What reopening can and cannot do
A motion to reopen asks the immigration judge or the Board of Immigration Appeals to restart proceedings so that new facts or evidence can be considered. The evidence generally must be material and must not have been available or discoverable at the earlier hearing. There are limits on timing and on how many motions can be filed, with exceptions for certain situations, such as asylum claims based on changed conditions in the home country. A motion filed jointly with the government is treated differently, and in limited situations a judge can reopen on their own authority. A motion to reopen a deportation order is not an appeal, and it does not reargue the original decision.
Evidence that carries a motion
The motion usually needs to include the new application for relief, if there is one, together with the evidence supporting it. For changed country conditions, that means current, specific reports or records showing what has changed, not general conditions that already existed. If the claim is that a prior lawyer's work was deficient, there are procedural steps that usually come first, including notice to that lawyer. Bring the old order, the file from the earlier case, and documents showing the change in your life or circumstances. If you have left and reentered the United States since the order, tell your lawyer right away, because it affects what is possible.
Stays and the order of steps
Filing a motion does not, in most situations, stop ICE from carrying out the order, so a separate stay request is often part of the plan. At the outset we look at the order, the record behind it, and what has changed, then decide whether reopening, reconsideration, or another route fits. We also check whether you report to ICE on a schedule and how to approach the next appointment. If the order was entered because you missed a hearing, different rules apply, and we look at that path separately. The goal is to know whether a motion is viable and what it would need to say before anything is filed.
