Payment Plans
Los Angeles Immigration Lawyer
An immigration issue can affect where you live, whether you can work in the United States, whether you can stay with your family, and your options for permanent residence or citizenship. Some cases begin with an application. Others begin with a notice from the government, removal proceedings, a denied case, or concern about how a criminal record could affect your status.
The immigration lawyers at the Law Offices of David S. Chesley help people in Los Angeles with green cards, citizenship, asylum, cancellation of removal, immigration waivers, humanitarian visas, motions to reopen or reconsider, post-conviction issues, and other immigration matters.
The right path depends on your immigration history, current status, family relationships, criminal record, and what you are trying to accomplish. We can review those circumstances, explain available options, and work to protect your rights at every stage. Call (800) 755-5174 or contact our office online for a free consultation.
Reviewed by Attorney David S. Chesley, September 2026. California immigration lawyer and criminal defense since June 2005, SBN 236611.
Hablamos español. Llame ahora al (800) 755-5174.
Los Angeles Immigration Lawyer: Key Points
- Immigration cases can involve USCIS, immigration courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Department of State, and sometimes California criminal courts, so the first step is identifying which agency has the case and what deadlines apply.
- Chesley handles adjustment of status, citizenship, EB-5, cancellation of removal, motions to reopen or reconsider, asylum, SIJS, T Visas, U Visas, I-601/I-601A waivers, and post-conviction issues.
- Green card and citizenship matters can involve adjustment of status, naturalization, and the EB-5 immigrant investor program.
- Removal-defense options can include EOIR-42A for certain lawful permanent residents, EOIR-42B for certain nonpermanent residents, and motions to reopen or reconsider prior decisions.
- Humanitarian immigration options covered on the page include asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, T Visas for trafficking victims, and U Visas for victims of qualifying crimes.
- Criminal convictions can affect immigration status, and immigration waivers or California post-conviction relief may become important depending on the person’s history.
Where Should You Start With an Immigration Case?
Immigration cases can involve USCIS, the immigration courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Department of State, and sometimes California criminal courts. Before filing something or responding to the government, it helps to know exactly which agency has your case and what deadline applies.
- Save every notice you receive. Hearing notices, interview notices, Requests for Evidence, filing receipts, and court orders can contain dates and instructions that affect your case.
- Know which agency is handling the case. A USCIS application and a case before an immigration judge are different processes, and the correct filing can depend on where your case is pending.
- Be accurate about your immigration history. Prior entries, departures, applications, removals, and periods without lawful status can change your options.
- Do not leave out a criminal record. Even an old arrest or conviction can affect admissibility, removal, naturalization, or eligibility for another immigration benefit.
- Do not assume a denial is necessarily the end. Depending on the decision, you may still be able to file a motion, appeal, request a waiver, or seek another form of relief.
Immigration Cases We Handle in Los Angeles
Our Los Angeles immigration practice is focused on the following matters:
Green Cards and Citizenship
Removal and Immigration Court
- Cancellation of Removal, EOIR-42A and EOIR-42B
- Motion to Reopen or Motion to Reconsider
- Post-Conviction Relief
Humanitarian Immigration Relief
- Asylum
- Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS)
- T Visa for Victims of Human Trafficking
- U Visa for Victims of Qualifying Criminal Activity
Immigration Waivers
Green Cards and U.S. Citizenship
Adjustment of Status
Adjustment of status is the process some eligible people use to become lawful permanent residents while they are already in the United States. The main application is Form I-485, but eligibility depends on the immigrant category, visa availability (where applicable), immigration history, admissibility, and other factors. A Los Angeles immigration lawyer can help you understand the federal adjustment of status process in more detail.
Our adjustment of status lawyers can review whether you qualify, identify issues to address before filing, organize supporting documents, and help you prepare for the USCIS process.
Citizenship and Naturalization
Many lawful permanent residents become eligible to apply for naturalization after five years as permanent residents. Some spouses of U.S. citizens may qualify under a three-year rule. Other requirements can involve continuous residence, physical presence, good moral character, English ability, and knowledge of U.S. history and government. Our Los Angeles citizenship attorneys can review those requirements before you file Form N-400.
USCIS publishes the current naturalization requirements and application information for people preparing to become U.S. citizens.
EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program
The EB-5 program offers a potential path to permanent residence for qualifying investors who make the required investment in a U.S. commercial enterprise and meet the program's job-creation rules. USCIS requires the investment to create or preserve at least 10 permanent full-time jobs for qualifying U.S. workers. Our EB-5 immigration lawyers can help clients work through the petition, investment documentation, and source-of-funds issues involved in these cases.
Removal Defense and Los Angeles Immigration Court
Los Angeles has multiple immigration court locations, including the North Los Angeles Street Immigration Court, the West Los Angeles Immigration Court, and the Van Nuys Boulevard Immigration Court. The hearing notice from EOIR controls where a particular case is assigned. If you are in removal proceedings, missing a hearing or filing deadline can create serious problems, so review every notice carefully.
Cancellation of Removal for Permanent Residents: EOIR-42A
Certain lawful permanent residents in removal proceedings may seek cancellation of removal. EOIR lists the basic requirements as at least five years as a lawful permanent resident, at least seven years of continuous residence in the United States after lawful admission in any status, no aggravated felony conviction, and a favorable exercise of discretion. Additional rules can affect how the seven-year period is calculated.
Cancellation of Removal for Nonpermanent Residents: EOIR-42B
For certain nonpermanent residents, cancellation of removal generally requires at least 10 years of continuous physical presence, good moral character during that period, no disqualifying conviction, and exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a qualifying U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse, parent, or child. The immigration judge must also decide to grant the application as a matter of discretion. Our cancellation of removal page explains the difference between 42A and 42B in more detail.
Motions to Reopen and Motions to Reconsider
A motion to reopen generally asks the immigration court to consider new facts or evidence. A motion to reconsider argues that the prior decision contained an error of law or fact based on the existing record. General filing deadlines are often 90 days for a motion to reopen and 30 days for a motion to reconsider, although important exceptions can apply. If you are considering a motion to reopen or reconsider, have the prior decision reviewed as soon as possible.
Asylum and Humanitarian Immigration Relief
Asylum
Asylum may be available to a person who has suffered persecution or has a well-founded fear of persecution because of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Asylum applications generally have a one-year filing deadline after arrival in the United States, although exceptions may apply. Our asylum lawyers can help prepare the application, supporting evidence, and interview or immigration court case.
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status
Special Immigrant Juvenile Status may be available to certain unmarried people under 21 who are in the United States and have a qualifying state juvenile court order involving abuse, neglect, abandonment, or a similar basis under state law. The order must also include required findings about parental reunification and the child's best interests. SIJS involves both state court findings and a petition to USCIS, so the sequence matters. Our SIJS attorneys can help clients navigate those steps.
T Visas and U Visas
T nonimmigrant status is for certain victims of severe forms of human trafficking who meet the federal requirements. Our T Visa lawyers can help applicants understand the eligibility requirements, documentation, and filing process.
U nonimmigrant status is for victims of qualifying criminal activity who suffered substantial physical or mental abuse and meet requirements involving information about the crime and helpfulness to law enforcement or another certifying authority. Our U Visa lawyers can help clients prepare the petition and supporting evidence.
I-601 and I-601A Immigration Waivers
A ground of inadmissibility can prevent someone from receiving a visa, adjusting status, or obtaining another immigration benefit. Some grounds can be waived if the applicant meets federal law requirements.
Form I-601 is the Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility. Depending on the immigration benefit and the ground involved, it may be used to seek a waiver of certain health-related, criminal, fraud or misrepresentation, unlawful presence and other grounds of inadmissibility.
Form I-601A is much narrower. It is a provisional waiver of certain unlawful-presence grounds for eligible immigrant visa applicants who are physically present in the United States and plan to leave for consular processing. An approved I-601A does not waive every possible ground of inadmissibility or guarantee that an immigrant visa will be issued.
Our I-601 and I-601A waiver attorneys can review the inadmissibility issue, determine which waiver may apply, and help build the supporting record.
Criminal Convictions and Immigration Status
For noncitizens, a criminal case can create consequences beyond probation, jail, or fines. Depending on the conviction and immigration status involved, a criminal record can affect admissibility, deportability, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, or naturalization.
This is one area where the Law Offices of David S. Chesley's criminal defense and immigration work can overlap. If a California conviction is creating an immigration problem, post-conviction relief may be worth reviewing. California Penal Code § 1473.7, for example, provides a procedure to seek to vacate certain convictions or sentences when prejudicial error damaged a person's ability to understand, defend against, or knowingly accept the immigration consequences of a plea.
Post-conviction relief does not automatically erase an immigration consequence. The type of relief obtained and the legal reason for it can matter under federal immigration law, so you should consider the criminal and immigration sides of the case together.
How a Los Angeles Immigration Lawyer Can Help
An immigration lawyer can help identify the right process before you spend time and money on the wrong filing. Depending on the case, our attorneys can:
- Review your immigration and criminal history
- Identify possible forms of immigration relief
- Prepare applications, petitions, motions, and supporting documents
- Help document family relationships, hardship, persecution, abuse, trafficking, or other relevant facts
- Prepare you for USCIS interviews and immigration court proceedings
- Review inadmissibility issues and possible waivers
- Evaluate how a criminal conviction may affect immigration status
- Coordinate immigration strategy with California post-conviction relief when the two overlap
The first step is figuring out what process actually applies. From there, we can identify what must be proven, what evidence to gather and which deadlines require immediate attention.
Los Angeles Immigration FAQs
Can I apply for a Green Card without leaving the United States?
Some eligible applicants can become lawful permanent residents through adjustment of status while remaining in the United States. Whether that option is available depends on the immigration category and the applicant's history.
What is the difference between 42A and 42B cancellation of removal?
EOIR-42A is for certain lawful permanent residents in removal proceedings. EOIR-42B is for certain nonpermanent residents. They have different requirements for residence, criminal history, hardship, and other factors.
Can a criminal conviction affect my immigration status?
Yes. Some convictions can affect admissibility, removal, naturalization, or eligibility for other benefits. The immigration effect depends on the exact offense, conviction record, immigration status, and the form of relief being sought.
What is the difference between a T Visa and a U Visa?
T status is tied to qualifying human trafficking. U status applies to victims of specified qualifying criminal activity who meet the federal requirements, including substantial abuse and helpfulness requirements.
Can an immigration case be reopened after a judge has ruled?
Sometimes. Motions to reopen and reconsider can let you challenge or revisit certain decisions, but filing deadlines and procedural rules matter. Review the original order and case history before deciding what to file.
Los Angeles Immigration Resources
Federal Immigration and USCIS Resources
- USCIS: Adjustment of Status
- USCIS: Citizenship and Naturalization
- USCIS: EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program
- USCIS: Asylum
- USCIS: Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS)
- USCIS: T Nonimmigrant Status for Human Trafficking Victims
- USCIS: U Nonimmigrant Status for Victims of Qualifying Crimes
- USCIS: Form I-601, Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility
- USCIS: Form I-601A, Provisional Unlawful Presence Waiver
Los Angeles Immigration Court and EOIR Resources
- EOIR: Forms and Fees, Including EOIR-42A and EOIR-42B
- EOIR: Motions to Reopen
- EOIR: Motions to Reconsider
- Los Angeles, N. Los Angeles Street Immigration Court
- Los Angeles, West Los Angeles Immigration Court
- Los Angeles, Van Nuys Boulevard Immigration Court
Neighborhoods and Cities We Serve
Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Culver City, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Woodland Hills and the San Fernando Valley, Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena, Long Beach, Torrance, Compton, Inglewood, Whittier, Pomona, and Alhambra.
Los Angeles Offices:
Law Offices of David S. Chesley, Inc.
Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorneys and DUI Lawyers
445 South Figueroa Street
Suite 2700
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 341-4427
Law Offices of David S. Chesley, Inc.
Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorneys and DUI Lawyers
1933 S Broadway Suite 1100,
Los Angeles, CA 90007
(213) 908-2262
Contact a Los Angeles Immigration Lawyer Today
Whether you are applying for lawful permanent residence, pursuing citizenship, seeking asylum or humanitarian protection, fighting removal, requesting a waiver, or dealing with the immigration consequences of a criminal case, the right next step depends on your individual history.
The Law Offices of David S. Chesley can review your case, explain the available options, and help you prepare for what comes next. Call (800) 755-5174 or contact us online for a free consultation with a Los Angeles immigration lawyer.
