NYC legal clinic blitz assists nearly 2,000 Caribbean and other asylum seekers obtain work permits

The New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), an umbrella policy and advocacy organization that represents over 200 immigrant and refugee rights groups throughout New York, says nearly 2,000 Caribbean and other asylum seekers have filed applications to obtain work permits in the United States in a recent legal clinic blitz.

NYIC said over the weekend that between Monday and Friday, it collaborated with Immigrant ARC, another immigrant advocacy group, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service and the New York Legal Aid Society in hosting a work permit clinic for asylum seekers living in New York City shelters.

Many of the asylum seekers arriving in New York from the southern borders of the United States are nationals of Haiti, Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua.  

NYIC said the joint effort with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), New York City and New York State, and community groups yielded 1,728 applications for work permits for recent arrivals.  

“This was the first collaboration between Federal, State and City governments in New York submitting Employment Authorization Document (EAD) applications for clients in-person,” Murad Awawdeh, NYIC’s executive director, told Caribbean Life.  

“The city identified eligible individuals and scheduled them for appointments, the state provided the space and materials, and USCIS was on site to capture biometrics, adjudicate fee waiver requests and receive applications,” he added. “The effort was assisted by over 100 volunteers over the course of the two-week clinic. 

“Work authorizations are a key answer to how asylum seekers will be able to get out of shelters and start on the path to self-sufficiency as New Yorkers,” Awawdeh continued. “This two-week work authorization clinic was a glowing example of what we can accomplish when the Federal, State and City governments, aided by the expertise of nonprofits with cultural competency, work together around aligned objectives. 

“Now that we have proof of what can be achieved together, it is imperative that such collaborations – and investments – continue in helping our newest New Yorkers get to work,” he said. 

Camille Mackler, Immigrant ARC’s executive director, said “the last two weeks showed what can be accomplished when community groups, providers and all levels of government work together towards a common goal. 

“Work permits serve as a lifeline towards self-sufficiency and integration,” she said. “Thanks to all this work, nearly 2,000 shelter residents have been put on a path to dignity, self-sufficiency and a more stable and hopeful future in their new home. 

“And New Yorkers once again showed our ability to welcome people with dignity and open hearts,” Mackler added. “Our hope is that this moment was a pivot point in how we respond locally to the increase in arrivals from the Southern Border, and that inflammatory rhetoric and scapegoating can finally be put aside in favor of working together towards meaningful solutions. 

“We are especially grateful to USCIS leadership who were willing to think of new ways in how they work with local groups on the ground to address critical needs in real time,” she continued. 

Kushal Patel, chair, American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) New York, said his organization was “incredibly proud of our members who heeded the call to participate in this groundbreaking collaboration. 

“As immigration attorneys, we feel the need to serve our communities, and this clinic offered an opportunity for our members to volunteer their time in an efficient and effective manner,” he said. “Successfully processing 1,728 work authorization applications and assisting hundreds more individuals from New York City shelters in less than 10 days is remarkable and a testament to what we can achieve when we work together. 

“AILA New York welcomes future collaboration with the Federal, State, and City Governments in serving our community,” Patel added.  

Deborah Lee, Attorney-in-Charge of the Immigration Law Unit, The Legal Aid Society, said the Society was also “proud to be participating in the effort to help thousands of asylum seekers obtain work permits. 

“Quickly getting work permits in the hands of our newest New Yorkers is key to them finding stability and independence here and moving out of shelter,” she said. “This unique partnership brought together immigration advocates, community and pro bono partners, and all levels of government, and is a tremendous example of how we can all work together constructively to help our newest New Yorkers.”  

Jill Marie Bussey, Director for Public Policy, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, said: “Time and again, we have seen the transformation that can happen when a person who has endured trauma is able to regain some agency through access to lawful employment. 

“Many of the people served at this clinic have experienced unspeakable violence, poverty, oppression and fled their homes to save their lives,” she said. “It was an honor to lend aid to these courageous individuals and families seeking the promises of protection and opportunity that New York and our country offers. 

“We were grateful to collaborate with local, state, and federal partners in this extraordinary effort, and we look forward to assisting more newly arrived migrants find hope and self-sufficiency through work authorization,” Bussey added. 

Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced more than US$38 million in new state funding to bolster the city’s efforts to provide legal services for Caribbean and other asylum seekers.

The announcement came on the first day that the federal rule extending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Venezuelans who entered the country before Jul. 31, 2023 took effect. 

To coincide with the federal rule taking effect, Adams said the city will begin assisting eligible Venezuelan asylum seekers submit their paper applications for TPS and work authorization, in addition to their fee waiver forms at the city’s Asylum Application Help Center, also partially funded by state resources. 

“Throughout this crisis, New York City has led the nation in answering the call to support arriving asylum seekers, and that work continues again today in partnership with New York State,” said Mayor Adams. “We were proud to lead the call to ‘Let Them Work’, and are grateful that the federal government heard us and has expanded the pathways to work for many of those in the city’s care. 

“With the expansion of Temporary Protected Status taking effect today, our teams are already hard at work helping them apply for work authorization, and this investment from the state will bolster those efforts to help thousands of migrants obtain work and eventually move out of shelter,” he added. 

Hochul said that, “for more than a year, the state and city have worked side-by-side to address the unprecedented humanitarian crisis we’re experiencing. 

“After months of coordinated advocacy from New Yorkers, the federal government has made thousands of migrants from Venezuela newly-eligible for Temporary Protected Status,” she said. “Our job now is to ensure these individuals fill out all the appropriate paperwork so they can attain work authorization, find a job, and exit taxpayer-funded shelter.”

In the coming weeks, Adams said the city and state will scale efforts at the Asylum Application Help Center, expanding case management and legal services to help more asylum seekers in the city’s care obtain work authorization, stabilize their lives, and provide for themselves so they can move out of shelter. 

He said the city and state also plan to partner to expand access to legal and casework services by: Opening additional Application Help Center satellite sites across the city; launching roving teams within the city’s emergency shelter sites to help asylum seekers apply on the spot for TPS and work authorization; and scheduling those who enter the shelter system and are eligible for TPS for appointments to immediately apply upon entering the city’s care.  

Since this humanitarian crisis began, Adams said New York City has taken “fast and urgent action” — opening 210 emergency sites, including 17 other large-scale humanitarian relief centers. 

He said the city has also stood up navigation centers to connect asylum seekers with critical resources, enrolled thousands of children in public schools through Project Open Arms, and more. 

Earlier this spring, the city released “The Road Forward: A Blueprint to Address New York City’s Response to the Asylum Seeker Crisis,” detailing how the city will continue to manage the influx of asylum seekers and advocate for support from federal and state partners. 

Hochul said the US$38 million in State funding builds on an existing US$50 million commitment from the State to support legal services and casework for asylum seekers and migrants. 

She said this includes US$20 million allocated to local nonprofits serving asylum seekers and migrants; US$20 million to help New York City with a casework surge through NYC Health + Hospitals; and US$10 million for migrant legal services. 

The governor has also surged personnel and resources to case management to help migrants and asylum seekers fill out the necessary paperwork to attain legal work status. 

This includes deploying 250 National Guard personnel assigned to full-time case management services, part of a deployment of more than 2,100 National Guard personnel to address this ongoing situation.