Last week, I had to use the AB540 center, located in the student center at the University of California Davis, to get a free legal consultant to renew my DACA. They took all my anxiety away by helping file and receive federal funds to waive my application fee. Not only that but they gave me a free consultation to see if I was eligible for any special relief. I have never heard of all these types of reliefs in my life but one that stood out to me the most was the Special Immigrant Juveniles.
The Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, also known as SIJS, was crafted by congress to classify certain individuals who have been subjected to state juvenile court proceeding related to abuse, neglect, abandonment, or a similar basis under state law to receive lawful permanent residency as a relief for the turmoil. (source)
In order to eligible for SIJS, an individual must be:
- Be under 21
- Currently living in the US
- Be unmarried or divorced
- Have a valid juvenile court order issued by a state court in the US
- Must be a dependent on the court for custody of a state agency or department ot individual or entity appointed by court
With this relief, a dependent cannot be reunified with one or both parents and as well it wouldn’t be in the dependent’s best interest to return to the country of their original nationality because of the abuse. This legislation is often convenient for dependents who have lived in the US their entire life. A relief like this one, can help them from being placed in a foriegn country with no means of legal stability or support to build a life.
Jean Toussaint, a seventeen year old child from Haiti has never known his father and was given up by his mother at a young age. At the age of six, he moved to the US and lived with his aunt. However, when Jean was 11 the Florida Department of Children and Families removed him from his aunt’s care because she had been abusive and neglectful to him. They placed him in under state custody in the foster care system and from there on he was eligible for SIJ because the court terminated the rights of both parents in 2003. (Source)
There are so many kids like Jean, who have been neglected by their caregivers, but do not know about SIJS. They have to be fortunate enough to have heard of it because sometimes they age-out and become ineligible. In a Law Journal Database, I have found that 8,000 unaccompanied minors are in the custody of DHS, but 660 minors have been granted SJIS. (Source) It’s absurd that the Department of Homeland and Security has neglected to aware people who are eligible for this SIJS mandate. When I was searching up SIJS, it took me a couple of searches to find it. I was fortunate to have a consultant who educated me a little bit of SIJS, however, It’s solely the duty of the government to spread SIJS in a more efficient way in order for eligible individuals to take advantage of the benefits that comes with this mandate.
Site Title 