Immigration Guide
Immigration Guide: Learn, Compare, Decide
Plain-English guides to U.S. immigration questions: how status works, how to compare your options, and how to choose and work with an immigration lawyer.
This guide is for people facing a U.S. immigration decision: what kind of status they have or need, what a letter from USCIS or the immigration court means, which of two paths fits them, and how to choose and work with legal help. Each page answers one question, gives the short answer first, ties every legal statement to the statute, regulation or agency page it comes from, and ends with one suggested next step.
Who publishes this guide
Joya Law Firm publishes this guide. Attorney Kamran Joya is licensed in New York, and New York's attorney registration data lists his registration, number 6169411, as currently registered.[1] In California, the firm practices federal immigration law only. Immigration status is a federal matter,[2] and an attorney in good standing with the bar of any U.S. state may represent people before the Department of Homeland Security.[3][4]
How the guide is organized
- Learn the basics. How a visa, a green card and citizenship differ, what a Request for Evidence or a Notice to Appear means, and the time limit for applying for asylum.
- Compare your options. Side-by-side comparisons: the ways to push a delayed case, affirmative and defensive asylum, asylum and the other forms of protection, work visas, self-petition green cards, a fiancé visa or marrying first, naturalization readiness, options for survivors of abuse or crime, and whether you need a lawyer at all.
- Decide and get help. What legal help costs, how to check a lawyer or accredited representative, how to avoid notario fraud, where to find free and low-cost help, what a first consultation covers, and what changes once a lawyer is on your case.
Start here
- You received a Notice to Appear: what a Notice to Appear means, and what happens next.
- You want to apply for asylum: the one-year asylum filing deadline and its exceptions.
- USCIS asked you for more evidence: Request for Evidence or Notice of Intent to Deny.
- Your case has been pending far longer than you expected: four ways to push a delayed case.
- You are deciding whether to hire someone: do you need an immigration lawyer? and what it costs.
Immigration rules, forms and fees change often. Every page shows the date its sources were last checked. If a page and an official notice you received disagree, follow the notice and ask a lawyer or accredited representative about the difference.
Part 1
Learn the basics
What the main kinds of immigration status are, and what the letters and deadlines that change a case actually mean.
How status works, and what USCIS letters mean
Start here if you are not sure which kind of status you have or are asking for, or if a USCIS letter asked you for more.
- Visa, green card or citizenship: how U.S. immigration status worksA visa, a green card and citizenship are three different things. What each one is, what it lets you do, and how people move from one to the next.
- Request for Evidence or Notice of Intent to Deny: what each one meansWhy USCIS sends an RFE or a NOID, how long the rules give you to answer, and what happens if you do not.
- Frequently asked questionsShort answers to the questions the firm hears most, from green card timelines to what a consultation covers.
- Advance parole travel after August 13, 2026The firm’s attorney-approved guide to what changed for advance parole travel on August 13, 2026, and what to do before you travel.
- Traveling over the holidays with a pending immigration caseBefore holiday travel: advance parole, combo cards, H-1B, L-1 and dependent travel, and delayed cases.
Asylum deadlines and immigration court
Two things that can decide a case before it starts: the asylum filing deadline and a Notice to Appear.
- The one-year asylum filing deadline and its exceptionsAsylum generally has to be filed within one year of arrival. How the year is counted, the two exceptions, and what is not covered by the deadline.
- What a Notice to Appear means, and what happens nextA Notice to Appear starts removal proceedings in immigration court. What it must contain, the first hearing, and why missing a hearing is so serious.
Part 2
Compare your options
Side-by-side comparisons of the paths that people most often have to choose between, with the rule behind each difference.
Delays, and whether you need a lawyer
What you can do when a case is stuck, and when filing on your own is reasonable.
- Immigration case delayed? Case inquiry, Ombudsman, congressional help or a mandamus lawsuitFour ways to push a stuck USCIS case, from an online case inquiry to a federal lawsuit, compared by cost, effort and what each can and cannot do.
- Do I need an immigration lawyer? When forms alone may be fine, and when they are notSome filings are routinely done without a lawyer. Others, such as court cases or anything with a past arrest, deportation or denial, carry risks that are hard to see on your own.
Asylum and protection
Which asylum process you are in, the other forms of protection, and what is left when a case is referred or denied.
- Affirmative or defensive asylum: which process are you in?Affirmative asylum is filed with USCIS; defensive asylum is asked for in immigration court. How to tell which one applies to you, and why it matters.
- Asylum, withholding of removal and Convention Against Torture protection comparedIf asylum is not available, two other forms of protection may be. How the standards, deadlines and benefits differ.
- Asylum case referred to court or denied: what options remainA referral is not a final denial. What happens in court after a referral, and the deadlines for appeals and motions after an immigration judge decides.
- VAWA, U visa or asylum: options for survivors of abuse or crimeThree different protections for people harmed by abuse or crime. Who each one is for, what it requires, and the confidentiality rules that protect applicants.
Work, family and citizenship
Choosing between work visas, between two self-petition green cards, between a fiancé visa and marrying first, and checking whether you are ready to naturalize.
- H-1B, O-1 or L-1: choosing a work visaThree employer-filed work visas with very different entry tickets: a specialty occupation, extraordinary ability, or a year with a related company abroad.
- EB-1A or EB-2 NIW: which self-petition fits your record?Both let you petition for a green card without an employer. EB-1A asks for sustained acclaim; the NIW asks for an advanced degree or exceptional ability and a national-interest case.
- K-1 fiancé visa or marry first? Comparing the two pathsA K-1 visa brings a fiancé to marry in the United States within 90 days. Marrying first leads to a spouse petition instead. How the two paths differ.
- Ready to apply for citizenship? A checklist, and the red flags to clear firstThe residence, presence and good moral character rules for naturalization as a checklist, plus the issues to talk through with a lawyer before you file.
Part 3
Decide and get help
What legal help costs, how to check who you are hiring, where to find free help, and what working with a lawyer looks like.
Choosing and working with immigration help
Read these before you pay anyone to help with an immigration case.
- What does an immigration lawyer cost, and what should a fee quote include?Legal fees and government fees are separate. What a clear fee quote covers, and the questions to ask before you sign.
- Your first consultation with Joya Law: what happens and what to bringWhat a first meeting covers, the documents that make it useful, and the questions worth asking before you hire anyone.
- How to check an immigration lawyer or accredited representative before you hireWho is allowed to represent you, how to look up a lawyer's license, and the federal lists of accredited representatives and disciplined practitioners.
- Notarios and immigration consultants: who is allowed to help with your caseIn many countries a notario is a lawyer. In the United States a notary public is not, and cannot give immigration legal advice. Who can, and how to report a scam.
- Free and low-cost immigration legal helpIf you cannot afford a private lawyer, free and low-cost help exists. Where to find it, who provides it, and what to check first.
- After you hire us: Form G-28, who talks to the government, and how you get updatesWhat the notice of appearance does, who receives USCIS and court mail once a lawyer is on the case, and what to ask about updates.
Joya Law immigration services
When you are ready to talk about your own case.
- Writ of mandamus lawsuitsA federal lawsuit asking a court to order USCIS or the State Department to decide a delayed case.
- Asylum and deportation defenseRepresentation in immigration court and in affirmative asylum cases.
- Defensive asylumAsking for asylum as a defense in removal proceedings.
- Green cardsFamily and employment green card cases.
- Marriage green cardsSpouse petitions, adjustment or consular processing, and removing conditions.
- Work visasTemporary work visa options and changes of status.
- EB-2 National Interest WaiverSelf-petition green cards for people whose work serves the national interest.
- Citizenship and naturalizationApplying for U.S. citizenship.
- VAWA self-petitionsImmigration relief for survivors of abuse by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident family member.
- Contact Joya Law FirmBook a consultation online, or call 415-302-9437 (California) or 646-533-4303 (New York).
Common questions about this guide
Does it matter which state I live in?
Less than people expect. Immigration status is a federal matter: the Supreme Court has described the federal government's power over immigration and the status of noncitizens as broad and undoubted.[2] A lawyer admitted to the bar of any U.S. state, and in good standing, counts as an attorney who may represent people before the Department of Homeland Security.[3][4] Other parts of a person's life, such as a criminal case or a family court order, can still involve state law, so mention them to anyone advising you.
Can I file without a lawyer?
Sometimes. USCIS says you do not need a representative to file forms with it and may represent yourself, and that it does not provide or fund representation.[5] Court cases, past removal orders, arrests and earlier denials are different. Do I need an immigration lawyer? walks through when forms alone may be fine and when they are not.
Why does this guide not list USCIS filing fees?
Because they change. USCIS says its fee schedule, Form G-1055, is where fee information is verified, and it published a new edition on October 28, 2026.[6] An application sent with the wrong fee is rejected, so check the schedule on the day you file.[6] What an immigration lawyer costs explains how legal fees and government fees differ.
Is this guide legal advice?
No. It explains how U.S. immigration law generally works and points to the official source behind each legal statement, so you can read the rule yourself. Two people with the same question can need different answers because of dates, travel history, family ties or past filings. For advice on your own situation, speak with a lawyer or an accredited representative.
Sources
- New York State Unified Court System, NYS Attorney Registrations (data.ny.gov dataset eqw2-r5nb), registration 6169411 — State of New York
- Arizona v. United States, 567 U.S. 387 (2012) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- 8 C.F.R. § 1.2 — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- 8 C.F.R. § 292.1(a)(1) — Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- USCIS, Legal Services — uscis.gov
- USCIS, Form G-1055, Fee Schedule — uscis.gov