Facing removal proceedings in Miami? Learn how deportation defense works in Florida immigration court — your rights, the process, and options for relief.
If you or a family member has received a Notice to Appear (NTA) from the Department of Homeland Security, time is not on your side — but you do have rights, and you do have options. At Fitenko Law PLLC, Ekaterina Fitenko, Esq. works with individuals and families across Greater Miami — from Doral and Hialeah to Kendall, Brickell, Aventura, and Hallandale Beach — to build the strongest possible defense against removal. This guide explains how the process works, what relief may be available, and why acting quickly matters in today's South Florida enforcement climate.
A Notice to Appear (NTA) is the document the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) uses to formally start removal (deportation) proceedings against a noncitizen. Think of it as the charging document in immigration court — it lists the factual allegations against you and the legal grounds DHS believes make you removable.
Receiving an NTA does not mean you will be deported. It means the government has initiated a legal process before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), the federal agency that runs the U.S. immigration courts. You have the right to appear before an immigration judge, present your case, and apply for relief.
What you should do immediately after receiving an NTA:
Once DHS files the NTA with the immigration court, your case moves through two main types of hearings before an immigration judge at the Miami Immigration Court (administered by EOIR).
Your first court date is called a master calendar hearing. This is a shorter, administrative appearance where the immigration judge:
Multiple respondents are typically scheduled on the same master calendar date. It is not the full trial — but what you say here matters, and having an attorney present is strongly advisable.
If you are applying for relief from removal, the judge schedules an individual calendar hearing — the full merits hearing. This is where your attorney presents evidence, calls witnesses, cross-examines DHS witnesses, and argues why you should be granted relief. The judge issues a decision at the end of this process, which may be appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) if necessary.
The timeline between master calendar and individual hearing can range from several months to well over a year, depending on Miami court docket backlogs (as of mid-2026, immigration courts nationally continue to face significant caseload pressure).
U.S. immigration law guarantees you certain rights once removal proceedings begin. Understanding them is the foundation of any defense.
These rights exist on paper — but exercising them effectively requires legal knowledge. According to publicly reported EOIR data, only roughly 30% of people had legal representation when a removal order was issued in early 2026. Represented individuals have substantially better outcomes.
"Deportation defense" is not a single strategy — it is a collection of legal remedies, each with its own eligibility rules. An experienced attorney reviews your full history to identify every option that may apply. Common forms of relief include:
Available to certain lawful permanent residents and qualifying nonpermanent residents, each under different rules. For non-LPR cancellation, the applicant generally must show at least 10 years of continuous physical presence, good moral character, and that removal would cause exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a qualifying U.S. citizen or LPR spouse, parent, or child. This hardship standard is demanding and goes well beyond the ordinary hardship of family separation. Many families in Hialeah, Doral, and Miami-Dade's diverse immigrant communities may have qualifying relatives — an attorney can assess whether the standard can be met.
Asylum is available to individuals who demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Cuban and Haitian nationals, as well as many Venezuelan and Colombian nationals, may have colorable claims depending on individual circumstances. Withholding of removal and CAT protection offer related but distinct protections with different standards.
If you are the immediate relative of a U.S. citizen or another qualifying petitioner, and an immigrant visa is immediately available, you may be eligible to adjust your status to lawful permanent resident — even within removal proceedings, in some cases.
Certain grounds of inadmissibility or deportability can be forgiven through waivers. Which waiver applies depends on the specific charge and your family ties.
In some situations, voluntarily departing the United States rather than being formally removed preserves future immigration options. This is not always the right choice — a formal removal order triggers multi-year or permanent bars to reentry — but it may be strategically appropriate depending on your goals.
Every case is different. The forms of relief available to you depend on your immigration history, family ties, country of origin, and the specific charges in your NTA. Do not assume a form of relief does or does not apply without speaking to an attorney.
Florida has significantly expanded its immigration enforcement posture. In February 2025, Governor DeSantis signed SB 2-C and SB 4-C — two laws that allocated over $250 million to state-level enforcement, ended in-state tuition eligibility for undocumented students, enhanced criminal penalties, and introduced state-level offenses for unauthorized entry. SB 4-C's most aggressive provisions have been blocked by federal courts, and the U.S. Supreme Court denied Florida's emergency request to revive them in 2025 — the law remains unenforceable as of mid-2026, though the litigation is ongoing and the situation may change. Even so, the enforcement climate in South Florida remains significantly heightened compared to prior years.
For Miami-area residents in Aventura, Kendall, Brickell, Doral, or Hallandale Beach, this means local law enforcement agencies are more likely to coordinate with federal immigration authorities. An immigration charge that might once have been handled quietly can now trigger a chain of events that leads to detention and an NTA much faster than before.
If you have a pending issue — an expired visa, an old removal order, a criminal charge — getting ahead of it with qualified legal counsel is far less costly than responding to an NTA after the fact.
The Miami Immigration Court (EOIR) handles one of the largest and most complex dockets in the country, reflecting South Florida's extraordinarily diverse immigrant population — Cuban, Venezuelan, Haitian, Colombian, Nicaraguan, Brazilian, and many more communities are regularly represented before Miami judges.
Immigration judges apply federal law consistently, but the quality of your defense — the evidence you gather, the arguments your attorney frames, the applications you file — directly shapes the outcome. Nationally, removal-related outcomes dominate: in fiscal year 2025, EOIR data show that roughly 63% of initial case decisions were removal orders and about 5% were grants of voluntary departure, while a much smaller share resulted in grants of relief. Those odds shift meaningfully when respondents have qualified representation.
Ekaterina Fitenko, Esq. of Fitenko Law PLLC provides bilingual (English and Russian) representation in removal proceedings. The firm serves clients across Greater Miami, Broward County, and South Florida, including significant Russian-speaking communities in Aventura and Sunny Isles Beach.
Fitenko Law PLLC | 600 Three Islands Blvd, Hallandale Beach, FL 33009 | (305) 315-3425
If you or someone you know is facing removal proceedings or has reason to believe an NTA may be forthcoming, here are the most important steps:
Fitenko Law PLLC offers consultations for individuals in removal proceedings and for those who want to proactively address a vulnerability in their immigration status before enforcement reaches them. Call (305) 315-3425 to schedule your consultation today.
If you miss a scheduled hearing, the immigration judge will almost certainly issue an in absentia order of removal — meaning you are ordered deported without being present. Reopening a case after an in absentia order is very difficult and requires showing exceptional circumstances. Never miss a court date.
You have the right to be represented by an attorney, but the government is not required to provide one at its expense — unlike in criminal court. You may hire a private immigration attorney or seek pro bono legal services. Having counsel significantly improves outcomes in removal proceedings.
Having U.S. citizen children does not automatically prevent removal, but it is highly relevant to several forms of relief — particularly cancellation of removal, which considers the hardship removal would cause to qualifying U.S. citizen or LPR family members. An attorney can evaluate whether your family ties support a viable defense.
Asylum is based on fear of persecution in your home country due to race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Cancellation of removal is based on your ties and history in the United States, particularly the hardship your removal would cause to qualifying U.S. citizen or LPR relatives. Both are heard in immigration court, and a person may qualify for one but not the other — or potentially both.
Miami Immigration Court, like most large urban courts, has a significant backlog. The time from an initial master calendar hearing to a final individual hearing decision can range from several months to multiple years, depending on case complexity and court scheduling. As of mid-2026, exact timelines are subject to change as court capacity and policy evolve.
As of mid-2026, the core provisions of Florida's SB 4-C that criminalized unauthorized entry and authorized state arrests for immigration violations have been blocked by federal courts and remain unenforceable, though the litigation is ongoing. However, the overall enforcement climate in Florida remains heightened, and state and local agencies have increased coordination with federal immigration authorities under SB 2-C. Consult an attorney about your specific situation.
This article is general educational information only, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Immigration law changes frequently — consult a licensed immigration attorney for guidance specific to your situation.
Fitenko Law PLLC, 600 Three Islands Blvd, Hallandale Beach, FL 33009. Phone: (305) 315-3425. Email: fitenkolaw@gmail.com