Immigration advocates sue federal government over removal of fee waivers for neglected kids

Plaintiffs say the Department of Homeland Security's resurrection of a $250 fee for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status is unlawful.SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — A duo of immigrant and children’s rights nonprofits sued the Department of Homeland Security Wednesday over the agency’s decision to remove fee waivers for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status classification, a humanitarian protection for immigrant kids who were abused, neglected or abandoned by their parents.“SIJS is not an ordinary immigration benefit. It is an extraordinarily protective remedy designed to fit the vulnerability of its intended recipients,” plaintiffs Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights and Legal Services for Children write in their 26-page complaint.The government has waived the $250 fee for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) applicants for more than three decades. However, last summer, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced the fee is now non-waivable regardless of circumstance, under the One Big Beautiful Bill, also known as H.R. 1.“In addition to any other fee authorized by law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall require the payment of a fee, equal to the amount specified in this section, by any alien, parent, or legal guardian of an alien applying for special immigrant juvenile status," the law states.Shortly after the One Big Beautiful Bill passed, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a notice identifying the $250 fee as having “No Fee Waiver Available.” The notice acknowledges that H.R. 1 did not include an explicit “no fee waiver” provision, but stated the language of the law is “mandatory,” so no fee waiver is available.However, the plaintiffs contend Congress deliberately did not include language prohibiting or restricting fee waivers for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, noting the legislative body explicitly barred fee waivers for several other immigrant-benefit provisions within the law.“Congress’ repeated inclusion of no-waiver provisions in neighboring sections and simultaneous omission of any such provision from Section 1805 must be interpreted to reflect a legislative choice that fee waivers are available for SIJS petitioners,” the plaintiffs say in the complaint.The plaintiffs argue the termination of the fee waiver for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status applications is arbitrary and capricious, as there was no explanation for the sudden reversal. They also say it violated the Administrative Procedure Act, because the government did not go through the notice-and-comment process required for substantive rule changes.They are asking the court for temporary relief prohibiting the government from enforcing the bar on fee waivers during litigation, as well as a permanent injunction preventing the government from denying fee waivers for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status applications.“Once the agency’s erroneous interpretation of H.R. 1 is set aside, decades-long agency practice and the text, structure, and history of H.R. 1 point to the only logical conclusion: that SIJS petitions should be among the fees that USCIS waives based on inability to pay,” the plaintiffs say.Representatives for both the plaintiffs and defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Congress created Special Immigrant Juvenile Status in 1990 under the Immigration and Nationality Act to protect immigrant minors who were abused, neglected or abandoned by a parent, offering them a path to permanent U.S. residency.IIn order qualify for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, individuals must be unmarried, under 21 years old and have a state court order stating they cannot be unified with one or both parents due to abuse, neglect or abandonment, as well as that it would not be in their best interest to be returned to their or their parent’s country of nationality.Plaintiffs say those eligible for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status don’t usually have any lawful way to earn the $250 needed to apply for the classification, and with the application only open to those under 21, many face a strict timeline to pay the fee or risk losing immigration protection.“Every day a child remains unable to file Form I-360 because they do not have the money is a day spent without the protections SIJS makes available: the ability to seek deferred action protection from removal, the path to work authorization that deferred action provides, and the security of a pending claim to lawful status,” the plaintiffs say.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads