Deportation Lawyer

Your Notice to Appear, read by an attorney

When you call Cruz Gold & Associates about a deportation case, attorney Zachary Gold reads your Notice to Appear with you and checks your next hearing date. As your deportation lawyer, he then represents you in immigration court and asks the judge for the relief your history allows, with the evidence and testimony to support it. A missed hearing can end in a removal order, so the date comes first.

What a deportation case is

A deportation case, which the law calls removal proceedings, starts when the Department of Homeland Security files a Notice to Appear with an immigration court. The notice lists the reasons the government says you can be removed. An immigration judge from the Department of Justice decides the case, and an ICE attorney argues for the government. You have the right to a lawyer, but the government does not pay for one.

The case usually has two kinds of hearings. At the master calendar hearing, a short first appearance, the judge explains the charges, you answer them, and the judge sets deadlines for the relief you will ask for. At the individual hearing, which comes later, you and your witnesses testify under oath, the ICE attorney cross-examines, and the judge decides whether you can stay.

What you get with Cruz Gold & Associates in immigration court

• Representation at every hearing. We appear with clients in immigration court, which notarios and form preparers are not allowed to do.
• Relief chosen from your whole history. Before the first hearing we compare your years here, your family and your record with cancellation of removal, asylum, a green card through a relative and voluntary departure.
• Appeals in the same firm. If the judge rules against you, we handle the appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals and, where the case warrants it, the petition for review in the federal court of appeals.
• Spanish-speaking families. Our roots are Cuban-American, and relatives who follow the case can talk with us in Spanish.
• Hourly billing, set out at the start. Court work is billed by the hour, and the terms are agreed before we begin.

Reviews from our Ewing office

These two reviews come from Ewing clients whose cases were not in immigration court.

Rated 5.0 on Google from 97 reviews of our Ewing office (October 2026)

How we defend a removal case

Attorney Zachary Gold handles your case and appears with you in court, with our team preparing the filings. After the Notice to Appear, he looks at the facts that decide which relief is possible:

• how long you have lived in the United States, and any trips abroad
• whether your spouse, parent or child is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• any arrest or conviction, here or abroad
• earlier applications, denials or removal orders
• whether you fear harm if you are sent back

Most relief depends on dates, so we build the timeline of your years in the United States first. Bring every notice from the court or immigration agencies, your passport and I-94, and anything that shows where you lived and worked, such as leases, tax returns, pay stubs, school and medical records. For a hardship claim we also need records about the relatives who would be affected. For any arrest, we need the certified court disposition, which says more than a police report.

We guard against four mistakes that can end a case before the judge hears it: a hearing notice mailed to an old address, a filing deadline set at the first hearing and missed, a long trip abroad that breaks the years of presence a case needs, and a criminal case closed without anyone checking its immigration effect.

Deportation cases we handle

• Defense in immigration court, whether you are detained or not
• Cancellation of removal for permanent residents and for people without permanent residence
• Asylum, withholding of removal and Convention Against Torture claims in court
• Adjustment of status before the immigration judge when a family petition or other basis allows a green card
• Voluntary departure, when leaving on your own terms is the better outcome
• Motions to reopen, including after a removal order issued for a missed hearing
• Appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals and petitions for review in the Third and Fifth Circuits
• Mandamus suits in federal court when USCIS leaves an application undecided for an unreasonable time

How does a deportation case start?

The Department of Homeland Security, through ICE, CBP or USCIS, serves a Notice to Appear (Form I-862) and files it with the immigration court (8 CFR 1003.14). The first hearing cannot be set less than 10 days after the notice is served, so you have time to find a lawyer (INA 239).

You can check your hearing date online with the court's automated case information system, using your A-number, or by phone at 1-800-898-7180 (EOIR case status). If you move, you must tell the court in writing within five days on Form EOIR-33/IC (8 CFR 1003.15), because hearing notices go to the address on file.

Near our offices, removal cases are heard at these courts (EOIR court list):

• Ewing and Hackensack, New Jerseythe Newark Immigration Court, 970 Broad Street, Room 1200; the Elizabeth Immigration Court, 625 Evans Street, for people held at Delaney Hall and other New Jersey sites
• Philadelphiathe Philadelphia Immigration Court, 900 Market Street, Suite 504; people held at Pennsylvania facilities such as Moshannon Valley are heard in Elizabeth
• Houstonthe three Houston immigration courts; the Conroe Immigration Court, 806 Hilbig Road, for people held at the Montgomery Processing Center, Joe Corley or the Houston Service Processing Center

Immigration courts nationwide had 3,469,569 pending cases in mid-2026 (EOIR statistics).

What can stop a deportation?

An immigration judge can let you stay if you prove you qualify for relief. The main forms are:

• Cancellation of removal for permanent residents (Form EOIR-42A)at least 5 years as a permanent resident, 7 years of continuous residence after being admitted, and no aggravated felony conviction (INA 240A).
• Cancellation of removal for other people (Form EOIR-42B)10 years of continuous physical presence, good moral character, no disqualifying conviction, and proof that removal would cause exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse, parent or child. Judges can grant only 4,000 of these a year nationwide.
• Asylum, withholding of removal and Convention Against Torture protection (Form I-589)for people who fear persecution or torture in their home country.
• Adjustment of status before the judgea green card, when a relative's petition or another basis makes you eligible.
• Voluntary departureleaving at your own expense within up to 120 days if requested early in the case, or up to 60 days at the end. Not leaving in time brings civil fines and a 10-year bar from most relief (INA 240B).

Two rules often decide cancellation cases. The clock for your years of presence stops when the Notice to Appear is served or when you commit certain offenses. And a single trip abroad over 90 days, or trips over 180 days in total, breaks continuous physical presence, one of the risks in our guide to traveling abroad as a non-citizen.

What happens if you miss immigration court?

If you miss a hearing after the court sent notice, the judge can order you removed in your absence (INA 240(b)(5)). That order can be reopened within 180 days if the absence was caused by exceptional circumstances, such as serious illness or the death of a close family member, or at any time if you never received proper notice or were in custody. Filing that motion stops removal while the judge decides it.

A missed hearing can also cost you future relief. If the court warned you orally about the consequences of not appearing and you missed the hearing without exceptional circumstances, you are barred for 10 years after the order from cancellation of removal, voluntary departure and a green card through adjustment of status (INA 240(b)(7)).

How long do you have to appeal a deportation order?

You have 30 calendar days from the judge's decision to file an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals on Form EOIR-26, and the Board must receive it within that time (EOIR appeals). A February 2026 rule tried to cut this to 10 days. A federal court vacated that change in March 2026 in Amica Center for Immigrant Rights v. EOIR, and the immigration courts then confirmed the 30-day deadline (EOIR Policy Memorandum 26-02).

If the Board rules against you, a petition for review must reach the federal court of appeals for the circuit where the judge completed your case within 30 days of the final order. That is the Third Circuit for New Jersey and Pennsylvania and the Fifth Circuit for Texas, and filing does not stop removal unless the court orders a stay (INA 242). A motion to reopen a case, based on new facts, must generally be filed within 90 days of the final order, and a motion to reconsider within 30 days. Each can be filed only once, with exceptions such as asylum claims based on new conditions in your home country.

How much does it cost to file in immigration court?

These court fees took effect on October 1, 2026, and are paid only through the court's online payment portal (EOIR fees):

• Appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals (EOIR-26)$1,060
• Cancellation of removal, permanent residents (EOIR-42A)$730
• Cancellation of removal, other people (EOIR-42B)$1,690
• Motion to reopen or reconsider$1,095 in immigration court, $1,060 at the Board
• Asylum application in court$100, plus $105 for each year it stays pending

Fee waivers exist for some filings when a person cannot pay, but the asylum fees can never be waived. A motion to reopen a removal order issued for a missed hearing, based on lack of notice, has no fee.

Can you be deported without seeing a judge?

Yes, in some cases. Since January 2025, immigration officers can use expedited removal anywhere in the country against people who were not admitted or paroled and cannot prove two years of continuous presence (Federal Register, January 2025). In June 2026 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit allowed that expansion to continue in Make the Road New York v. Mullin (opinion). A person who returns after a removal order can have the old order reinstated without a hearing (INA 241(a)(5)). In both situations, a person who says they fear return is referred to an asylum officer. If you have lived here two years or more, keep proof of it where your family can find it. Our article on 2025 immigration policy changes also covers what to do during an ICE encounter.

What if you or a relative is detained?

In September 2025 the Board of Immigration Appeals held, in Matter of Yajure Hurtado, that immigration judges cannot grant bond to people who entered the United States without being admitted (decision). On October 1, 2026 the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to decide whether the law requires that detention (docket 26-104). Detained cases are heard at the Elizabeth court for New Jersey and Pennsylvania and at the Conroe court for the Houston area. If a relative is detained, call us before the first hearing, with their full name, date of birth and A-number if you have it.

When a USCIS case is stuck: mandamus

When USCIS leaves an application undecided far longer than it should, a lawsuit in federal district court can ask the judge to order the agency to decide it. Federal law requires agencies to conclude matters within a reasonable time, and courts can compel action that is unreasonably delayed (5 U.S.C. 555(b), 5 U.S.C. 706, 28 U.S.C. 1361). The suit is usually filed in the district where you live, such as the District of New Jersey, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for Philadelphia or the Southern District of Texas for Houston (28 U.S.C. 1391), and the filing fee is $405.

Court rules, fees and addresses on this page were checked on justice.gov/eoir, uscis.gov and federal statutes and regulations on October 3, 2026.

Your case, hearing by hearing

1. Free consultation. Call when the notice arrives, and have it with you.
2. Before the first hearing. We confirm the court has your current address, collect your records and decide which relief to request.
3. Master calendar hearing. We tell the judge what relief you will seek, and the judge sets the filing deadlines.
4. Building the case. We prepare the applications, evidence, witness statements and fee payments, and practice your testimony with you.
5. Individual hearing. The court sets the date, and with the current backlog the wait can be long.
6. After the decision. If the judge rules against you, the appeal must reach the Board of Immigration Appeals within 30 days.

What we charge for a court case

Court work is billed by the hour against a retainer paid at the start. Attorney Zachary Gold explains the hourly terms for your case at the free consultation, which you can book in the calendar on this page, before you decide anything. The court's own filing fees, listed above, are paid separately through the court's portal, and we take credit cards for our fees. Our page on what an immigration lawyer costs compares hourly and flat-fee billing.

The attorney who goes to court with you

Questions about deportation cases

What should I do if I receive a Notice to Appear?

Check the date, the court and the address on it, and talk to a lawyer the same week. If the address is wrong or you move, file a change of address with the court within five days, and go to every hearing.

Can a lawyer stop a deportation?

A lawyer can ask the judge for the relief you qualify for and present the evidence for it, but only the judge decides. Whether relief is possible depends on your years in the United States, your family, any criminal record and your reasons for fearing return.

How much does a deportation lawyer cost?

Our court work is billed by the hour, as described above. The court's own fees come on top, for example $1,690 to apply for cancellation of removal if you are not a permanent resident.

Can I go to immigration court without a lawyer?

Yes, and many people do. The government is always represented by an ICE attorney, and the forms, deadlines and evidence rules are the same with or without a lawyer.

What happens at a master calendar hearing?

Many cases are called in the same session, and each takes only a few minutes. Bring your Notice to Appear and any documents the court asked for, arrive early for security, and expect the judge to ask what relief you will apply for. Your full testimony comes later, at the individual hearing.

How long does a deportation case take?

The immigration courts publish no average time for a case, and about 3.5 million cases are pending nationwide. For children's cases, the courts report a median of about three years from start to decision (EOIR statistics). Detention, the relief requested and the court's calendar all change the timing.

More on immigration court and protection

• Asylum lawyer for protection claims, in court and with USCIS
• Green card lawyer for green cards through family, work or asylum
• Family-based immigration, when a relative can petition for you
• Immigration lawyers in New Jersey, our Ewing office
• Immigration lawyers in Philadelphia, our office on South Broad Street
• Immigration lawyers in Houston, our office on Caroline Street
• About attorney Zachary Gold
• What an immigration lawyer costs