The Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act   Tags: immigration  

Advocacy organizations disappointed that Haitians were not one of the groups benefiting from the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act put tremendous pressure on Congress to pass some type of benefit for Haitian refugees living in the US.   They were successful in 1998 when Congress passed the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act.

The Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA) was signed into law on October 21, 1998. To implement this act, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) established procedures for certain nationals of Haiti who have been residing in the United States to become lawful permanent residents.

The federal regulation provides that an alien may adjust his status pursuant to HRIFA, if (1)he has been present in the United States since December 31, 1995; (2) has maintained continuous physical presence since that date; (3) is admissible to the United States under all provisions of section 212(a) of the Act, other than those specifically excepted by HRIFA; and (4) falls within one of five classes of persons enumerated in 8 C.F.R. § 1245.15(b)(1), which includes a Haitian national who has filed an application for asylum prior to December 31, 1995, or who was paroled into the United States prior to December 31, 1995.

Tonya Piper - Fall 2005 - Immigration

This website is designed to assist in locating comprehensive information on the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA).  The site is designed to aid the researcher in a basic understanding of the particular issues facing Haitian immigrates and the specific problems the legislation has attempted to correct.

There are four main parts to this website.  Part I provides a brief overview of the topic.  Part II identifies primary sources, including the U.S. Constitution, federal statues, federal cases, administrative legislation and legislative history.  Part III provides secondary sources that include articles from law reviews and journals, publications from the American Law Reports (ALR), books, treatises, and practice materials.  Parts IV and V supply a wide range of internet search tools including both legal and non-legal websites as well as information on applicable interest groups and associations.

Bibliographies on this Web site were prepared for educational purposes by law students as part of Nancy P. Johnson's Advanced Legal Research course. The Law Library does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information provided. Thorough legal research requires a researcher to update materials from date of publication; please note the semester and year the bibliography was prepared.