Representing Afghan Immigrants: Navigating Parole, Adjustment of Status, and Asylum
| Live Event Date: 01/23/2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Format | Length | CLE Eligible |
| Web Seminar | 90 min. | Yes |
Expert panelists on this intermediate-to-advanced seminar will address the unique challenges faced by Afghan parolees, focusing on re-parole, adjustment of status, and asylum. Participants will gain practical insights into handling complex I-730 matters, navigating terrorism-related inadmissibility grounds (TRIG) concerns, and comparing Afghan parole with other programs such as Uniting for Ukraine (U4U) and Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela (CHNV).
Featured Topics:
- Interview scheduling: best practices for navigating delays and regional variations in USCIS interview locations
- Non-paroled Afghans with affirmative asylum applications: added to the backlog or given expedited interviews?
- I-730 matters: strategies for expediting family reunification petitions and addressing common procedural delays
- TRIG best practices: navigating TRIG bars for Afghan nationals, focusing on waivers and legal arguments for exemptions
- Parole process comparisons (and key strategies): differences between Afghan parole, U4U, and CHNV
- Options for re-parole, asylum, and adjustment of status, including practical tips on eligibility and timelines
AILA Membership Benefit – Access to Free Seminar Recordings (CLE Credit Available for $35)
Enjoy access to free seminar recordings (from October 2020–present) as an AILA Member. AILA encourages live attendance for those wishing to ask the speaker questions. CLE credit is included with purchase for live participants.
Recordings will be available approximately two weeks after the live event date. AILA members can access these seminars, with no CLE credit, for free. Recordings are CLE eligible in most jurisdictions and an administration fee is required to obtain CLE credit.
Contact us at cle@aila.org or visit AILA’s Web Seminar Recordings page for more information about receiving CLE credit for a web seminar recording.
Eligible participants can receive up to 1.8 CLE credit hours. AILA will administer CLE credit only to individuals who register and log into the web seminar. AILA cannot verify your attendance and participation in this program unless you register directly for the web seminar and use your name to log in to participate in the program. Therefore, persons who log in or listen in on the web seminar as part of a group will not be able to obtain CLE credit.
Please note that your jurisdiction may limit the amount of distance learning credit you can earn. To view details on your jurisdiction's credit restrictions and CLE requirements, visit the CLE Center.
AILA has filed for CLE and specialized credit in all jurisdictions with mandatory CLE requirements. For details about specific approvals, contact us at cle@aila.org.
- AILA applies for accreditation upon attorneys’ request after participation for the following states: AR, DE, IA, ID, KS, KY, LA, ME, MN, MS, OR, TN and WY. Programs are typically approved.
- Florida and Rhode Island - Attorneys must apply on their own for approval of seminars in FL and RI. Programs are typically approved.
- The OnDemand Recording format does not qualify for CLE credit in the following jurisdictions: MO and PR. Please note that your jurisdiction may limit OnDemand credit based on the date of the original presentation. View the OnDemand Downloadable Expiration Chart for more details.
To receive CLE credit for the live event, attorneys must record web seminar attendance and the CLE code provided within one week of the web seminar date via webCLE.
Contact us at cle@aila.org or visit AILA’s Web Seminar Recordings page for more information about receiving CLE credit for a seminar recording.
Spojmie A. Nasiri (DL), Pleasanton, CA
Spojmie A. Nasiri is the principal attorney at the Law Office of Spojmie Nasiri, PC in Pleasanton, California. Mrs. Nasiri is a member of the California State Bar She is also an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and currently serves on AILA's Afghan Response Task Force. She is also a member of the American Bar Association Commission on Immigration.
Mercedes Riggs, AILA Asylum and Refugee Committee, Portland, OR
J. Mercedes Riggs is the Managing Attorney for SOAR Immigration Legal Services, a program of Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon. She is currently a member of AILA's Asylum and Refugee Committee and the Distance Learning Committee. She is also secretary for the AILA Washington State chapter, and she is past co-chair of the Congressional/Advocacy Committee for the Washington State chapter. Mercedes received her undergraduate degree in Product Design from Stanford University and her JD from Santa Clara University.
Bashir Ghazialam, San Diego, CA
Heidi J. Meyers, New York, NY
Heidi J. Meyers has practiced immigration law since 1995, and has had her own law firm since 1997. She earned her JD from New York University School of Law in 1993, and her MA in International Relations from NYU GSAS in 1992. She has decades of experience helping immigrants from South Asia, particularly Pakistan, India and Afghanistan. She is currently the editor of the APAC Newsletter. She had the opportunity to assist Afghans after 8/2021 through her work with World Education Services (WES).