Immigrant and Refugee Research and Resources Guide

Context

Notice: 

The goal of this guide is to provide resources and information for TCC students, staff, and faculty. This guide is informational and does not reflect or provide legal guidance or advice. If you are seeking immigration guidance and/or legal assistance, please explore the resources on the tabs above and reach out to those agencies and organizations directly.

As of January 20, 2025 there are sweeping changes to immigration, migration and deportation policies, and to the practices of Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, U.S. Armed Forces, and local law enforcement within the scope of their duties. At the most current update of this guide, February 12, 2025, there are many questions that remain unanswered about the scope of and the legality of proposed changes. Most links to resources in this guide will lead to updated information, but you should always check when any resource has been last updated before accepting the information that you find there.

Below is a 6-minute video offering strategies about how to search for up-to-date information about immigrant, migrant, and refugee law and status in the United States.

Disclosure: The above transcripts were translated from the original English using ChatGPT. 

U.S. Presidential Executive Orders

Executive Order Defined and Explained

Executive Order (EO):  A declaration by the president or a governor that has the force of law, usually based on existing statutory powers, and requiring no action by the Congress or state legislature. ~ from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary

Featured Resources

U.S. Presidential Executive Order: Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship

U.S. Presidential Executive Order: Realigning the United States Refugee Program

U.S. Presidential Executive Order: Protecting the American People Against Invasion

U.S. Presidential Order: Declaring a National Emergency at the Southern Border of the United States

Public Charge

Understanding "Public Charge"

“Public charge” is a ground of inadmissibility. Grounds of inadmissibility are reasons that a person could be denied a green card, visa, or admission into the United States. In deciding whether to grant some applicants a green card or a visa, an immigration officer must decide whether that person is likely to become dependent on certain government benefits in the future, which would make them a “public charge.” It is not a test that applies to everyone, not even to all those applying for green cards. ~ defined by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center

While the public charge test has been around for over 100 years, it has undergone changes, largely based on decisions and interpretations of which public benefits should be considered when determining levels of public charge.

The EO "Protecting the American People Against Invasion" will likely reinstate the public charge test enacted under the first Trump Administration, which, as read, may interpret any need for any public benefit reason for inadmissibility.

source: Policy Brief: Trump Administration Day One Executive Orders, American Immigration Lawyers Association

Below, find information about the Biden Administration public charge rule that is currently in place.

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