Organisations helping immigrants in the United States: free legal help, refugees and African organisations

Information checked on 2 November 2026.

In the United States, there are many organisations helping immigrants, but one rule comes before all others: only a lawyer licensed by a state bar, or a representative accredited by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and attached to a recognized organization, can advise you on your immigration case. To find free or low-cost help, start with the two official lists of EOIR, the office that runs the immigration courts: the List of Pro Bono Legal Service Providers and the roster of Recognized Organizations and Accredited Representatives. If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

US immigration rules and programmes change often. For your situation, rely on official websites (ending in .gov) and an authorised representative, never on a video or a forwarded message.

This page is part of our series on organisations helping foreigners in Europe and the Americas.

The essentials in one table

Addresses and hours change often: go through each organisation's contact page and call before you go.

First of all: who is allowed to advise you

USCIS, the federal agency that processes applications, lists the people allowed to represent you: a lawyer in good standing with the bar of a state, territory or DC; an accredited representative working for a DOJ-recognized organization; law students or graduates supervised by one of them. No one else may represent you or give you legal advice.

The best-known trap has a name: the notario. In many countries, a notary is a lawyer. In the United States, as USCIS points out, a « notary public » is not a lawyer and cannot represent you, including in immigration matters. You do not need a representative to fill in a form anyway: official forms are free.

The most common frauds, and how to report them, are detailed in our guide to avoiding immigration scams in the United States.

Finding free or low-cost legal help

EOIR's List of Pro Bono Legal Service Providers. It is meant for people in proceedings before an immigration court. It lists non-profit organisations, referral services and lawyers who commit to at least 50 hours a year of free representation before the court where they are listed. It is organised by court, published every quarter (January, April, July, October), and the page was updated on 24 September 2026. EOIR states that it does not endorse any of these organisations.

The roster of Recognized Organizations and Accredited Representatives (R&A). The DOJ's Recognition and Accreditation programme allows non-profit organisations to have their clients represented by accredited representatives who are not lawyers. EOIR publishes three lists: recognized organizations, accredited representatives, and both sorted by state. To find an accredited representative, contact a recognized organization near you.

CLINIC's directory. The Catholic Legal Immigration Network brings together more than 420 affiliates in 49 states and DC: non-profits, Catholic or not, that serve low-income immigrants with lawyers or DOJ-accredited representatives. Its directory can be searched by map and location.

The major national organisations

IRC (International Rescue Committee). Present in 30 US cities, from Atlanta to Seattle by way of New York, Dallas and Phoenix, the IRC supports refugees and immigrants: resettlement, asylum, integration. Each office has its own page on the website.

HIAS. A refugee protection organisation founded by Jewish refugees and immigrants, based in Silver Spring (Maryland). In the United States, it offers legal services, a pro bono lawyer programme and support for family reunification.

Church World Service (CWS). CWS has welcomed refugees and newcomers to the United States for decades. Its programmes cover resettlement, asylum and the border, legal services, children and housing for newcomers. A map of offices helps you find the nearest one.

USCRI (U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants). Founded in 1911, USCRI offers humanitarian legal services in its offices, reception of resettled refugees, and services for unaccompanied children and trafficking survivors. Its field offices are listed on its « Find us » page.

Knowing your rights: ACLU and ILRC

ACLU. The American Civil Liberties Union reminds people that, whatever their immigration status, the Constitution guarantees them rights. Its page on immigrants' rights, updated on 4 August 2026, explains how to exercise them, in English and Spanish.

ILRC (Immigrant Legal Resource Center). The ILRC trains lawyers and organisations, publishes practical guides and does not represent individuals. It distributes Red Cards, pocket cards that summarise the rights the Constitution guarantees to everyone. They are free, can be printed at home, and exist in 59 languages, including French, Arabic, Amharic and Swahili. The ILRC points out that they do not replace individual advice.

Unaccompanied children and Texas: KIND and RAICES

KIND (Kids in Need of Defense). KIND finds volunteer lawyers for immigrant or refugee children who arrived in the United States without a parent or legal guardian, and represents them free of charge before the immigration court. Coordinators also help with schooling and counselling.

RAICES. In Texas, RAICES provides legal and social services to people and families who want to put down roots in the United States, with offices in San Antonio, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston. Its « Get Support » page directs requests.

Organisations focused on Africans

African Communities Together (ACT). ACT describes itself as the largest member-led organisation of African immigrants in the United States. It helps people find free or low-cost help with immigration, jobs and other needs, and offers free immigration legal services. It has a chapter in New York and another for Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia. It also works on housing, language access and civic engagement.

Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI). BAJI calls itself « the voice of Black immigrants ». It does not provide individual services: it organises, publishes reports and defends the rights of Black immigrants, from its office in Brooklyn. Useful for understanding the issues and joining collective action.

African Services Committee (ASC). Founded in 1981 in Harlem, it is the first community-based organisation in New York dedicated to newcomers from the African diaspora. It offers free legal consultations and representation for eligible New Yorkers, free and confidential testing and health support, free English and computer classes, housing help and a food pantry. Its team speaks around twenty languages.

Beware of scams

A serious organisation never promises a green card, a visa or a lottery win. Official forms are free, and only a lawyer licensed by a bar or a DOJ-accredited representative can advise you. Be wary of a « notario », a « consultant » or a « travel agent » who offers to fill in your file for money, of any payment requested in gift cards or cryptocurrency, and never leave your original documents with an intermediary.

The warning signs and where to report fraud are gathered in our guide to avoiding immigration scams in the United States. Students will also find the traps specific to scholarships in our article on scholarship scams.

Compatri: your compatriots in the United States

An organisation helps you with the file. Your compatriots know the neighbourhood of New York, Atlanta or Houston where the community has settled, the church or mosque that welcomes newcomers, the right contact for a first job. On Compatri, find the community of your country in your city (communities in the United States), and read how mutual help between compatriots works. Volunteer mentors from the diaspora share their study and work journeys. Compatri's directory of associations mainly lists, for now, diaspora associations in Belgium.

Weighing up Canada? See organisations helping immigrants in Canada.

Compatri is not linked to any of the organisations mentioned: we present them to help you find the right contact.

Sources

• EOIR: List of Pro Bono Legal Service Providers
• EOIR: Recognition & Accreditation Roster Reports
• USCIS: Avoid Scams
• USCIS: find legal services
• IRC: United States
• HIAS
• Church World Service
• USCRI
• CLINIC: affiliate directory
• ILRC
• ILRC: Red Cards
• ACLU: immigrants' rights
• RAICES
• KIND
• African Communities Together
• Black Alliance for Just Immigration
• African Services Committee