If you are unfortunate enough that the Immigration Court (Immigration Judge) denied your case and your appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) was also denied, all may not be lost.  In most cases, you will have a right to appeal the case further to the federal courts.  In fact, the federal courts  are generally more of an independent tribunal than the Board of Immigration Appeals.  So, if you were in Immigration Court in New York, a Petition for Review is filed with the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  If you were in Immigration Court in New Jersey, the Petition for Review is filed with the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.  However, there is a strict filing deadline of 30 days.  Now, some individuals may decide that they have become tired and will not appeal.  However, unless you plan to leave the country, this will be a decision that you will likely regret.

If your decision is based on financial factors and you feel you cannot afford the legal expenses, I have news for you.  It will likely cost you ten times the amount if you fail to file the appeal and thereafter wish to hire an attorney to “fix” the wrong.  Even worse, the odds of being successful, if you fail to file the appeal within the time limit is diminished significantly.  So, invest in your future.  If your case was denied by the Immigration Court or Judge and the appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals was also denied, exercise your right to file an appeal with the federal court.  If you don’t, you will regret it.  The federal courts are still the place to go when you feel that your case was unfairly denied.