Center, the Immigration Court, or the Board of Immigration Appeals.
Principal Applicant Eligibility
To be eligible for benefits under HRIFA, you must:
- Be a national of Haiti who was present in the United States on December 31, 1995
- Have been physically present in the U.S. for a continuous period beginning not later than December 31, 1995, and ending not earlier than the date the application for adjustment is filed (absences totaling 180 days or less allowed)
- Properly file an application for adjustment before April 1, 2000
- Be admissible to the U.S. under all provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act), other than those these specifically exempted by HRIFA, i.e.:
- 212(a)(4) -- public charge
- 212(a)(5) -- lack of labor certification
- 212(a)(6)(A) -- present without admission or parole
- 212(a)(7)(A) -- lack of valid immigrant visa
- 212(a)(9)(B) -- unlawful presence
- Fall within one of the five classes of persons described in section 902(b)(1) of HRIFA:
- Haitian nationals who filed for asylum before December 31, 1995
- Haitians who were paroled into the U.S. prior to December 31, 1995, after having been identified as having a credible fear of persecution, or paroled for emergent reasons or reasons deemed strictly in the public interest
- Haitian national children who arrived in the U.S. without parents and have remained without parents in the U.S. since arrival
- Haitian national children who became orphaned subsequent to arrival in the U.S.
- Haitian national children who were abandoned by their parents or guardians prior to April 1, 1998, and have remained abandoned since this abandonment.
Please note: for items 3, 4, and 5, the applicant must have been a child (under 21 years of age) at the time of arrival in the United States and on December 31, 1995, but not necessarily at the time of application.
Dependents
Dependents (spouse, minor child, unmarried son or daughter 21 years of age or older) of a Haitian national are eligible to apply for lawful permanent residency if they too are a national of Haiti and are admissible to the United States under all provisions not excepted by HRIFA. A spouse or child may apply regardless of their date of entry into the United States, as long as they are physically present in the United States at the time of filing. There is no deadline by which an eligible dependent must file for adjustment of status under HRIFA.
An unmarried son or daughter age 21 or older must have been physically present in the U.S. for a continuous period beginning not later than December 31, 1995, and ending not earlier than the date the application for adjustment is filed (absences totaling 180 days or less allowed).
A HRIFA dependent not physically present in the United States may be granted
parole authorization if he or she otherwise meets all HRIFA requirements and the
adjustment application for the principal applicant has been approved. To apply
on behalf of a dependent spouse, child, unmarried son or unmarried
daughter, currently residing outside the U.S., the principal applicant must file
Form I-131, completing part 1 with information about himself
or herself and completing part 2 with reason "f" and information about the dependent applicant. Mail
Form I-131 and appropriate fee to the Nebraska Service Center, P.O. Box 87245, Lincoln, NE 68501-7245.
Ability to work while in the process of obtaining lawful permanent residence
Haitians who wish to work while awaiting the USCIS' decision on their adjustment of status application may file Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization. For more information on this application see How Do I Get A Work Permit.
Traveling outside the U.S. while in the process of obtaining lawful permanent residence
Haitians who wish to travel outside of the United States before a decision is made on their adjustment of status application should provide the USCIS with advance notice of their travel plans in order to ensure permission to re-enter the country. If they do not do so, they are in danger of having action on their application terminated and their application denied. Applicants who plan to leave the United States must file Form I-131, Application for Travel Document. To find out more about traveling outside the United States while in the process of obtaining lawful permanent residence, see Emergency Travel.
Haitians who are seeking a benefit under HRIFA and who are under a final order of exclusion, deportation or removal, leave the country at their own risk, even if they have obtained a Form I-512, Advance Authorization for Parole, prior to departure. Haitians facing such an order who depart the United States render themselves ineligible for lawful permanent residency unless they first apply for and are granted permission to reapply for admission to the United States. Haitians needing such permission must file Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States, and should do so before their departure.
How Do I Apply
To apply for adjustment of status under HRIFA, you are required to complete and submit Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, using the HRIFA Supplement to Form I-485, Instructions, to complete the form. To obtain more information on the application procedure for Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, see Application Procedure: Becoming a Permanent Resident While in the United States. You will be required to submit a processing fee along with the application.
Once the USCIS receives your application, you will be scheduled to have your fingerprints taken. See Fingerprint Procedures for Applicants to find out more information.
Once the USCIS reviews your application, a decision to interview you will be made. If your case requires an interview, you will be notified by the local USCIS office in your area and scheduled for an interview. If your case does not require an interview, you will receive a notice in the mail informing you if you have been granted or denied lawful permanent residence.
When Do I File?
Haitians, who are principal applicants, applying for adjustment of status under HRIFA had until March 31, 2000 to file for lawful permanent residence. After this date, only a dependent of a HRIFA principal applicant
is able to file for adjustment of status under HRIFA.
Where Do I File?
To apply for lawful permanent residence under HRIFA, send your completed application to the Nebraska Service Center.
