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Immigration Bonds and How to Post an Immigrant Bail

How can a domestic violence crime affect immigration status?

A conviction for a domestic violence crime or an offense related to it can subject a non-US citizen to be removed—,meaning deportation. It may also, in some cases, make an alien inadmissible to re-enter the United States and ineligible for US citizenship or a green card. Immigration-related ‘domestic violence’ offenses include:

A “violent crime” against an actual or former intimate partner;
Child abuse, abandonment or neglect;
Stalking; and
Violation of a domestic violence security/restraining order

Domestic violence cases can be hard to prove, which means that an experienced criminal defense attorney may be able to protect you from being prosecuted. Alternatively, a plea deal may be reached with a non-removable offense.

Even so, that kind of plea bargain tends to be tricky. Some domestic violence crimes also count as aggravated felonies or moral turpitude crimes in other states. Pleading guilty of one of these offenses can lead to both mandatory and inadmissible deportations.

Domestic Violence Immigration Consequences

Most of California domestic violence convictions count under US immigration law as a “aggravated felony” or a “crime involving moral turpitude” (“CIMV”).

Conviction of such charges can subject a non-US citizen to:

Deportation from the US, and/or
Inadmissibility to the US —like ineligibility to apply for a green card or status change (from illegal to legal).

It’s critical that a non-citizen consults a knowledgeable California domestic violence lawyer before pleading guilty.

An experienced California criminal lawyer might be able to reach a plea deal that prevents the adverse repercussions of a prosecution of domestic abuse. Also, the defendant may be eligible for a bond.

What is an Immigration Bond?

Citizens of the United States usually do not know that immigration bonds exist. However, these operate similarly to cash bonds in a way that they are meant to cover bail expenses for a person arrested under immigration detention rather than the standard county jail. Immigration bonds have different stipulations than a criminal bond in the United States, as immigration bonds must be made from someone of reliable, lawful, and legal status.

Therefore, it is crucial to know the forms of payment that are used for immigration bonds. Bonds paid in the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) must do so in its entirety— as opposed to just one portion—and it cannot be paid with cash or personal check. ICE will accept only cash-equivalent payment methods, such as money order from the post office or cashier’s check. The bond would also have to be paid in person at an ICE office.

Criminal Bonds VS Immigration Bonds

In the case of criminal bonds, the bail amount is decided upon relatively quickly. Criminal defendants can leave police custody within 12 to 24 hours, depending on the circumstances. That’s in contrast with immigration detainees, where the situation isn’t as easy. Immigration bonds to any alien detained can be refused by ICE. After procuring their release from police custody via a criminal bond, an alien who has committed a crime may be subjected to an ICE detainer. This means that for a criminal defendant who isn’t a legal citizen, it’s possible to go through the tedious process of seeking both a criminal and an immigration bond before seeing their home again. The biggest concern regarding these cases is that many bail bonds companies will refuse to post a criminal bond for a detained immigrant due to the high level of risk associated with the situation. Typically, anyone who is denied the opportunity to post an immigration bond under ICE custody can plead their case with a judge. Still, it is not always guaranteed that they will be awarded a bond. Because of these complications, an immigration bonding agency is unlikely to recover the fees paid by the alien and therefore choose not to get involved.

What is the California’s Immigrant Victims of Crime Equity Act?

According to the federal law, immigrant victims of serious crimes —and some family members—can qualify for deportation protection and legal status if law enforcement officers determine that they have helped, assisted, or aided in investigating or prosecuting crimes.

Since January 1, 2016, the Immigrant Victims of Crime Equity Act of California allows state and local law enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, and other designated officials to recognize the aid of immigrant crime victims, all as part of the federal US visa certification.

This legislation requires certification companies to complete the certification within 90 days of the order, except in situations in which the applicant is going through immigration removal proceedings. In this case, the certification must be completed within 14 days of the request. The legislation also offers a “rebuttable presumption,” meaning that if the victim has not declined or neglected to provide information and assistance reasonably requested by law enforcement, an immigrant victim is thought to be cooperative, or likely helpful.

Who Is Eligible for Release on Bond?

An alien may remain detained for the duration of the deportation proceedings, depending on the US’s current status and the reasons they were picked up. Unfortunately, not all aliens are eligible for a bond order.

You are not eligible for release on bond if:

You are classified as an “arriving alien” (for example, from a trip abroad, a non-citizen returning to the US).
You were not legally admitted to the US (in other words, you entered at a border or other port of entry without submitting official papers to an official)
You have engaged in activities that threaten US national security, such as spying, sabotage, attempts to overthrow the government or related activities related to terrorism.
You have committed other US offenses, such as possession or selling of drugs, violent crimes, robbery, fraud, and similar cases.

Aliens are classified as “mandatory detention” by falling into one of the categories mentioned above. The Immigration Judge (IJ) will not allow your release upon payment of a bond regardless of how great a case you have, and how much the IJ wants to grant you bail.

If the IJ decides that you don’t qualify for a bond order, but you disagree with that decision, you can apply for what’s called a “Joseph Hearing,” —which is when you believe you’ve been mistaken with another person with the same name who has committed different crimes and give evidence that you’re qualified for a bond.

To ensure you have a chance to get your loved one out of jail, follow these measures to ensure a proper bail bond service, so you can manage to complete a California immigration bail bond.

There are other two ways of determining if an arrested illegal alien is entitled to an immigration bail bond in California:

The detained alien has been confirmed by the ICE immigration agent as eligible for a bond and has already set a sum for the California immigration bail bond.
The ICE immigration agent has refused to issue a bond to the detained alien. In this case, a request for an immigration bond hearing should be made before an immigration judge. The immigration judge must determine whether to grant a California immigration bond to the alien and allow to set the cost of the bail bond.

How to Request a Bond Hearing

When a person is in immigration detention pending deportation proceedings, you can request a bond hearing from the Immigration Judge —either orally in court or in writing. You can make an oral motion for a bond hearing (called a Master Calendar Hearing) upon your first scheduled court appearance. However, if the person is in jail for more than a few days without having notice of hearing, you will have to apply for a bail hearing in writing.

The best choice for the defendant is to employ an experienced immigration attorney who can efficiently write and file a well-written bond hearing application. If that’s not an option, they may have to access a law library of sorts and be able to prepare one on their own. All of this depends on the facility they are located in, and on the willingness of their deportation officer to help them gain access to these benefits.

The appropriate steps to make an appointment for California immigration bail bond payment are:

Schedule an appointment with the detention center affiliated with the local ICE office where the illegal alien is being held. The appointment with the local ICE office can only be scheduled by a person of legal status in the US.
A person of legal status in the United States can make an appointment with the local ICE office, but only after the California Immigration bail bond has been issued.
To make an appointment with the local ICE office, you need to call the ICE detention center related office where the identified illegal alien is held.
Ensure the local ICE office is designated to accept bail bond payments from California.
Once you are in the call with the assigned local ICE office, press “0” to speak to someone who can provide personal assistance.
Let the person answering this call know that you’d like to make an appointment to pay an immigration bail in California.

How to Get and Pay an Immigration Bail Bond in California

Getting and paying an immigration bail bond in California to get someone you know out of a US Detention center Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can be tricky. If you don’t understand the procedure or follow the incorrect policy, it may hinder the release of a detained illegal alien in California.

Ways to Pay an Immigration Bond

Getting a cashier’s check and writing: to the “Homeland Security Department.”
Asking for a bail bondsman’s support to pay the Immigration bail bond.

Documents to be brought to the local ICE bureau

The person with legal status in the US in charge of paying the California immigration bail bond must bring along their original social security card, along with valid photo identification, as either a social security card or photo ID copies are not accepted.

The local ICE office must contact the detention facility housing the illegal alien when the immigration bail bond is paid in full, and order their release. Expect to take at least an hour to complete the bond-out process. Once the detained immigrant has been released, legal assistance for migrants should be obtained immediately.

Call us for help

To get an immigration bond, you need to know what kind of bond the detained immigrant is eligible for, and how much is the bail. Usually, this is determined by an ICE agent and/or an immigration judge, depending on the circumstances.

If you can’t fully pay the bond to ICE, California Immigration bail bond agencies are available to help release the detained alien for an average fee of 15-20 percent of the total bail bond amount.

Let our team help you, we will guide you through each step of the bail bonds process, from the initial arrest to your bail bond being exonerated.

Our bail bondsman’s goal is to help you get your friend or loved one out of jail as quickly as possible.