American dream turns into nightmare: Fate of Azerbaijani illegal immigrants in US

Newly elected US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order for the mass deportation of illegal immigrants living in the country.

On his first day as president, he declared a state of emergency at the southern border and deployed troops there. Another priority for Trump was to stop the new influx of migrants. The mobile application CBP1, launched under former President Joseph Biden, which allowed crossing the Mexican border, was blocked first.

Moreover, Trump instructed the country's relevant authorities to more actively use their powers for the expedited deportation of illegal immigrants. This may also affect 709 Azerbaijani citizens subject to deportation according to the list of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from November 2024.

The Embassy of Azerbaijan in Washington noted that they could not provide any information about the identities of these citizens or the reasons for their deportation from the US.

A correspondent of Report's American bureau spoke with one of the Azerbaijanis who illegally arrived in the United States of America through the Mexican border, 30-year-old Kamran Abdullayev, living in New York.

He said that in September 2022, he arrived from Russia to the Mexican border and from there illegally entered the United States.

"When I was crossing from Mexico to the USA, I paid $2,500 to intermediaries at the border. They handed me over to the American border police. When crossing the border, I registered through the CBP1 mobile application, and all the information about me was reflected in this program. The police kept me for 8 hours at a local checkpoint, and after taking my fingerprints, they issued a document defining the purpose of my entry into the USA. I came to New York and, having hired a lawyer, applied for a work permit.

Eight months later, the state issued me a work permit. Now I work in one of the well-known Turkish restaurants in New York. Since I already have a work permit in the United States, the authorities do not have any legal grounds for my deportation,"Abdullayev claims.

According to him, many Azerbaijanis who came to the United States were much less fortunate, and the authorities did not consider their applications for entry into the country.

"I was told that several Azerbaijanis waited at the Mexican border for more than three months for the day of entry into the country appointed through the CBP 1 mobile application, and after Trump came to power, the program was deleted, and these people returned to Azerbaijan. Of course, people are afraid, the situation is very tense," said Abdullayev.

Vugar Jafarov, a prominent Azerbaijani lawyer specializing in US immigration law, shared his insights with Report's local bureau, shedding light on the true reason behind the chaos that emerged in the country following Trump's decision. According to Jafarov, the United States is currently grappling with a significant wave of misinformation.

The lawyer believes that the government will attempt to curb immigration through a policy of threats.

"The media is rife with false and exaggerated information, creating an atmosphere of fear. Lawyers are intimidating people, and immigrants, who are often uneducated and uninformed, fall victim to their tactics," Jafarov emphasized. He added that after entering the US, many immigrants mistakenly believe that everything is in order and fail to take the necessary steps to determine their official status in the country.

Despite these challenges, Jafarov assured that by working with a competent lawyer, individuals can swiftly take action in response to a deportation decision. He outlined the steps that people facing deportation should take and highlighted the crucial aspects they often overlook.

"The advantages of entering the country through the CBP 1 application are that these migrants can marry US citizens, obtain work permits, and apply for a green card. Their applications are reviewed by the country's immigration services," Jafarov explained. During this period, the immigration service may issue them a 5-year work permit and a nine-digit social security card for identification and income tracking purposes.

However, Jafarov cautioned that individuals like Kamran Abdullayev often mistakenly believe that the process ends there, assuming they can legally reside in the US. In reality, a migrant's legal status is determined by the court, including those who entered the country on a tourist visa and overstayed their visa duration.

The lawyer clarified that a court rejection equates to deportation, with the judge announcing the decision directly in the courtroom.

"If your application is denied, the judge asks the lawyer if they object to the decision. Of course, the lawyer can object, and in such cases, the matter is considered by a higher court," Jafarov stated. He emphasized the critical importance of filing an appeal within 30 days, noting that the higher court's decision-making process typically takes 1-2 years.

"In our appeal, we explain the judge's errors in rendering the previous decision and highlight what was overlooked," Jafarov concluded.

"We recently achieved positive decisions in cases of three individuals who approached me. The higher court sends a resolution to the lower court. The document indicates points that the judge missed during the case review. The lower court complies with the higher court's decision. This process takes approximately 3 months to 1 year. As I emphasized, we have 30 days to appeal the decision, meaning if a person doesn't appeal to the higher court during this period, a final deportation decision is made, and the execution of this decision becomes mandatory. However, before Trump's coming to power, these decisions were often not executed," stated Jafarov said.

According to him, the majority of the 709 citizens are individuals who should be deported based on court decisions made during Biden's presidency.

"These are people who have received deportation orders but are not under arrest. This means the list will grow. This list includes people who entered the country and didn't know their court date. There are many people who didn't appear in court because they didn't know about it, and there are even those who don't know that they have deportation orders against them. Previously, Azerbaijanis came to the United States mainly for studies or through green cards. But those who entered illegally don't know the country's laws. There are many Turkish citizens on this list."

Jafarov added that deportation of persons who initiated legal processes requesting asylum from the United States is impossible. He noted that these individuals cannot be expelled from the country without a court decision:

"Although expedited deportation practice is presented as the right of local officials to quickly interrogate an illegal immigrant and carry out deportation without court, this isn't the case. The United States is a country where the rule of law prevails. No one will arrest you without a warrant, you can exercise your right to remain silent, as your words can be used against you in court. Don't provide any information, even if you're arrested, demand your lawyer and wait while they try to resolve the issue within legal frameworks," added Vugar Jafarov.