What forms of relief from removal (e.g., cancellation, asylum, adjustment) are available to green card holders and under what conditions?
Executive summary
Green card holders facing removal have a narrow set of statutory defenses dominated in practice by cancellation of removal for lawful permanent residents and administrative pathways to preserve or regularize conditional status; both are tightly circumscribed by eligibility rules, evidentiary burdens, and judicial discretion [1] [2] [3]. Public reporting and practice guides emphasize that cancellation is a one‑time, Immigration Court remedy for LPRs with specific residency and criminal‑history limits, while conditional residents must pursue distinct USCIS petitions to avoid losing status [1] [4] [5].
1. Cancellation of removal for lawful permanent residents — the principal court remedy
Cancellation of removal for green card holders is available only in removal proceedings before an Immigration Judge and is governed by strict statutory thresholds: the alien generally must have been a lawful permanent resident for at least five years, have seven years of continuous residence in the U.S. after admission, and must not have been convicted of an aggravated felony; it is a one‑time form of relief and is subject to the judge’s discretionary determination of whether the applicant “deserves” relief [1] [6] [7] [3].
2. Procedural requirements and burden of proof — EOIR‑42A and discretionary review
To seek cancellation an LPR completes Form EOIR‑42A and bears the burden of proving each statutory element with documentary evidence (green card, conviction records, tax, medical, schooling, affidavits, etc.); an Immigration Judge may request additional records and still deny relief as a matter of discretion even if statutory criteria appear met [2] [8] [1].
3. Criminal bars and “stop‑time” risks — why convictions matter
Multiple sources underscore that criminal convictions, especially aggravated felonies, can make an LPR ineligible for cancellation and trigger removability in the first place; the presence, character, and timing of convictions often determine whether the “stop‑time” rule or aggravated‑felony bars prevent a cancellation grant [7] [1] [8].
4. Removal of conditions on residence — the USCIS preventive route for some green card holders
Conditional permanent residents (typically marriage‑based two‑year green cards and investor conditional status) must file separate petitions to remove conditions: Form I‑751 for marriage‑based conditional residents must generally be filed jointly within the 90‑day period before the card’s two‑year expiration (with waivers for divorce or abuse), while investor conditional status is addressed by Form I‑829 and similar timing and evidentiary expectations apply; failure to file properly can lead to denial and potential placement into removal proceedings [4] [9] [5] [10].
5. If relief is granted, and appellate options if denied
If an Immigration Judge grants cancellation of removal the order terminates proceedings and allows an eligible LPR to retain lawful permanent resident status; conversely, denials can be appealed — typical appeal windows and the Board of Immigration Appeals process apply and must be monitored closely [11] [3] [12].
6. What the reporting does not fully cover — gaps and practical implications
The assembled sources focus heavily on cancellation and removal‑of‑conditions remedies and repeatedly recommend specialized legal assistance, but they do not comprehensively catalog every possible path a green card holder might pursue (for example, the interaction between asylum claims, adjustment applications, or rare forms of prosecutorial discretion in LPR cases is not thoroughly treated in these sources) — the available reporting therefore documents the main court and USCIS processes but leaves other avenues under‑reported [13] [3] [6].
7. Bottom line — narrow relief, procedural traps, and the need for evidence
Green card holders facing removal primarily rely on cancellation of removal in Immigration Court if they meet the statutory temporal and criminal‑history tests, or on timely USCIS petitions to remove conditional status if applicable; both avenues demand documentary proof, meet tight deadlines, are often discretionary, and can be foreclosed by certain convictions or filing failures, so outcomes hinge on strict legal criteria and quality of evidence [1] [2] [4] [8].