Know Your Rights

• Overview of Immigrant Eligibility for Federal Programs: This guide by the National Immigration Law Center outlines which federal programs immigrants may access, based on different immigration statuses, with easy-to-understand explanations of benefits like healthcare, nutrition assistance, and more.

• Keep Your Benefits - Online Public Charge Screening Tool: This online tool allows immigrants to check how using certain public benefits might impact their immigration status under the “public charge” rule. It’s confidential and helps users understand their choices without risking immigration consequences. 

• Fact Sheet on Immigrants and Public Benefits: This fact sheet explains immigrant access to public benefits, including eligibility guidelines for different statuses. This resource helps clarify common questions about benefits like Medicaid, SNAP, and housing assistance. 

• National Origin and Immigrants' Rights | Legal Aid at Work : Offers legal support and resources on workplace rights for immigrant and minority workers, helping you understand how to protect yourself from discrimination.

• FAQ: DACA and Your Workplace Rights | National Immigration Law Center (NILC): A helpful FAQ detailing your rights as a DACA recipient in the workplace, including protections, resources, and advice for common employment situations. (last updated 2024)

• Immigrant and Employee Rights | U.S. Department of Justice: Offers resources on workplace rights for immigrant and minority workers, helping you understand how to protect yourself from discrimination.

Housing Rights and Immigration Status | California’s Civil Rights Agency

The California Rights Division (CRD) is committed to ensuring that all Californians, regardless of immigration status, can live free from discrimination. You are protected from actions such as being evicted, denied an apartment, charged higher rent, or denied repairs in your rental home, if the actions are based on your race, where you are from, your culture, your primary language, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion, source of income, or other characteristics. You are also protected from discrimination based on your citizenship or immigration status unless you are living in some types of affordable housing, such as public or USDA rural housing. California law also prohibits housing providers from asking about your immigration status unless you are applying for affordable housing funded by the federal government. Additionally, housing providers cannot harass or intimidate you by threatening or sharing information about your immigration status to ICE, law enforcement, or other government agencies. Read about your rights as a tenant.

• Know Your Rights Toolkit | Immigrant Legal Resource Center: Resources and practical tips for things immigrant families can do now to prepare as well as information on rights everyone has in the United States, regardless of immigration status. [available in various languages].

•  Know Your Rights Under the U.S. Constitution - No Matter Who Is President | National Immigration Law Center (Updated 2024): If you find you have to deal with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or other law enforcement officers at home, on the street, or anywhere else, remember that you have the rights described in this factsheet. The factsheet also provides suggestions for what you should do to assert your rights. [Translations: Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Arabic]

• ICE Raids: Know Your Rights as a Trans or Gender Non-Conforming Immigrant | Transgender Law Center: This resource provides critical information for transgender and LGBTQ+ individuals on how to prepare for and respond to ICE raids. It includes guidance on knowing your rights, creating a safety plan, and accessing legal and community support to protect yourself during immigration enforcement actions. 

•  California Laws Protecting Immigrant's Civil Rights | California Office of the Attorney General: This resource highlights protections for immigrants who are victims of crimes, detailing their rights to seek help without fear of immigration consequences. It explains special protections, including eligibility for U and T visas, which provide legal status for victims cooperating with law enforcement. The page also covers other important topics, such as protections in the workplace, access to education, housing rights, and guidelines for interactions with law enforcement, ensuring immigrants in California understand the full range of their legal rights and resources. Learn More About Immigrant Protections in California. 

• Student Rights and Privacy (FERPA): Learn about your right to privacy under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which protects your education records and controls who can access them. 

• Immigration Preparedness in CA Higher Education Campuses (revised 1/2026) [pdf] (AB 21) | Immigrants Rising: AB 21 is a California state law that provides critical protections for undocumented students in higher education. It requires colleges and universities to safeguard student information, maintain campus as a safe space from immigration enforcement, and offer resources that support student rights and privacy. This law helps ensure undocumented students can access higher education without fear of discrimination or exposure to immigration risks.

• Know your Rights & Students | ACLU of Northern CA: Learn about the rights of undocumented and mixed-status students, including protections from immigration enforcement. 

• Guide for Undocumented Individuals Traveling in the U.S. | Immigrants Rising: This guide provides essential information and safety tips for undocumented individuals traveling within the United States. It covers what to expect during encounters with law enforcement, how to prepare for travel, and ways to reduce risk, whether traveling by car, bus, train, or plane. With practical advice on maintaining personal safety and understanding rights during travel, this resource empowers undocumented students and their families to make informed, safe travel decisions. 

• Travel Documents for Non-Citizens | U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services: If you wish to return to the United States lawfully after traveling outside the United States, you generally must have: 1) valid entry document, such as a Permanent Resident Card (Green Card) or Nonimmigrant visa, or 2) valid and unexpired travel document. The type of document you need varies depending on your immigration status (including lawful permanent resident status) or if you have a pending immigration benefit request. 

• DACA Advance Parole | Immigrant Legal Resource Center (2025): Currently, individuals who have Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) can request and travel with Advance Parole. DACA recipients can request Advance Parole for humanitarian, employment, and education reasons. To qualify, DACA recipients will need to demonstrate that their need to travel falls within one of these categories. This community resource provides an overview of travel with Advance Parole and gives some examples of what may qualify. 

• Know Your Rights: Immigrants’ Participation in Protests | National Immigration Law Center: Students have the right to speak up and take part in peaceful protests. This section shares how to stay safe, what to know before joining a demonstration, and where to find support if needed.

• CSU Campus Climate and Free Expression: The CSU provides guidance on free speech, protest, and campus safety. This includes how the university responds to disruptions [pdf], protections against being silenced [pdf] (like through the "heckler's veto"), and answers to common questions about free expression. These resources help students understand their rights and what to expect during campus events or demonstrations.