Strategy/Prospects for Illegal Immigrants Forum

[dresden doll]

Apparently half this thread is unaware of the fact that there's something called private loans which require neither citizenship nor permanent residence. How do you figure students from other countless ever manage to study in the US otherwise?

all the illegal immigrants i know have great credit

I suppose that might pass for witty were it not for the fact that 1) people ITT explicitly intimated that those who are not US citizens or PRs have no way of taking out loans and 2) the fact that you really don't need to have any kind of credit score anyway since private loans require US cosigners, and cosigners are the ones whose scores lenders check for.

Thanks for playing, though.

[fatduck]

Apparently half this thread is unaware of the fact that there's something called private loans which require neither citizenship nor permanent residence. How do you figure students from other countless ever manage to study in the US otherwise?

all the illegal immigrants i know have great credit

I suppose that might pass for witty were it not for the fact that 1) people ITT explicitly intimated that those who are not US citizens or PRs have no way of taking out loans and 2) the fact that you really don't need to have any kind of credit score anyway since private loans require US cosigners, and cosigners are the ones whose scores lenders check for.

Thanks for playing, though.

it was less fun than i thought it would be

sorry if i offended any illegal immigrants

[Anonymous User]

What if you are a citizen, but your spouse has a green card (and was not here legally before you were married) and your in-laws are not in the country legally? Is any federal job out of the question? Obviously I would not be interested in any department involved in enforcing immigration laws. I am talking about something like the IRS.

[dresden doll]

What if you are a citizen, but your spouse has a green card (and was not here legally before you were married) and your in-laws are not in the country legally? Is any federal job out of the question? Obviously I would not be interested in any department involved in enforcing immigration laws. I am talking about something like the IRS.

That is an interesting question . Honest answer: I don't know. Speak to OCS.

[TheStrand]

What if you are a citizen, but your spouse has a green card (and was not here legally before you were married) and your in-laws are not in the country legally? Is any federal job out of the question? Obviously I would not be interested in any department involved in enforcing immigration laws. I am talking about something like the IRS.

I'm not going to tell you it's absolutely out of the question. But I would think it would be HIGHLY unlikely. All federal jobs have at least the basic background check which I've mentioned above as being inquisitive of citizenship status, family, and acquaintances (yes, even the IRS, even the ENRD, even the Office of International Affairs which really kinda just does a lot of paper pushing) . Frankly, even the contractors we use (not directly employed by us) have to have security clearance, and I imagine that that is the same check we go through. I understand that you were brought to this country by your parents and therefore did not choose to be uprooted, but if you look at this from the point of view of what are all basically law enforcement agencies (even the IRS), it's going to seem like you continuously broke the law for every day you stayed--I'm obviously not saying that at the age of 18 you should have gone back to a country you did not grow up in and perhaps have zero ties to. But I would find it difficult to believe that that would not be a conflict or a hindrance to your employment, especially given that federal jobs are pretty competitive to begin with. There's going to be hundreds of people probably applying for one spot, many of them from very good schools with very good grades and very good work experience, and almost all of them will have been US citizens for their entire lives. Even if OPM clears you for the first round to be on the list of picks (and this is presuming nothing on the questionaire will trigger the formula which will bar your app from getting to OPM in the first place), once it comes time to do the interview, or once your check begins and this is disclosed, I am not sure they would not just say "not worth the trouble."

[Anonymous User]

Is there any concrete information about exactly when a SSN will be required (2L year).. on applications? When you begin work? When you get paid?

[vanwinkle]

Is there any concrete information about exactly when a SSN will be required (2L year).. on applications? When you begin work? When you get paid?

It's February and my firm just asked now about background check information. However, I did a CB at one prominent firm that required you to fill out a background check form, including SSN, while I was there for the CB. It varies by firm.

This doesn't matter either way since as other posters have stated, what matters is your legal status at the time you apply for the job. If you don't have legal documentation by then you're screwed. If it's "I'm legal and have employment authorization but haven't gotten an SSN yet" they may work with you, though.

[Anonymous User]

Is there any concrete information about exactly when a SSN will be required (2L year).. on applications? When you begin work? When you get paid?

It's February and my firm just asked now about background check information. However, I did a CB at one prominent firm that required you to fill out a background check form, including SSN, while I was there for the CB. It varies by firm.

This doesn't matter either way since as other posters have stated, what matters is your legal status at the time you apply for the job. If you don't have legal documentation by then you're screwed. If it's "I'm legal and have employment authorization but haven't gotten an SSN yet" they may work with you, though.

Thank you.

[Renzo]

I stand by my "flaaaaaame" call. But, I am now curious which, if any, states will admit an illegal alien to the bar.

[Anonymous User]

What if you are a citizen, but your spouse has a green card (and was not here legally before you were married) and your in-laws are not in the country legally? Is any federal job out of the question? Obviously I would not be interested in any department involved in enforcing immigration laws. I am talking about something like the IRS.

I'm not going to tell you it's absolutely out of the question. But I would think it would be HIGHLY unlikely. All federal jobs have at least the basic background check which I've mentioned above as being inquisitive of citizenship status, family, and acquaintances (yes, even the IRS, even the ENRD, even the Office of International Affairs which really kinda just does a lot of paper pushing) . Frankly, even the contractors we use (not directly employed by us) have to have security clearance, and I imagine that that is the same check we go through. I understand that you were brought to this country by your parents and therefore did not choose to be uprooted, but if you look at this from the point of view of what are all basically law enforcement agencies (even the IRS), it's going to seem like you continuously broke the law for every day you stayed--I'm obviously not saying that at the age of 18 you should have gone back to a country you did not grow up in and perhaps have zero ties to. But I would find it difficult to believe that that would not be a conflict or a hindrance to your employment, especially given that federal jobs are pretty competitive to begin with. There's going to be hundreds of people probably applying for one spot, many of them from very good schools with very good grades and very good work experience, and almost all of them will have been US citizens for their entire lives. Even if OPM clears you for the first round to be on the list of picks (and this is presuming nothing on the questionaire will trigger the formula which will bar your app from getting to OPM in the first place), once it comes time to do the interview, or once your check begins and this is disclosed, I am not sure they would not just say "not worth the trouble."

I second the advice of whomever told you to contact an immigration expert. Don't give up, but figure out EXACTLY what you can do and how long you should be waiting. And in the meantime, encourage Americans you know to vote for people who want to pass the DREAM Act so that 5 years after its passage and all the bureacratic crap gets worked out, you can go to law school =)

I think you have me confused with the OP. I am an American citizen. I was born here. My husband was here illegally but is Now Legal. My in-laws are here illegally. Once he becomes a citizen, he can sponsor them, but that will not be until after I graduate.

[Patriot1208]

What if you are a citizen, but your spouse has a green card (and was not here legally before you were married) and your in-laws are not in the country legally? Is any federal job out of the question? Obviously I would not be interested in any department involved in enforcing immigration laws. I am talking about something like the IRS.

That is an interesting question . Honest answer: I don't know. Speak to OCS.

I'm not sure any federal job is out of the question, simply because I don't know the hiring processes for things like HUD. But certainly any position with the DOJ, CIA, DHS, etc that would require a background check or security clearance are out of the question.

[TheStrand]

I think you have me confused with the OP. I am an American citizen. I was born here. My husband was here illegally but is now legal. My in-laws are here illegally. Once he becomes a citizen, he can sponsor them, but that will not be until after I graduate.

Oops sorry, multiple anonymous posters (now that I read back the quote, it's pretty obvious you are in a different boat). I don't really know actually. I know that when I was offered a job at IRS (non-attorney position), they told me they wanted to start a bg check as soon as possible because it was a months-long process which leads me to believe it's the same as the one I went through to do DOJ (and they have the same access to confidential material that we do when we jointly bring cases). And the initial posting had the same basic questions about background, citizenship etc. However, I don't know how it will be viewed if it's your husband and not you that's an illegal immigrant. I got a lot of extra scrutiny for having foreign relatives, and having friends who are Qatari though. I really would ask somebody who's got actual experience with this because you have such a specific case.

[rose711]

To the OP:
I'm urging you to be careful with this because things that you do will come back to haunt you and you will not be able to cure them or get a waiver. It is one thing to be brought into the US as a child, but you are an adult now and making your own choices. You will have issues with character and fitness interviews, if you make it that far, and in jobs if you ever make any false, or misleading statements. I am sure you know that if you make any claim to being a US citizen when you are not, you will be digging yourself a hole you can't get out of.

That being said, the gov't is trying to crack down on hiring of illegal immigrants by increased pressure on reporting requirements. No law firm that is worth working for is going to fail to comply with these regulations. I would not count on knowing when an employer asks for a SSN - I suppose most won't bring it up first thing because they probably assume law students are legal - but they can ask for it at any time.

Also, I just reread your posts - if you have a way to get a green card, then for heaven's sake do that first and then go to school. If you got accepted once, there is no reason to think you won't get in, or go somewhere you can defer. I just think you are being very foolish if you proceed on the assumption everything will work out while you are in school.

For example, you know that if you marry a USC and have to leave to adjust status, you will be subject to the 10 year bar which requires a waiver, you may or may not get that in a timely manner. What happens then? I don't know your situation but if you are getting it all straight, why not get it sorted out first and then start school?