A Pro Bono Project of Morningside Heights Legal Services, Inc. (MHLS)
Morningside Heights Legal Services, Inc. (MHLS), a non-profit law firm affiliated with Columbia Law School, is offering crisis planning resources to our greater New York City community through the Crisis Planning for Immigrant Families (CPIF) pro bono project.
New Yorkers who believe they may be subject to sudden immigration action, such asylum seekers who are concerned about possible detention while their case is pending, may wish to plan for care of their children, management of their finances, and practical assistance in the event of sudden detention or deportation.
The pro bono project, Crisis Planning for Immigrant Families (CPIF), offers workshops, organizational training, and the resources on this website. In workshops, law students work under the supervision of licensed attorneys to provide direct assistance to individuals who want to do advance planning. CPIF offers drop-in workshops where individuals can do advance planning and also partners with community organizations to provide workshops to their clients. CPIF can also offer training to volunteers at organizations who work with immigrants who might be at risk.
Information on this website is maintained by the Crisis Planning for Families Pro Bono Project and is for New Yorkers. It has been compiled for informational purposes only and is not legal advice.
Learn more about the project and download resources below. A packet with questions to prompt parents and individuals to make plans is available here.
Individuals, Families, and Organizations
The CPIF project and its resources may be useful for:
Residents of New York. If you reside in another state, you may wish to look for similar forms/resources specific to your state.
Immigrants, including those with legal status and work authorization, who want to plan for the possibility of a sudden detention or deportation.
Organizations that assist immigrants.
Families and individuals who wish to make contingency plans for another kind of sudden life event, such as a hospitalization.
About the Resources
Explore the categories below to find the form, resource, or other document that’s applicable to your needs. You can also download all documents here.
These resources are not legal advice; rather, they are a starting point for people who need to plan for an uncertain future. No two families are the same, and MHLS always recommends seeking individualized legal advice when possible.
Many of these forms must be signed in front of a notary public to be valid. Notary publics can be found at libraries and banks, among other places, and, by law, their services should be free or low cost.
Translations
On this site, MHLS provides unofficial translations of many planning documents in languages other than English. Translations are for convenience only, to help give readers a general sense of the forms. The translations may not be precise, and have not been endorsed by any court or by any state or federal agency. MHLS recommends completing all forms in English. If needed, individuals may wish to consult with an attorney who is bilingual or who is working with a translator to complete the forms in English.
Contact Us
For more information, or if your organization is interested in hosting a training or client workshops in partnership with CPIF, please email cpif@columbialawclinics.org.
Resources
New York parents and individuals who are afraid that they might be detained or deported by the U.S. government can make a plan for care of their children, management of their finances, and potential assistance while detained. The packet linked here provide suggestions for information and documents to compile for parents making plans.
If individuals wish to allow someone to manage their money and other financial affairs, they may want to appoint an agent by completing a New York Power of Attorney form. An agent appointed through a Power of Attorney can manage banking and property. Please see the “Power of Attorney Info and FAQ” for more information about the Power of Attorney.
If individuals want someone to take any actions for them regarding federal taxes, they must also fill out an IRS Power of Attorney.
If individuals only want someone to be able to collect a final paycheck, they could fill out a Paycheck Authorization Form.
Documents:
Power of Attorney Revocation Form
Parents who want their child(ren) to remain in the U.S. should consider making a plan for a trusted person to care for their child if the parent is arrested and/or placed in immigration detention. Parents can designate someone to make minor decisions for their child for up to one year using the Designation of Person in Parental Relationship form. Parents can also ask someone to become a permanent legal guardian of their child. These two options are explained further below.
CPIF recommends that parents keep their children’s emergency contact list updated at their children’s schools so that children can be released to a trusted person if parents are unable to pick them up.
Designation of Person in Parental Relationship
The Designation of Person in Parental Relationship form allows a person who is not a child’s parent to make educational and minor medical decisions for a child.
● The form must be signed in front of a notary public and can be valid for up to one year.
● If a parent chooses to make the form valid only upon their detention or deportation, they should provide a blank “Affirmation of Detention or Deportation” to the holder of the Designation of Person in Parental Relationship.
● This form does not require approval of a court, only notarization.
● The New York State Office of Children and Family Services has made this form available in many languages.
Permanent Legal Guardianship
If a parent would like to make more permanent arrangements for their child, they can ask a person to prepare to be a guardian for their child. A guardian is able to make all of the decisions regarding a child’s welfare that a parent could make, including ….
● A potential guardian must file a petition for guardianship in Family Court. A potential permanent guardian does not need to be a U.S. citizen but must be willing to go to Family Court to petition for guardianship. A potential guardian should not have a criminal record or any abuse or neglect findings against them. A guardian does not need to be relative.
● A parent can complete a Designation of Person in Parental Relationship form giving caregiving permission to the person they want to become legal guardian of their child. The potential permanent guardian can use this form to make minor decisions for the child before filing a petition for guardianship and can file a copy of this form with the petition for guardianship to show that the parent approves of them as their child’s caregiver.
● A judge makes the final decision about guardianship. The judge will require that both parents of the children, if alive, are given notice of the guardianship petition and Family Court proceedings. If there is another parent, a judge may prioritize the rights of that other parent to care for the child.
● A parent can fill out form 6-4, in front of a notary, consenting to the appointment of a guardian and renouncing their right to notice about proceedings regarding the appointment of a guardian. Filling out the form means a parent is consenting to not participate in the guardian appointment process. A parent does not have to fill out this form in order for someone to file for–and potentially become–a guardian of their children.
● Once a judge issues an order of guardianship, the parent cannot change that order without going to Family Court and petitioning for a change.
No Trusted Caregiver
If a parent does not have a trusted person who can care for their child, then their child will likely be placed in the care of the state of New York if the parent is detained or deported.
● If New York State places a child in foster care, a relative or a person who has an existing close relationship with the child may be eligible to serve as the child’s foster parent or kinship caregiver.
● New York State is supposed to try to place a child with an eligible relative or close family friend before they place a child with strangers.
● The state will provide financial assistance to care for the child if the child has been placed in the foster care system, but the parent(s) may also be responsible for providing for their child(ren) financially.
● ICE guidance currently states that ICE will facilitate parent participation in state child welfare proceedings so that parents can have input in the care for their children.
If parents want their child(ren) to join them in their home country after they have left the United States, we recommend beginning to prepare for that now. Parents should complete a Consent for Minor Child(ren) to Travel form that authorizes a child to travel alone (generally only allowed for children who are at least five years old) or with another adult. Note that many airlines and countries require the consent of both parents. Some airlines flying to Latin America request a travel consent in Spanish. This spreadsheet contains links to airline travel policies, though families should check with their intended airline since these policies may change.
Parents should also complete a Designation of Person in Parental Relationship form so that someone can care for their child while the child is still in the United States. Parents should also keep their children’s emergency contact list updated at their children’s schools.
Finally, a child must have a passport to travel internationally. For children who are U.S. citizens, parents can apply for a U.S. passport at many libraries, post offices, and Department of Motor Vehicles offices. Both parents must be present at the passport appointment to obtain a passport for a child under the age of 16 unless the following situations apply.
· If a custodial parent cannot or does not want to be present at the passport appointment, the parent who will not be going to the passport appointment should complete the Statement of Consent: U.S. Passport Issuance to a Child and provide copies of their identity documents.
· If a parent cannot be found, the remaining parent should complete the Statement of Exigent/Special Family Circumstances to explain why the parent cannot be found.
· If a parent has a sole custody order or the other parent is deceased, the sole parent should provide proof with the passport application (for example, the custody order or death certificate).
If a child is not a U.S. citizen and does not have a passport, the parents should contact the embassy or consulate of the country of which their child is a citizen to learn how to obtain a passport or travel document for their child.
Parents can also contact their consulate to find out if assistance could be provided by the consulate to facilitate a child’s travel to the parent’s home country.
Beyond forms related to an immigration case, there are forms that individuals may want to complete prior to interactions with ICE.
The Declaration of Inapplicability of Expedited Removal form informs ICE if a person meets specific criteria to not be subject to “expedited removal.” The included information sheet, prepared by NYLAG and the Pro Se Plus Project, can help you understand how to complete the form.
The DHS ICE Privacy Waiver provides consent for ICE to provide information to another person, such as a friend or family member or a congressional representative. This form could allow friends, family, advocates, and congressional representatives to speak with ICE to obtain information and advocate for someone who has been detained. One form should be filled out for each person who might need to speak with ICE.
Congressional representatives can be found here: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
When asking a congressional representative for assistance, folks may want to highlight connections to a U.S. citizen residing in the representative’s district, such as a child or other family member.
People who are concerned that they might be detained by ICE can also fill out the immigration preparedness plan, which lays out information that may help an attorney file a habeas petition if the need arises, as well as information that may help family members care for children. This form designates someone to file a "Next Friend" petition for writ of habeas corpus.
Note: It is advisable to keep physical copies of all important identification documents that verify your right to be in the United States with you at all times. All important documents should be stored in a safe place and copies should also be provided to another individual for safekeeping. It is not advisable to keep copies of documents only on a smartphone.
Medical providers in the United States cannot share information about a patient’s care with anyone else without the patient’s written consent. If a person thinks that they will need someone else to obtain their medical records if they are detained or deported, they can complete an Authorization for Release of Health Information Pursuant to HIPAA.
Some kinds of medical information are extra sensitive, like information about alcohol and drug abuse, mental health treatment, and HIV-related information. These will NOT be shared UNLESS the specific spot(s) in the release form are initialed. If a person does choose to share information related to alcohol and drug abuse, mental health treatment, or HIV with the listed person/entity, the listed person/entity cannot share this information with anyone else unless a law allows it.
A person can revoke this permission at any time by sending a written note to their health care provider.
If a person thinks they may need someone else to make medical decisions for them in case they are not able to make medical decisions for themselves, they can complete a New York Health Care Proxy.
These documents provide information on how to locate someone who has been detained by ICE as well as resources for finding an immigration attorney and documents this project suggests that people obtain and keep copies of (“Important Documents to Have Copies Of”).
Red cards provide information about individual rights when interacting with ICE and provide a script to respond to immigration enforcement officers.