Page 214

(MRG)

UPDATED: JANUARY 2009

651

OTHER ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION STATUS

PRUCOL

more difficult for local departments of social services to verify the current status of the federal immigration agency’s review of a request for deferred action or other relief made by letter rather than the current status of a formal application filed on official USCIS or EOIR application forms. However, an alien who has made a letter request for deferred action or other relief from removal may still be PRUCOL under certain circumstances.

Sections A through C of this document, which follow, present guidelines for local departments of social services to apply when determining the PRUCOL status of an otherwise removable alien who has requested, by informal letter, the federal immigration agency to grant relief from removal including, but not limited to, deferred action, voluntary departure or any other relief that may reasonably be construed as humanitarian relief.

A. Initial contact with the federal immigration agency

The letter or other correspondence to the federal immigration agency must clearly state the type of relief sought, which must be a recognized form of relief from removal or a recognized immigration status. The letter should summarize pertinent facts and circumstances of the alien’s case that would support the granting of the relief. For example, if the alien is requesting deferred action or other humanitarian relief from removal based on the alien’s medical condition, this information would include such factors as the following: date of birth and nationality; address in the U.S.; family ties in the U.S., if any; immigration history; criminal history, if any; and, in particular, the alien’s current medical condition with a rationale for why the federal immigration agency should grant deferred action relief based on the alien’s medical condition. If the alien is requesting voluntary departure, the alien must be capable of departing the U.S. if the federal immigration agency grants voluntary departure under the applicable federal regulations at 8 C.F.R. § 240.25 or § 1240.26. If the alien is represented by an attorney, the attorney should include an executed copy of the “Notice of Appearance as Attorney or Representative.”

The alien, or the alien’s representative, must present documentation sufficient to show that the letter was mailed to, and received by, the federal immigration agency. There is more than one way to establish mailing and receipt. A letter sent via the U.S. Postal Service by certified mail proves that the letter was mailed on a certain date. A