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BIA Practice Manual

BIA Practice Manual
Chapter 2 - Appearances Before the Board

2.9 - Others

(a) Reputable Individuals

Reputable individuals are practitioners who may appear before the Board if certain conditions are met and the appearance is approved by the Board. Recognition by the Board is not automatic and must be requested in writing. See 8 C.F.R. § 1292.1(a)(3).

     (1) Qualifications - To qualify as a reputable individual and be permitted to appear, an individual must meet all of the following criteria, as found by the Board in its discretion:

  • be a person of good moral character
  • appear on an individual basis, at the request of the alien
  • receive no direct or indirect remuneration for his or her assistance
  • file a declaration that he or she is not being remunerated for his or her assistance
  • have a preexisting relationship with the alien (e.g., relative, neighbor, clergy), except in those situations where representation would otherwise not be available, and
  • be officially recognized by the Board

Any individual who receives any sort of compensation or makes immigration appearances on a regular basis (such as a non-lawyer “immigration specialist,” visa consultant, or “notario”) does not qualify as a “reputable individual” as defined in the regulations.

      (2) Appearances - A reputable individual must complete the proper form, Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-27) or Notice of Limited Appearance (Form EOIR-60), and otherwise comply with the instructions below to make an appearance before the Board. If information is omitted from Form EOIR-27 or Form EOIR-60, they are not properly completed, or the instructions below are not followed, the reputable individual's appearance may not be recognized, and any accompanying filing may be rejected. Reputable individuals are not issued EOIR ID numbers, and this part of the forms can be left blank.

              (A) Form EOIR-27 appearance - A reputable individual is not permitted to register with the Executive Office for Immigration Review and, therefore, cannot electronically file documents, including a Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-27). See Chapter 2.1(b) (Entering an Appearance as the Practitioner of Record). Accordingly, to appear as the practitioner of record, a reputable individual must paper file a Form EOIR-27. Together with that Form EOIR-27, the reputable individual must include a statement demonstrating that the individual satisfies the qualification criteria in section (a)(1) above.

              (B) Form EOIR-60 limited appearance for document assistance - Because of the limited circumstances in which a reputable individual is permitted to appear, a reputable individual should seek to appear as the practitioner of record through the filing of a Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-27). However, if the reputable individual has not filed a Form EOIR-27 as discussed above, and the reputable individual provides assistance to unrepresented or pro se aliens with the drafting, completion, or filling in of blank spaces of a specific appeal, motion, brief, form, or other document or set of documents intended to be filed with the Board, the reputable individual must disclose such assistance by completing a Notice of Limited Appearance (Form EOIR-60), which must be filed along with the assisted document or set of documents. See 8 C.F.R. §§ 1003.2(g)(1), 1003.3(a)(3), 1003.38(g)(2); Chapter 2.1(c) (Limited Appearance for Document Assistance). Additionally, as above, the reputable individual’s Form EOIR-60 must be accompanied by a statement from the reputable individual demonstrating that the individual satisfies the qualification criteria in section (a)(1) above.

(b) Fellow Inmates

The regulations do not provide for representation by fellow inmates or other detained persons. Fellow inmates do not qualify under any of the categories of representatives enumerated in the regulations.

(c) Accredited Foreign Government Officials

An accredited official of a foreign government to which the alien owes an allegiance and who is in the United States may appear before the Board as a practitioner if the appearance is in his or her official capacity and with the alien’s consent. See 8 C.F.R. § 1292.1(a)(5). 

      (1) Appearances - An accredited official must complete the proper form, Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-27) or Notice of Limited Appearance (Form EOIR-60), and otherwise comply with the instructions below to make an appearance before the Board. If information is omitted from Form EOIR-27 or Form EOIR-60, they are not properly completed, or the instructions below are not followed, the accredited official's appearance may not be recognized, and any accompanying filing may be rejected. Accredited officials are not issued EOIR ID numbers and this part of the forms can be left blank.

             (A) Form EOIR-27 appearance - An accredited official is not permitted to register with the Executive Office for Immigration Review and, therefore, cannot electronically file documents, including a Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-27). See Chapter 2.1(b) (Entering an Appearance as the Practitioner of Record). Accordingly, to appear as the practitioner of record, an accredited official must paper file Form EOIR-27. The accredited official’s Form EOIR-27 must be accompanied by evidence that the appearance is in an official capacity and that the respondent consented to the appearance.

              (B) Form EOIR-60 limited appearance for document assistance - Because of the limited circumstances in which an accredited official is permitted to appear, an accredited official should seek to appear as the practitioner of record through the filing of a Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-27). However, if the accredited official has not filed a Form EOIR-27 as discussed above and the accredited official provides assistance to unrepresented or pro se aliens with the drafting, completion, or filling in of blank spaces of a specific appeal, motion, brief, form, or other document or set of documents intended to be filed with the Board, the accredited official must disclose such assistance by completing a Notice of Limited Appearance (Form EOIR-60), which must be filed along with the assisted document or set of documents. See 8 C.F.R. §§ 1003.2(g)(1), 1003.3(a)(3), 1003.38(g)(2); Chapter 2.1(c) (Limited Appearance for Document Assistance). Additionally, the accredited official’s Form EOIR-60 must be accompanied by evidence that the appearance is in an official capacity and that the unrepresented or pro respondent consented to the appearance.

(d) Former Employees of the Department of Justice

Former employees of the Department of Justice may be restricted in their ability to appear before the Board. See 8 C.F.R. § 1292.1(c).

(e) Foreign Student Advisors

A foreign student advisor is not a practitioner and is not authorized to appear before the Board, unless the advisor is an accredited representative. See Chapter 2.4 (Accredited Representatives).