Our Clients
HIAS has historically protected those fleeing violence, persecution and torture, defending them against deportation by securing humanitarian legal status and keeping families united through reunification. As refugees’ access to protection is increasingly restricted, HIAS’ U.S. legal program seeks to safeguard and increase rights for asylum seekers and other forcibly displaced people upon their arrival to the U.S. and throughout their journey to citizenship.
Guided by our Jewish values and history, HIAS provides services to all income-eligible immigrants in need of assistance, regardless of their national, ethnic, or religious background. Today, HIAS’ U.S. legal team provides humanitarian relief to clients arriving in the U.S. in desperate need of protection.
HIAS is proud to provide trauma-informed, culturally sensitive representation to clients from all over the world. Our clients include immigrants who seek asylum due to persecution or torture, and other displaced people who are victims of human trafficking and other violent crimes in the U.S., including gender-based violence and hate crimes. Many of our clients are children who came to the U.S. alone, fleeing familial abuse, abandonment, or neglect. HIAS also represents human rights activists and people who have been persecuted for their race, religion, sexuality, or nationality.
Once someone receives asylum in the United States, they are eligible for a range of benefits to help them integrate into American society, including English classes, employment programs, health insurance, and more. Since many asylees are unaware of these benefits, HIAS created the Asylee Outreach Project (AOP) which connects Maryland-based asylees with the services and benefits available to them. The AOP website, asyleeoutreach.org, serves as a stand-alone resource offering information on asylee benefits in six different languages, contact information for the resettlement agencies serving asylees in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia, and content tailored to both asylees and immigration attorneys, including valuable resources to help clients obtain new identity and status documents.
Our Representation
Many immigrants have survived or fear trauma or torture, and do not have resources to pay for legal counsel for their immigration cases. Although they have the right to be represented by an attorney, they are responsible for obtaining one on their own — unlike in a criminal case, the government does not provide an attorney for immigration cases. Without sufficient resources to pay for counsel, many immigrants resort to representing themselves. They may not know that they have rights in their immigration proceedings, or that they may be eligible for humanitarian relief. Statistically, unrepresented immigrants are significantly more likely to receive deportation orders than immigrants with legal representation.
HIAS’ U.S. Legal team represents these immigrants, at no cost to them, in Immigration Court, before United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, and in family courts. HIAS represents immigrants seeking asylum, humanitarian visas, and other forms of immigration status, while also providing holistic support to our clients through wraparound services. HIAS also serves clients through our pro bono program, which provides substantive training and mentorship to volunteer attorneys nationwide, from retired and small firm attorneys to lawyers at major national and international law firms and corporations. To be eligible for HIAS services, clients must earn under 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines and express genuine fear of serious harm if they return to their countries of origin. This helps to ensure that HIAS serves those that are the most in need, the most at risk, and for whom the outcomes of their cases are matters of life and death.
If you are interested in receiving legal services from HIAS, you may call us the first Friday of every month from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. or until all appointment slots are filled. To contact our New York office, please call 212-613-1341 for an initial phone consultation. To contact our Silver Spring office, please call 301-844-7248, to schedule an initial phone consultation. Please have your important documents and information on hand when you call, such as your immigration documents and A-number (if you have one), in order for us to best assist you. We cannot respond to calls received outside of these hours. Please note, we do not offer walk-in consultations.
Continuous Legal Protection from Arrival to Citizenship
To help our clients integrate and remain protected throughout their legal process, HIAS is dedicated to providing representation and wraparound support from their arrival in the U.S. all the way to citizenship. Through increased access to community services and opportunities for education and employment during the legal process, HIAS seeks to empower our clients so that they eventually become agents of change in their communities.
Holistic Services Model
Successful healing and integration can be a long process requiring the participation of many actors. While the goal of HIAS U.S. Legal Protection is to help our clients find safety under U.S. law and keep families united, we go a step further by providing access to services that also help our clients thrive and fully integrate in U.S. society. In addition to having experienced forced displacement, torture, and/or severe and prolonged physical and psychosocial trauma, they face uncertainty due to fear of deportation, an inability to support themselves financially, systemic restrictions against obtaining medical care and other social services, and for many, the challenge of learning a new language in an unfamiliar environment.
Beyond Premium Legal Services
HIAS legal clients have the opportunity to access information and services from our Social Services team. The Legal and Asylum Social Services team provides holistic, wraparound support to HIAS’ legal clients, including those seeking asylum and other forms of humanitarian relief in the U.S., as well as some limited services to the wider asylum seeking and immigrant community. Many HIAS clients do not qualify for federal benefits and services while their cases are pending, often for several years. This lack of support creates significant challenges for asylum seekers as they seek to rebuild their lives in their new home. Through our community based, client centered and trauma-informed model, the Social Services team tackles these obstacles and works alongside clients to connect them with critical resources, ensure their safety and stability, and help them achieve self-sufficiency. Our model encompasses three broad areas of support:
Intensive Case Management
HIAS case managers meet with newly referred clients to conduct a comprehensive needs assessment and identify strengths as well as barriers. Case managers build trusting relationships and develop tailored service plans to overcome obstacles and build self-sufficiency by identifying education and training opportunities, securing safe income sources, and locating affordable housing. HIAS goes beyond simply providing referrals and instead works closely with clients to navigate social service systems, apply for available benefits, arrange transportation and childcare, and enroll in services. Our multilingual, multi-cultural staff address language and cultural barriers and ensure that clients access needed resources.
Mental Health Services
HIAS provides psychosocial and mental health support to clients using a community-based model. These services include crisis intervention and safety planning for victims of gender-based violence, trafficking, or pre- or post-migration trauma, as well as psycho-educational group programming on topics that include cultural orientation, community safety, financial literacy, parenting, employment, resilience and coping skills. Under the supervision of a licensed, clinical social worker (LCSW-C), HIAS engages graduate-level social work students to provide short-term individual and family counseling, addressing more significant mental health needs such as children’s behavioral health, symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and grief and loss related to migration.
Volunteer Support
HIAS recruits and engages a diverse group of volunteers to provide direct services to clients, including peer mentorship, community navigation, accompaniment to legal and medical appointments, English language instruction, job coaching, and interpretation and translation. Volunteers provide in-kind assistance by organizing donation drives, collecting and distributing high-need items, researching local resources, and creating informational guides. Through extensive training opportunities, monthly activities and events, and collaboration with HIAS community engagement and advocacy teams, HIAS volunteers are able to stand up for asylum seekers and advocate for their rights. At a time of increased vilification of and negative rhetoric about immigrants, volunteers build and spread awareness of the needs and experiences of asylum seekers and create a more welcoming community.