Immigration Assistance – Know Your Resources and Rights

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The Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Advancement (MOIA) hears and understands our community’s concerns and requests for resources to support our immigrant residents. To offer assistance, we have collected information you can use. This “live document” is updated as more resources become available and policy updates happen through 2025.

Who is MOIA?

The Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Advancement (MOIA) works to strengthen the ability of immigrants to fully and equitably participate in economic, civic, social, and cultural life in Boston. MOIA also promotes the recognition and public understanding of the contributions of immigrants to the City.

MOIA was created in 1998 as the Mayor’s Office of New Bostonians. In 2016, the name and focus of the office changed to the Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Advancement to reflect the shift in strategic priorities and services.

MOIA Resources 

  • Free 15-minute phone immigration consultations for Boston residents with volunteer lawyers to get preliminary guidance, linked here. 
  • Community office hours for Boston residents to ask about city services, linked here.
  • MOIA’s newsletter with updates from the City and community partner organizations. 
  • MOIA seeks to hear directly from Boston residents, immigrants, and refugee communities to inform its 2025-2029 Strategic Plan and shape its long-term planning. The survey is open to Boston residents, is available in 11 languages, takes less than 10 minutes to complete, and accepts responses in paper and online formats. Take the survey.

Immigration Resources 

  • For immediate legal support and to report ICE in your community, call the Immigrant Defense Hotline at 617-988-0606
  • Lawyers for Civil Rights 
  • American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) MA Chapter: for different civil rights education and training.
  • The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA) Coalition: Know Your Rights training.

Know Your Rights

According to MIRA Coalition, immigrant residents should be aware of the following:

  • You have the right to remain silent and do not have to discuss your immigration or citizenship status with police, immigration agents, or other officials. Anything you tell an officer can later be used against you in immigration court.
  • If you are not a U.S. citizen and an immigration agent requests your immigration papers, you must show them to them if you have them with you.
  • If an immigration agent asks if they can search you, you have the right to say no. Agents do not have the right to search you or your belongings without your consent or probable cause.
  • If you’re over 18, always carry your papers with you. If you don’t have them, tell the officer that you want to remain silent or that you want to consult a lawyer before answering any questions.
  • Here is a list of contact information for legal organizations that assist immigrants.

What to do right now? – ¿Que Hacer Ahorita?

  • Create a Family Emergency Preparedness Plan. This might include emergency phone numbers and family contact information, childcare plans, and a file of important documents, should you need it.
  • Continue applying for immigration documents (renewing status, green cards, TPS, work permits), and if expiration is coming up (within the next 5-6 months), renew as early as possible.
  • Continue accessing public benefits you have and qualify for (healthcare, education, transportation, etc.). Organizations helping with questions include Healthcare For All, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute
  • Know your rights: Everyone living in the U.S. has certain fundamental rights under the U.S. Constitution, and it’s important that we all respect and protect those rights. Providers can sign up for Know Your Rights (“KYR”) training, and “KYR” resources (including family emergency planning) can be shared with residents. NILC’s Know Your Rights resources are also available at www.nilc.org.
  • Consider consulting an immigration attorney: An attorney can help address specific concerns, including whether you can adjust your immigration status and what to do if you encounter immigration enforcement. Families with immigration-related questions can be referred to MOIA for a Free Immigration Consultation. Seek guidance and advice ONLY from immigration attorneys and/or Department of Justice Accredited Representatives.
  • Massachusetts has inclusive driver’s license policies, consider applying for one: A driver’s license provides valid identification and helps reduce the risk of entering the criminal justice system if stopped by authorities.
  • Connect with a grassroots advocacy group in your city or state: While the messages being shared at a federal level are meant to divide, scare, distract, and separate us, finding support through groups and neighbors is the best way to handle the situation. We need community and solidarity.
  • Remain calm, read more than one news outlet, and ask for help: Avoid believing everything you read or hear in the media or conversations. Find more than one news resource and ask for help from MOIA, community organizations, your District elected leaders, or legal aid organizations to truly understand what is happening. 

For Residents Supporting Immigrants