Rumors of mass deportations beginning on April 1st have led thousands of immigrants across the US to panic. Lines blocks lined have been reported at INS offices and some INS offices, so overwhelmed with persons seeking to file immigration papers, have actually closed down temporarily. The rumors have apparently been fomented by some unscrupulous individuals, including less-than-honest immigration lawyers and non-lawyers seeking to profit off of the misinformation by playing on people’s fears. The Immigration and Naturalization Service was concerned enough to hold a nationally televised press conference to allay fears about the April 1st rumors.
Although many parts of the Illegal Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1997 take effect on April 1st, the section creating the new 3 and 10 year bars to admissibility for aliens seeking to reenter after having been unlawfully present in the United States do not go into effect until 180 days after April 1st. If Congress chooses to extend sections of the law allowing persons unlawfully present in the US but eligible to apply for permanent residency to pay a $1000 penalty, then many people will be able to avoid the 3 and 10 year bars for much longer. What is clear, however, is that whether someone submits a permanent residency application on March 30th or April 2nd will not make a difference under the new law.
There are serious provisions that do change on April 1st,, but they generally relate to deportation procedures and removal procedures for those coming to the US without documentation or with fraudulent documents.
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