Immigration Legal Assistant

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. Founded in 1933, the IRC is at work today in more than 40 countries and in 26 U.S. cities. The IRC’s Resettlement, Asylum, and Integration (RAI) department creates opportunities for refugees and other vulnerable migrants to survive and thrive in the US. RAI serves nearly 50,000 individuals each year in the US through a diverse portfolio of programs aimed at achieving outcomes in five impact areas: Health, Safety, Economic Wellbeing, Education, and Power.

IRC's immigration legal services program serves more than 14,000 individuals in 23 sites throughout the U.S. each year, providing accessible and critical legal representation and advice to immigrants and their families to acquire the highest level of immigration status available, keep families together, access their full rights, and successfully integrate in the U.S.

The IRC in Salt Lake City opened its office in 1994 and provides resettlement services to newly arrived refugees as well as over twenty different programs to educate and empower refugees. The Immigration Program is a vital part of services and is responsible for providing low-cost immigration legal assistance and expertise to individuals in Utah.

Job Overview:

IRC seeks an Immigration Legal Assistant to join the Salt Lake City office to represent eligible Afghans through a new partnership with the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) in the Western region of the United States. This partnership seeks to provide Afghans who arrived in the U.S. via Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) with access to competent counsel in their immigration matters. IRC is a lead agency responding to the Afghan evacuation and serves tens of thousands of Afghan individuals across the United States.

The Immigration Legal Assistant will support legal practitioners, including attorneys and/or Department of Justice (DOJ) accredited representatives, in representing eligible Afghans in immigration procedures. It is expected that staff hired in this role will work towards DOJ accreditation with support from IRC’s Immigration Technical Unit based at IRC Headquarters.

Major Responsibilities:

- Under the supervision of the Managing Attorney, provide clients with information about immigration benefits available through USCIS, work with clients to gather documents, and assist clients to complete applications. - Respond to inquiries from clients regarding case status and submit inquiries on case status to USCIS and/or Department of State (DOS). - Process correspondence from USCIS and DOS, including notifying clients, assisting clients to prepare responses to notices or evidence requests as appropriate, and following up with relevant parties. - Maintain accurate and up-to-date physical and electronic files and detailed case notes, enter required data in a timely manner, meet all case reporting requirements within established timelines and standards, and assist in the completion of statistical, narrative, and financial reports. - Represent the IRC with clients, community members, and partners by receiving and returning phone calls and emails, scheduling appointments, supporting events (including group processing events), and conducting outreach for legal services. - Maintain strict client confidentiality and observe all other ethical practices/obligations as outlined in IRC’s Immigration Program Policies Manual. - Pursue Department of Justice accreditation by successfully completing all vital training. - Manage intern and volunteer support as needed.

Job Requirements:

- Bachelor’s degree or relevant work experience. - Demonstrated success working and communicating effectively in a multi-cultural environment and with Limited English Proficient populations. - Able to work effectively in a team environment, as well as take independent initiative. - Excellent attention to detail and strong organizational skills. - Proficient in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Outlook) and comfortable utilizing online software and programs. - Excellent communication skills with proficiency in written and spoken English. - Bilingual in one or more languages of the population preferred (e.g., Dari, Pashto). - Demonstrated dedication to immigrant rights, social justice, and/or human rights based on work experience, volunteer service, or educational activities. - Ability to travel locally to engage with clients and community partners.

Preferred experience & skills:

- Previous experience with immigration legal or social services is strongly preferred. - Familiarity with immigration software and experience with data entry and management are a plus. - Community-based outreach and/or work promoting immigrant rights experience is preferred.

Working Environment:

- Standard office environment with occasional opportunities to participate in community outreach and legal assistance events. - May require occasional weekend and/or evening work.

Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements.

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusivity: IRC is committed to building a diverse organization and a climate of inclusivity. We strongly encourage applications from candidates who can demonstrate that they can contribute to this goal.

Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols and other supportive benefits and allowances.

Professional Standards: The IRC and IRC staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Global Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti-Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

Equal Opportunity Employer: We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

US Benefits: We offer a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. In the US, these include: 10 sick days, 10 US holidays, 20-25 paid time off days (depending on role and tenure), medical insurance starting at $145 per month, dental starting at $7 per month, and vision starting at $5 per month, FSA for healthcare, childcare, and commuter costs, a 403b retirement savings plans with up to 4.5% immediately vested matching contribution, plus a 3-7% base IRC contribution (3 year vesting), disability & life insurance, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support counseling and care in times of crisis and mental health struggles.

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