EB5INVESTORS.COM
65
S trategies for when EB-5 I nvestors
E nd U p in R emoval P roceedings
The importance of burden of proof, seeking relief from removal
and who has final authority to terminate lawful permanent resident status.
By Fredrick W. Voigtmann
A specific section of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA) under which DHS believes removability lies. DHS
bears the burden of establishing removability by clear
and convincing evidence. 1
The NTA contains a list of factual allegations, usually
dealing with the noncitizen’s alienage, his or her entry
into the United States, and the facts under which DHS
considers the noncitizen to be removable. The NTA also
contains a “charge” of removability, which cites to the At the first removal hearing, called a “master calendar”
hearing, the immigration judge takes pleadings from
the respondent (the noncitizen) as to the factual
allegations and the charge contained in the NTA. The
respondent, or the respondent’s legal counsel, must
either admit or deny each factual allegation, must
concede or contest the charge of removability, and
must inform the court which forms of relief from
removal, if any, will be sought by the respondent. The
immigration judge will take the pleadings and, after
certain advice to the respondent, the judge will set
the next hearing date, which could be another master
noncitizen of the United States may be placed
i nto remov a l pro ce e d i ng s by one of t he
agencies within the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS), including USCIS, CBP or ICE. The
initiation of removal proceedings begins with the
issuance of a charging document, called a notice
to appear (NTA). The NTA must be served upon the
noncitizen by mail or in person and must be filed by
DHS with the immigration court, which is within the
Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR), an
agency under the U.S. Department of Justice.