Responding to an Immigration Letter About a Misdemeanor

Attorney Answer

Answer the letter by the date printed on it. That deadline is what can sink your case, and it does not pause while you look for a lawyer.

The letter is asking for evidence about your misdemeanor. What you send becomes part of your permanent record with the agency, which is why the response is worth getting right rather than getting done quickly — within the deadline you actually have.

DACA is not a statute. It is a program that has been in litigation for years, and the posture of that litigation changes what your application can do. In *Texas v. United States*, 50 F.4th 498 (5th Cir. 2022), the Fifth Circuit affirmed that the 2012 DACA memorandum is unlawful under the Administrative Procedure Act — procedurally, because it was a substantive rule adopted without notice and comment, and substantively, because it conflicts with the immigration statute's comprehensive scheme. It affirmed vacatur of the memorandum and the nationwide scope of the injunction, but preserved the stay protecting existing recipients, who remain able to renew and are not subject to removal under that judgment. That decision is not binding in California, and the litigation did not end there — the program remains under active, unresolved court challenge.

The practical consequence: whether your pending application is a first-time request or a renewal changes your exposure entirely. Renewals for existing recipients have continued under the stay; approval of new first-time requests has not. Find out which one you filed before you do anything else.

On the misdemeanor itself, be careful with what anyone tells you. *Acuna-Hinojosa v. Lynch*, 653 F. App'x 463 (7th Cir. 2016) — an unpublished order from a circuit that does not bind you — illustrates that a qualifying conviction can make an applicant ineligible, and that an immigration judge did not abuse his discretion in refusing to delay removal proceedings so the applicant could pursue a state challenge to that conviction, because a pending collateral attack generally does not disturb a conviction's finality for immigration purposes. It does not define which misdemeanors disqualify anyone, and neither will this page.

What you can do

1. Find the response deadline on the letter and calendar it today. Work backward from it. 2. Get certified copies of the complete court record for the misdemeanor — charging document, plea or verdict, minute orders, sentence, and proof of completion of anything ordered. 3. Confirm in writing whether your pending filing is a first-time request or a renewal. 4. Have an immigration attorney review the record and the draft response before it is sent. Do not volunteer characterizations of what happened. 5. If you cannot retain counsel before the deadline, send a complete response with what you have rather than sending nothing, and keep proof of delivery. 6. Keep a copy of everything you send, exactly as sent.

⏱ Time limits apply. A request for evidence or inquiry letter carries a fixed, short deadline stated on the letter itself. Missing it can mean denial, or the filing being treated as abandoned, and that is not something a later explanation reliably fixes. The exact date is on your notice and depends on when it was issued.