Many stateless individuals have long-standing final orders of removal and are outside the 90-day time limit187 for a general motion to reopen. Alternatively, they may have previously filed a motion to reopen unsuccessfully and thus exceeded the numerical limitations. Absent one of the exceptions to the time or numerical bars described above, under these circumstances, a joint motion to reopen or a motion to reopen sua sponte can be considered. The venue for filing the motion will depend on which entity—the EOIR, IJ, or the BIA— entered the final administrative decision on the individual’s case. 1. Joint Motion to Reopen The ICE Office of the Chief Counsel (OCC) has the discretion to decide to join a Joint Motion to Reopen.188 If ICE does join such a request, the Immigration Court or the BIA will likely grant the motion to reopen189 and allow a new brief to be submitted. A joint motion to reopen does not require a showing of changed circumstances, and the time and numerical limitations that generally apply to motions to reopen do not apply. In preparing a request for a joint motion to reopen, it is important to keep in mind that OCC will not have access to the individual’s agency file at the time. As such, a written request to OCC to join a motion to reopen may include the following information: 1) A detailed procedural and factual summary of the case, including: (a) why the original asylum claim, if any, was denied; (b) whether there is a criminal history; (c) how the individual became stateless; and (d) why this is the only form of relief that remains. 2) An explanation of any new asylum claim or new factors affecting the previous claim; 3) An explanation of statelessness, including: (a) the legal basis for the statelessness finding (see Section 2 above on proving statelessness); (b) that there are no forms of relief from removal in the U.S. solely based on being stateless; (c) the indefinite nature of statelessness; (d) the unlikelihood of removal for a stateless individual; (e) how long the individual has been stateless. Practice Point It may be helpful to follow up with phone calls to OCC. Also, for cases that have a weak changed country circumstances fact pattern, consider emphasizing the lack of options for a stateless person to access protection. When sending a request to join a motion to reopen to the OCC, you may also consider copying ICE HQ at ERO.INFO@ice.dhs.gov. 2. Motion to Reopen Sua Sponte Where a motion to reopen is time-barred and/or numerically-barred and a client’s country of last habitual residence has not undergone sufficient change to meet the high standard for “changed country conditions,” See 8 C.F.R. § 1002.23. See 8 C.F.R. § 1003.23(b)(4)(iv). 189 Cf. Matter of Hashmi, 24 I&N Dec. 785 (BIA 2009) (In discussing rulings on motions to continue, the BIA stated “If the DHS affirmatively expresses a lack of opposition, the proceedings ordinarily should be continued by the IJ in the absence of unusual, clearly identified, and supported reasons for not doing so.”). 187 188 41