Immigration

IMMIGRATION RESOURCES

Rochester Rapid Response


RRRN is a Rochester-area ally group formed to support immigrants facing detention or deportation by engaging in community-based strategic actions and public education guided by directly-affected immigrant families.
Staff is bilingual, offering both English and Spanish.

*The RRRN emergency response hotline: (585) 420-6471*
Emergency Response – Call the hotline for immediate assistance if:

  • ICE officers show up at a home, and are threatening to arrest and detain specific individuals.
  • ICE officers have done a workplace raid and detained workers.
  • OR any situation where undocumented community members, or community members perceived as undocumented, are facing threats of arrest and deportation at the hands of immigration enforcement.RRRN also provides advocacy and court support in the aftermath of immigration enforcement emergencies. 

Email: RocRapidResponse@gmail.com

Refugees Helping Refugees

A community-based, refugee-led organization. Their mission is to foster the growth, self-determination, and self-reliance of refugees in our city and county.

  • On-Site Case Managers provide assistance on a walk-in basis.
  • Transportation Assistance, including bus passes
  • Help with Paperwork 
  • Skill Building: Volunteers teach a variety of skills, from English to cooking, culture, Western-style appliances, and house care
  • Healthcare: interpreting paperwork, advocacy, finding specialists
  • ESOL Classes: English for Speakers of Other Languages classes for refugee and international students

Call: (585) 563-7747
Email: rhr@rhrroc.org
228 S Plymouth Ave, Rochester, NY 14608

Hours:  Monday – Friday 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
(Follows RCSD calendar for holidays)

Mary’s Place Refugee Outreach

Mary’s Place empowers refugees of all faiths and nationalities through long-term, neighborhood-based services. By collaborating with diverse community partners and dedicated volunteers, they help families to navigate their new lives.      

http://www.marysplaceoutreach.org/                  

Accredited Immigration Services.  Mary’s Place will offer a limited in scope, and accredited immigration program to former and resettled refugees who live under 125% of the poverty line.

• N-400, Application for Naturalization • I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status • I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Residence Card • N-600, Application for Certificate of Citizenship (for children of naturalized parents) • Fee waiver applications

  • Adult English Language classes, 2 days / week
  • Case Management, 5 days / week
  • Immigration Services 3 days / week
  • Weekly Food Distribution
  • Summer Children’s Day Camp, 2-week camp (education, exercise, snacks)

Call: (585) 270-8626
Email:  MarysPlaceDirector@gmail.com
414 Lexington Avenue, 14613
Hours:  Monday-Friday: 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM 

Catholic Charities

Refugee Resettlement. 

  • Airport Reception
  • Assistance securing safe, sanitary, and affordable housing
  • Basic needs – food, clothing. 
  • Community and Cultural orientation 
  • Assistance obtaining social security cards 
  • School enrollment, and employment assistance 
  • Referrals and assistance with medical, and public benefit agencies. 
  • In addition to resettlement services, we also offer enhanced and ongoing services to support former refugees as they acclimate to their new home in the US.

Immigration services

  • Citizenship & Naturalization classes, including some with ESL support.
  • English as a Second Language (ESL): classes for beginner, intermediate, and advanced skill levels.
  • Reuniting Families 
  • Green Card
  • Free immigration law help by the Office for New Americans (ONA) 

(585) 546-7220 extension: 4628
87 N Clinton Ave., 14604
Email: Immigration@cfcRochester.org

Immigration Law Resources

Justice for Migrant Families (JMF) – If you are an undocumented person requesting support, or a currently detained person, call JMF. They work with undocumented individuals and their families to raise emergency funds for basic needs. They defend the individual rights of clients and ensure that they are treated with dignity, equality and respect. 

Office: (716) 575-9110
Batavia Hotline, for people detained in Batavia: (716) 427 4917
Release Support Hotline: (716) 202-0611

371 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, NY 14202
Email: info@jfmfwny.org

Locate a detainee: https://locator.ice.gov/odls/#/search

The Legal Aid Society

Their Immigration Unit provides legal representation, advice and information to non-citizen community members, their family members, and asylum seekers in the United States. 

They provide a variety of services, including:

  • Green Cards, and Naturalization/Citizenship
  • Asylum applications
  • Uniting families through consular processing
  • Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
  • Family based, and Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) petitions
  • T, and U visas, and Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
  • Removal proceedings
  • Work authorizations
  •  Immigration consequences of criminal convictions 
  • Special immigrant juvenile status

Call: (585) 232-4090
1 West Main Street, 14614
*ASL and spoken language interpreters are available by request.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services:
Visit https://www.uscis.gov/

United States Department of Labor – Permanent Labor Certification
Visit https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/foreign-labor/programs/permanent

Keeping Our Promise, Inc.

To provide comprehensive resettlement assistance to endangered wartime allies who served U.S. interests in conflict and war zones. Keeping Our Promise is a comprehensive resettlement program for Afghan, Iraqi and Kurdish interpreters and support personnel in the United States. Based in Rochester, NY, we assist with initial visa applications under the Special Immigrant Visa Program. 

Keeping Our Promise
PO Box 92117
Rochester, NY 14692
Ellen Smith, ​Executive Director
info@KeepingOurPromise.org
585-721-3211

Know your rights – ICE encounters

IF AN IMMIGRATION OFFICER COMES TO YOUR DOOR

  • Do not open the door. Not even a little bit. Immigration officers can only enter your home if they have a warrant signed by a judge, which they almost never have.
  • Without opening the door, ask for any warrants to be slipped underneath the door, and look carefully to see if it is signed by a judge. Don’t be confused. Immigration officers will sometimes have papers that say “warrant,” but are signed by another immigration officer, not a judge.
  • If immigration officers believe they can enter your home, they might do so without you letting them. If an immigration officer is inside your home, say “I do not consent to you entering my home” and “I do not consent to a search.”

IF AN IMMIGRATION OFFICER ASKS YOU QUESTIONS

  • You do not have to answer any questions – including questions about who you are, who else is in the home, or your immigration status. You have the right to remain silent. If you are asked about your immigration status and you wish to remain silent, you may say: “I have the right to remain silent.”
  • Immigration officers may try to search your home or question other people in the home. Nobody in your home is required to answer their questions, and you should not agree to let them search your home.
  • Never lie. Do not falsely claim to be a US citizen or to be lawfully in the US

IF AN IMMIGRATION OFFICER ASKS YOU FOR YOUR IMMIGRATION DOCUMENTS

  • If you are a US citizen, you do not need to show any documents. You may show documentation, to prove that you lawfully reside in the US.
  • If you are an immigrant and do not have valid U.S. immigration documents, you have the right to remain silent. You can decide not to answer questions about your immigration status or whether you have immigration documents. If you tell an immigration officer that you are not a U.S. citizen and you cannot produce valid U.S. immigration documents, there is a good chance you will be arrested. 
  • If you are an immigrant who is 18 or older who has been issued valid U.S. immigration documents (such as  a permanent resident card, also known as a “green card”), you are legally required to carry those documents with you at all times. If you have your valid U.S. immigration documents and you are asked for them, it is usually a good idea to show them to avoid arrest. Failure to carry valid immigration documents is a misdemeanor crime.  
  • If you are arrested because you do not have your valid U.S. immigration documents with you, but you have them elsewhere, ask a friend or family member to bring them to you.
  • Never show an officer fake immigration documents or pretend that someone else’s immigration documents are yours.

IF YOU ARE ARRESTED BY IMMIGRATION OFFICERS

  • You have the right to remain silent. You do not have to answer questions. You can tell the officer that you want to speak with a lawyer before answering any questions. You may say, “I will remain silent until I speak to an attorney.” You do not have the right to an appointed free lawyer, but you do have the right to talk to a lawyer – Call The Legal Aid Society (pg. XX)
  • You do not have to sign anything giving up your rights, and should never sign anything without reading it and understanding the consequences of signing it.
  • Talk to a lawyer before signing anything or making a decision about your situation. If possible, carry with you the name and telephone number of The Legal Aid Society. Immigration law is hard to understand. You may have options that immigration officers will not explain. 
  • If you are not a U.S. citizen, you have the right to call your consulate or to have a law enforcement officer tell consulate officials of your arrest. Law enforcement officers must let your consulate visit or speak with you if consular officials decide to do so. Your consulate might be able to help you find a lawyer.