Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) and Board of Alien Labor and Certification Appeals (BALCA)

The Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) is like an appellate court which is not bound by the decisions of the Citizenship and Immigration Service. There is no review of the denial of an extension of stay or change of non-immigrant status. However, the AAO does review many other decisions by Immigration.

The Law Firm helps foreigners when the following types of cases are being reviewed by the AAO:

I-140 Employment-based preference petitions,
Revocation of approved petitions,
Applications for permission to reapply for admission into the US after deportation or removal,
Applications for waiver of certain grounds of inadmissibility,
Petitions for temporary workers,
Applications for re entry permits, and
Naturalization

The AAO does not review denied I-130 petitions as those are reviewed by the Board of Immigration Appeals. The I-130 petition is the petition by a US Citizen or Legal Permanent Resident for a foreign relative.

In addition, the Firm helps foreigners with appeals to the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals. BALCA reviews denials or revocation of Labor Certifications. These decisions are made by a Certifying Officer. The Law Firm also represents employers when BALCA is reviewing a challenge to the prevailing wage, which is the minimum wage that a US employer must pay to a foreigner. This minimum wage is set so that employment of foreigners cannot cost less than employment of a U.S. worker.