Many people who want to immigrate to the United States, or want some kind of U.S. immigration benefit, often wonder why they should spend their hard-earned money to hire a U.S.-licensed immigration lawyer. These people often mistakenly believe that because the U.S. is known as a modern and advanced democracy where people have many rights, the U.S. immigration process will be simple and the U.S. immigration government agencies will even assist with the process. Accordingly, they decide to do the U.S. immigration work themselves or they hire agents (sometimes referred to as immigration consultants or notarios) who charge nominal fees. Here are some of the many reasons why you should hire a U.S.-licensed immigration lawyer to represent you with your U.S. immigration case, and not do the work yourself or hire an agent.
Reasons To Hire a U.S.-Licensed Immigration Lawyer, Not an Agent
- U.S. immigration laws are extremely complex and constantly changing. In addition, the internal government guidelines on how to process and decide cases constantly change.
- Many people think that U.S. government immigration agencies exist to help them with their cases. This is simply not true. In fact, in nearly all cases, persons have to proactively prove to the government that they deserve the immigration benefit they seek.
- Mistakes can cause U.S. immigration cases to be delayed for months and, even, years.
- Some mistakes, once made, are very difficult, time-consuming, and expensive to fix.
- Other mistakes can result in outright case denials.
- Some mistakes or omissions can even result in being denied admission into the U.S. for 3 or 10 years or more.
- Unfortunately, some mistakes can hurt others, including family members.
- The expensive government filing fees are, with very few exceptions, non-refundable.
- Unlike agents, U.S.-licensed lawyers had/have to do the following:
- Complete 7 years of university education to obtain a Juris Doctor in Law degree.
- Pass a 3-day Lawyer Bar Examination and a Character and Fitness Review showing they are of good moral character.
- Complete continuing legal education to keep up-to-date with their profession.
- Follow Rules of Professional Conduct, many of which are meant to protect the client.
- Unlike U.S.-licensed lawyers, agents are not authorized to give legal advice, and they are not authorized to represent clients before U.S. immigration government agencies.
- Agents simply do not have the required education, training, and legal knowledge to properly evaluate a case, determine any noteworthy issues, prevent certain legal problems, and make legal recommendations.
- Agents often only fill-out government forms, and when problems arise, they usually end the business-client relationship, leaving the client in a bad situation.
In sum, because U.S. immigration law is so complex and constantly changing and the stakes are so high (family re-unification, loss of Green Card, loss of employment authorization, etc.), it is in the best interest of U.S. immigration clients and their families to hire a competent U.S.-licensed immigration lawyer, not an unqualified agent. Hiring a competent U.S. immigration lawyer will reduce the chance of mistakes being made. Unfortunately, in U.S. immigration, even small mistakes can cause disastrous consequences. Competent legal immigration representation can also greatly reduce wait times caused by filing errors and the chance of a denial. Moreover, competent U.S. immigration lawyers not only understand the details of U.S. immigration law, but they can also see the big picture, and may help you, your family, and business achieve your long-term objectives. Although agents often charge less than U.S.-licensed immigration lawyers, in the end, hiring an agent may prove a lot more costly than hiring a lawyer because of case delays, denials, and hard-to-fix and costly problems. Often, the maxim “you get what you pay for” holds true.
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