What Should You Expect from a Deportation Hearing?

The act of deportation is for the government to move a foreign individual from the United States back to their country of origin. This deportation order will usually come because the immigrant, legal or illegal, committed a crime, lied on their visa application, was found to have illegal United States status, is considered to be a threat to national security, or is called upon by their country of origin to stand trial in that country.

The latter is actually called extradition. In any of these instances, an immigrant might be issued a deportation order to begin deportation proceedings. A deportation hearing is the actual trial that results from the deportation order that the immigrant receives.

Whether an immigrant fights the deportation order or not is up to them. The hearing itself can often take place while the immigrant is incarcerated, since the most common reason for a deportation order is if the immigrant commits a crime. Some immigrants may choose to utilize the services of an immigration lawyer while some may choose to defend themselves. The deportation hearing takes place in front of a judge.

What to Expect from a Deportation Hearing

Due to the increased need for national security as a result of increased threat of terrorist acts, deportation hearings are quicker than they used to be. The Department of Homeland Security has increased efforts to deport illegal immigrants.

Due to the fact that the reasons for removal fall under such a broad category of circumstances, finding a legal reason to proceed with a deportation order is not difficult. Both a legal or illegal alien may decide that they have grounds to fight their deportation and they are legally allowed to appeal the order at a deportation hearing.

They are not, however, given the right to a free deportation lawyer if they are unable to afford one. Hiring a deportation lawyer is up to the individual facing a deportation hearing. If they can afford a lawyer, most will choose to get one. If they are unable to afford an immigration lawyer, some will choose to represent themselves in a court of law while others may choose to not fight the order at all.

The actual deportation order will usually be served to the immigrant by the Department of Homeland Security. In the deportation order will be an NTA, or notice to appear. A deportation hearing can be a stressful event and often takes a lot of preparation in regards to family and other involvements that may no longer be tended to. Unfortunately for the immigrant, the victories of a successful deportation delay does not mean that the deportation case will be dropped. The circumstances of the deportation as well as the skill of the deportation attorney are a more accurate dictation of that.

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