8 USC 1252 - Judicial review of orders of removal

View all text of Part V [§ 1251 - § 1260]

§ 1252. Judicial review of orders of removal

(a) Applicable provisions

(1) General orders of removal

(2) Matters not subject to judicial review

(A) Review relating to section 1225(b)(1)

(i) except as provided in subsection (e), any individual determination or to entertain any other cause or claim arising from or relating to the implementation or operation of an order of removal pursuant to section 1225(b)(1) of this title,

(ii) except as provided in subsection (e), a decision by the Attorney General to invoke the provisions of such section,

(iii) the application of such section to individual aliens, including the determination made under section 1225(b)(1)(B) of this title, or

(iv) except as provided in subsection (e), procedures and policies adopted by the Attorney General to implement the provisions of section 1225(b)(1) of this title.

(B) Denials of discretionary relief

Notwithstanding any other provision of law (statutory or nonstatutory), including section 2241 of title 28, or any other habeas corpus provision, and sections 1361 and 1651 of such title, and except as provided in subparagraph (D), and regardless of whether the judgment, decision, or action is made in removal proceedings, no court shall have jurisdiction to review—

(i) any judgment regarding the granting of relief under section 1182(h), 1182(i), 1229b, 1229c, or 1255 of this title, or

(ii) any other decision or action of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority for which is specified under this subchapter to be in the discretion of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security, other than the granting of relief under section 1158(a) of this title.

(D) Judicial review of certain legal claims

(3) Treatment of certain decisions

(4) Claims under the United Nations Convention

(5) Exclusive means of review

(b) Requirements for review of orders of removal

With respect to review of an order of removal under subsection (a)(1), the following requirements apply:

(1) Deadline

(2) Venue and forms

(3) Service

(A) In general

(B) Stay of order

(4) Scope and standard for review

Except as provided in paragraph (5)(B)—

(A) the court of appeals shall decide the petition only on the administrative record on which the order of removal is based,

(B) the administrative findings of fact are conclusive unless any reasonable adjudicator would be compelled to conclude to the contrary,

(C) a decision that an alien is not eligible for admission to the United States is conclusive unless manifestly contrary to law, and

(D) the Attorney General’s discretionary judgment whether to grant relief under section 1158(a) of this title shall be conclusive unless manifestly contrary to the law and an abuse of discretion.

No court shall reverse a determination made by a trier of fact with respect to the availability of corroborating evidence, as described in section 1158(b)(1)(B), 1229a(c)(4)(B), or 1231(b)(3)(C) of this title, unless the court finds, pursuant to subsection (b)(4)(B), that a reasonable trier of fact is compelled to conclude that such corroborating evidence is unavailable.

(5) Treatment of nationality claims

(A) Court determination if no issue of fact

(B) Transfer if issue of fact

(6) Consolidation with review of motions to reopen or reconsider

(7) Challenge to validity of orders in certain criminal proceedings

(A) In general

(B) Claims of United States nationality

If the defendant claims in the motion to be a national of the United States and the district court finds that—

(i) no genuine issue of material fact about the defendant’s nationality is presented, the court shall decide the motion only on the administrative record on which the removal order is based and the administrative findings of fact are conclusive if supported by reasonable, substantial, and probative evidence on the record considered as a whole; or

(ii) a genuine issue of material fact about the defendant’s nationality is presented, the court shall hold a new hearing on the nationality claim and decide that claim as if an action had been brought under section 2201 of title 28.

The defendant may have such nationality claim decided only as provided in this subparagraph.

(D) Limitation on filing petitions for review

(8) Construction

This subsection—

(A) does not prevent the Attorney General, after a final order of removal has been issued, from detaining the alien under section 1231(a) of this title;

(B) does not relieve the alien from complying with section 1231(a)(4) of this title and section 1253(g) 1

1 See References in Text note below.

of this title; and

(9) Consolidation of questions for judicial review

A petition for review or for habeas corpus of an order of removal—

(1) shall attach a copy of such order, and

(2) shall state whether a court has upheld the validity of the order, and, if so, shall state the name of the court, the date of the court’s ruling, and the kind of proceeding.

(d) Review of final orders

A court may review a final order of removal only if—

(1) the alien has exhausted all administrative remedies available to the alien as of right, and

(2) another court has not decided the validity of the order, unless the reviewing court finds that the petition presents grounds that could not have been presented in the prior judicial proceeding or that the remedy provided by the prior proceeding was inadequate or ineffective to test the validity of the order.

(e) Judicial review of orders under section 1225(b)(1)

(1) Limitations on relief

Without regard to the nature of the action or claim and without regard to the identity of the party or parties bringing the action, no court may—

(A) enter declaratory, injunctive, or other equitable relief in any action pertaining to an order to exclude an alien in accordance with section 1225(b)(1) of this title except as specifically authorized in a subsequent paragraph of this subsection, or

(B) certify a class under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in any action for which judicial review is authorized under a subsequent paragraph of this subsection.

(2) Habeas corpus proceedings

Judicial review of any determination made under section 1225(b)(1) of this title is available in habeas corpus proceedings, but shall be limited to determinations of—

(A) whether the petitioner is an alien,

(B) whether the petitioner was ordered removed under such section, and

(C) whether the petitioner can prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the petitioner is an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, has been admitted as a refugee under section 1157 of this title, or has been granted asylum under section 1158 of this title, such status not having been terminated, and is entitled to such further inquiry as prescribed by the Attorney General pursuant to section 1225(b)(1)(C) of this title.

(3) Challenges on validity of the system

(A) In general

Judicial review of determinations under section 1225(b) of this title and its implementation is available in an action instituted in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, but shall be limited to determinations of—

(i) whether such section, or any regulation issued to implement such section, is constitutional; or

(ii) whether such a regulation, or a written policy directive, written policy guideline, or written procedure issued by or under the authority of the Attorney General to implement such section, is not consistent with applicable provisions of this subchapter or is otherwise in violation of law.

(B) Deadlines for bringing actions

(D) Expeditious consideration of cases

(4) Decision

In any case where the court determines that the petitioner—

(A) is an alien who was not ordered removed under section 1225(b)(1) of this title, or

(B) has demonstrated by a preponderance of the evidence that the alien is an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, has been admitted as a refugee under section 1157 of this title, or has been granted asylum under section 1158 of this title, the court may order no remedy or relief other than to require that the petitioner be provided a hearing in accordance with section 1229a of this title. Any alien who is provided a hearing under section 1229a of this title pursuant to this paragraph may thereafter obtain judicial review of any resulting final order of removal pursuant to subsection (a)(1).

(5) Scope of inquiry

(f) Limit on injunctive relief

(1) In general

(2) Particular cases

(g) Exclusive jurisdiction

(June 27, 1952, ch. 477, title II, ch. 5, § 242, 66 Stat. 208; Sept. 3, 1954, ch. 1263, § 17, 68 Stat. 1232; Pub. L. 97–116, § 18(h)(1), Dec. 29, 1981, 95 Stat. 1620; Pub. L. 98–473, title II, § 220(b), Oct. 12, 1984, 98 Stat. 2028; Pub. L. 99–603, title VII, § 701, Nov. 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 3445; Pub. L. 100–525, § 9(n), Oct. 24, 1988, 102 Stat. 2620; Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7343(a), Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4470; Pub. L. 101–649, title V, §§ 504(a), 545(e), title VI, § 603(b)(2), Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 5049, 5066, 5085; Pub. L. 102–232, title III, §§ 306(a)(4), (c)(7), 307(m)(2), 309(b)(9), Dec. 12, 1991, 105 Stat. 1751, 1753, 1757, 1759; Pub. L. 103–322, title II, § 20301(a), title XIII, § 130001(a), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 1823, 2023; Pub. L. 103–416, title II, §§ 219(h), 224(b), Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4317, 4324; Pub. L. 104–132, title IV, §§ 436(a), (b)(1), 438(a), 440(c), (h), Apr. 24, 1996, 110 Stat. 1275, 1277, 1279; Pub. L. 104–208, div. C, title III, §§ 306(a), (d), 308(g)(10)(H), 371(b)(6), Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009–607, 3009–612, 3009–625, 3009–645; Pub. L. 109–13, div. B, title I, §§ 101(e), (f), 106(a), May 11, 2005, 119 Stat. 305, 310.)