What Happens at a Master Calendar Hearing and Later Removal Proceedings?

Immigration court cases move through two kinds of hearings. The first, the master calendar hearing, is short and procedural, often one of many cases heard in a morning. The second, the individual (merits) hearing, is where testimony is taken and the case is decided. Knowing which hearing is coming, and what the judge expects at each, is the most practical way to prepare. This page follows a case from its first document to a decision, using the court's own Immigration Court Practice Manual.

How a Notice to Appear begins the case

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) starts a removal case with a Notice to Appear (Form I-862). Serving it on the person does not by itself start the case. Under Practice Manual 3.2, removal proceedings begin when DHS files the NTA with the immigration court after serving it. The NTA lists factual allegations about the person and the legal charges on which DHS says they are removable. It may also give the first hearing date.

That gap explains a common experience: someone receives an NTA but finds no case in the court's system, because DHS has not yet filed it. Keep the NTA and any later hearing notice; use the court's current notice and case record to confirm the hearing date rather than relying on the NTA alone.

What happens at a master calendar hearing

Master calendar hearings are held "for pleadings, scheduling, and other similar matters," according to Practice Manual 3.14. The manual generally calls for at least 10 days between service of the NTA and the first hearing, subject to waiver. According to the manual, the judge generally:

• advises of the right to a representative at no expense to the government, and provides a list of pro bono legal service providers;
• explains the allegations and charges in non-technical language and takes pleadings, meaning whether each allegation is admitted or denied;
• identifies the relief the person may apply for, and sets deadlines for applications, evidence and briefs;
• schedules the individual hearing, and warns of the consequences of failing to appear.

The judge also verifies the person's address and phone number. If either has changed, a Form EOIR-33/IC must be filed.

Preparing for an individual merits hearing

The individual hearing is the trial. Under Practice Manual 3.15, parties should be prepared to make an opening statement, raise objections to evidence, present witnesses and evidence, cross-examine the other side's witnesses, and make a closing statement. All witnesses, including the respondent, testify under oath, and an interpreter is provided if needed. A party presenting witnesses other than the respondent must file a witness list.

Evidence has to arrive on time. For a non-detained person, filings for the individual hearing are generally due at least 30 days in advance, unless the judge orders otherwise; in detained cases the judge sets the dates (Practice Manual 2.1). The court counts a filing only when it receives it.

Decision, appeal, and record preservation

The judge may decide orally at the end of the hearing or later in writing. Either side may appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals, and the Notice of Appeal (Form EOIR-26) must be received by the Board within 30 calendar days of an oral decision or of the mailing of a written one (EOIR). If no appeal is filed, or the right to appeal is waived, the decision becomes final.

Ask for and keep a copy of the written decision or order, the exhibits, and any filings, along with the date of the decision. The appeal clock runs from that date, and the record before the judge is what the Board reviews.

Continuances and stays serve different purposes

A continuance postpones a hearing. The manual asks for it by written motion explaining the reason, with supporting evidence and proposed dates; oral requests are discouraged (Practice Manual 4.10). A stay is different: it prevents DHS from carrying out a removal order that already exists (Practice Manual 7.1).

Some stays are automatic. Under Practice Manual 7.2, a merits removal order is automatically stayed during the 30-day appeal period and while a timely appeal is pending, unless the appeal was waived. Other stays must be requested and are discretionary. Getting a hearing postponed does not stop a removal order, and a stay request does not move a hearing date.