After 25 years, a man from El Salvador was finally able to achieve long awaited goal of becoming a Lawful Permanent Resident of the United States.
He emigrated from El Salvador to the United States in 1988 at the age of 17. He fled his native country to escape a Civil War and applied for political asylum in 1989. While waiting for his asylum interview, he also applied for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). He has held TPS since 1991.
After numerous delays, his asylum application was denied by Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS), in 1997 because the Civil War had already ended in El Salvador. INS referred his case to the Immigration Court in Los Angeles and he was ordered removed in abstentia from the United States on March 6, 1998.
In the meantime, he continued to maintain Temporary Protected Status and Employment Authorization. He established close ties to his community in Durham where he lives with wife and four United States citizen children and has worked with the same company for almost 14 years. He is a dedicated father and husband who spends a great deal of time with his family. He even traveled to El Salvador multiple times on parole.
He first met with our office in late 2012 to inquire into his options to achieve his longtime dream of becoming Lawful Permanent Resident of the United States. Our Attorneys determined that he his only options were to re-open his deportation from 1991 and apply for Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA). We were able to reopen his removal proceedings and filed an application for NACARA. The case was then transfered to Immigration court in Charlotte – where we submitted substantial evidence documenting his eligibility for NACARA The Immigration Judge decided that our client deserved NACARA because in the many years he has lived in the United States he maintained a clean criminal record and worked hard to provide for his wife and children.
After praising our client, the Immigration Judge granted his application for NACARA. And after 25 long years, he is patiently waiting for his Green Card to arrive.
Esteban Diaz is an Associate Attorney at Fayad Law, P.C. Contact the firm for help with your immigration case.
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