Parent’s Period of Residence Cannot be Imputed to Child for Cancellation of Removal
Under Section 240A(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, cancellation of removal for lawful permanent residents is a form of relief available to an individual in removal (immigration court) proceedings.
In order to be eligible for cancellation of removal for lawful permanent resident, an individual must show the following:
1. That he or she has been admitted for lawful permanent residence for 5 years;
2. That he or she has resided in the US continuously for 7 years after having been admitted into any status;
3. That he or she has not been convicted of an aggravated felony; and
4. That he or she warrants a favorable exercise of discretion by the Immigration Judge.
An individual’s commission of a crime or offense which would render that individual inadmissible into the US ends the continuous 7 year period required to be eligible for cancellation of removal for lawful permanent residents. It is important to note that the continuous residence ends on the date the crime is committed not when the individual is convicted.
In Matter of Javier Ramirez-Vargas, 24 I&N Dec. 599 (BIA 2008), the issue was whether the Respondent had the 7 year period of continuous residence. In that case, the Respondent became a lawful permanent resident on March 14, 1997 and his first offense of possession of methamphetamine, was committed on December 10, 2003, terminating his period of lawful permanent residence. The Respondent was just shy of the 7 year period of continuous residence. Save
The Respondent argued that the time he lived with his lawful permanent resident father as the unemancipated minor should be imputed to his period of lawful permanent residence for the purposes of accruing 7 year period of continuous residence. While Immigration Judge agreed and granted the application for cancellation of removal, the Board of Immigration Appeals reversed the decision and held that “a parent’s period of residence in the United States cannot be imputed to a child for purposes of calculating the 7 years of continuous residence required to establish eligibility for cancellation of removal under section 240A(a)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. 8 U.S.C. §1229b(a)(2) (2006).” Accordingly, the Respondent did not acquire the continuous 7 year period required for cancellation of removal and was therefore ordered removed from the US.