[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 8, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 8CFR1292.2]

[Page 1107-1109]
 
                     TITLE 8--ALIENS AND NATIONALITY
 
CHAPTER V--EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF IMMIGRATION REVIEW, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
 
PART 1292_REPRESENTATION AND APPEARANCES--Table of Contents
 
Sec.  1292.2  Organizations qualified for recognition; requests for 

recognition; withdrawal of recognition; accreditation of representatives; 
roster.

    (a) Qualifications of organizations. A non-profit religious, 
charitable, social service, or similar organization established in the 
United States and recognized as such by the Board may designate a 
representative or representatives to practice before the Service alone 
or the Service and the Board (including practice before the Immigration 
Court). Such organization must establish to the satisfaction of the 
Board that:
    (1) It makes only nominal charges and assesses no excessive 
membership dues for persons given assistance; and
    (2) It has at its disposal adequate knowledge, information and 
experience.
    (b) Requests for recognition. An organization having the 
qualifications prescribed in paragraph (a) of this section may file an 
application for recognition on a Form G-27 directly with the Board, 
along with proof of service of a copy of the application on the district 
director having jurisdiction over the area in which the organization is 
located. The district director, within 30 days from the date of service, 
shall forward to the Board a recommendation for approval or disapproval 
of the application and the reasons therefor, or request a specified 
period of time in which to conduct an investigation or otherwise obtain 
relevant information regarding the applicant. The district director 
shall include proof of service of a copy of such recommendation or 
request on the organization. The organization shall have 30 days in 
which to file a response with the Board to a recommendation by a 
district director that is other than favorable, along with proof of 
service of a copy of such response on the district director. If the 
Board approves a request for time to conduct an investigation, or in its 
discretion remands the application to the district director for further 
information, the organization shall be advised of the time granted for 
such purpose. The Service shall promptly forward the results of any 
investigation or inquiry to the Board, along with its recommendations 
for approval or disapproval and the reasons therefor, and proof of 
service of a copy of the submission on the organization. The 
organization shall have 30 days from the date of such service to file a 
response with the Board to any matters raised therein, with proof of 
service of a copy of the response on the district director. Requests for 
extensions of filing times must be submitted in writing with the reasons 
therefor and may be granted by the Board in its discretion. Oral 
argument may be heard before the Board in its discretion at such date 
and time as the Board may direct. The organization and Service shall be 
informed by the Board of the action taken regarding an application. Any 
recognized organization shall promptly notify the Board of any changes 
in its name, address, or public telephone number.
    (c) Withdrawal of recognition. The Board may withdraw the 
recognition of any organization which has failed to maintain the 
qualifications required by

[[Page 1108]]

Sec.  1292.2(a). Withdrawal of recognition may be accomplished in 
accordance with the following procedure:
    (1) The Service, by the district director within whose jurisdiction 
the organization is located, may conduct an investigation into any 
organization it believes no longer meets the standards for recognition.
    (2) If the investigation establishes to the satisfaction of the 
district director that withdrawal proceedings should be instituted, he 
shall cause a written statement of the grounds upon which withdrawal is 
sought to be served upon the organization, with notice to show cause why 
its recognition should not be withdrawn. The notice will call upon the 
organization to appear before a special inquiry officer for a hearing at 
a time and place stated, not less than 30 days after service of the 
notice.
    (3) The special inquiry officer shall hold a hearing, receive 
evidence, make findings of fact, state his recommendations, and forward 
the complete record to the Board.
    (4) The organization and the Service shall have the opportunity of 
appearing at oral argument before the Board at a time specified by the 
Board.
    (5) The Board shall consider the entire record and render its 
decision. The order of the Board shall constitute the final disposition 
of the proceedings.
    (d) Accreditation of representatives. An organization recognized by 
the Board under paragraph (b) of this section may apply for 
accreditation of persons of good moral character as its representatives. 
An organization may apply to have a representative accredited to 
practice before the Service alone or the Service and the Board 
(including practice before immigration judges). An application for 
accreditation shall fully set forth the nature and extent of the 
proposed representative's experience and knowledge of immigration and 
naturalization law and procedure and the category of accreditation 
sought. No individual may submit an application on his or her own 
behalf. An application shall be filed directly with the Board, along 
with proof of service of a copy of the application on the district 
director having jurisdiction over the area in which the requesting 
organization is located. The district director, within 30 days from the 
date of service, shall forward to the Board a recommendation for 
approval or disapproval of the application and the reasons therefor, or 
request a specified period of time in which to conduct an investigation 
or otherwise obtain relevant information regarding the applicant. The 
district director shall include proof of service of a copy of such 
recommendation or request on the organization. The organization shall 
have 30 days in which to file a response with the Board to a 
recommendation by a distrct director that is other than favorable, with 
proof of service of a copy of such response on the district director. If 
the Board approves a request for time to conduct an investigation, or in 
its discretion remands the application to the district director for 
further information, the organization shall be advised of the time 
granted for such purpose. The district director shall promptly forward 
the results of any investigation or inquiry to the Board, along with a 
recommendation for approval or disapproval and the reasons therefor, and 
proof of service of a copy of the submission on the organization. The 
organization shall have 30 days from the date of service to file a 
response with the Board to any matters raised therein, with proof or 
service of a copy of the response on the district director. Requests for 
extensions of filing times must be submitted in writing with the reasons 
therefor and may be granted by the Board in its discretion. Oral 
argument may be heard before the Board in its discretion at such date 
and time as the Board may direct. The Board may approve or disapprove an 
application in whole or in part and shall inform the organization and 
the district director of the action taken with regard to an application. 
The accreditation of a representative shall be valid for a period of 
three years only; however, the accreditation shall remain valid pending 
Board consideration of an application for renewal of accreditation if 
the application is filed at least 60 days before the third anniversary 
of the date of the Board's prior accreditation of the representative. 
Accreditation terminates when the Board's recognition of the 
organization

[[Page 1109]]

ceases for any reason or when the representative's employment or other 
connection with the organization ceases. The organization shall promptly 
notify the Board of such changes.
    (e) Roster. The Board shall maintain an alphabetical roster of 
recognized organizations and their accredited representatives. A copy of 
the roster shall be furnished to the Commissioner and he shall be 
advised from time to time of changes therein.

[40 FR 23272, May 29, 1975, as amended at 49 FR 44086, Nov. 2, 1984; 62 
FR 9075, Feb. 28, 1997]