A Vietnam-origin man who is in his late 40s and has lived in the US since he was five received the shock of his life when he opened a letter sent by the Department of Homeland Security. As reported by King5, the man who refused to reveal his identity, fearing more retribution from the administration, was asked to pay nearly $1.8 million to the federal government as he failed to leave the US after receiving the deportation order. The order of removal was issued to the man in 2007 but the man could not leave the US because Vietnam does not issue travel documents to some refugees, his attorney Olia Catala said. Catala told the news outlet that she heard about similar letters but the amount in this case was astronomical. “I don’t know anyone who has $1.8 million just lying around. You get this letter and it’s a shocking number,” the attorney said. She also explained that the man has a valid work permit and has had regular check-ins annually.
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The man came to the US in the early 1980s when he was five years old. “It is ordered that a civil penalty be imposed upon you in the amount of one million … eight-hundred-twenty-thousand-three-hundred-fifty-two dollars,” Catala read from the letter.The letter is not invalid. It is based on a federal law that allows the government to impose daily fines on immigrants who fail to leave the country after a final removal order. The law has been on the books since 1996, but immigration experts say it was rarely enforced for decades. The fines can reach up to $500 per day. The American Immigration Council says the fines can reach up to $998 per day now.
Can immigrants receive such letters?
Catala told the outlet that if immigrants receive such notices asking for a huge amount of fine, they should not panic and should seek legal advice immediately. The DHS has been promoting self-deportation through their app and is now offering an exit bonis of $2600 for those who choose to self deport. “The Department of Homeland Security has announced a historic opportunity for illegal aliens to receive cost-free travel, forgiveness of any failure to depart fines, and a $2,600 exit bonus to facilitate travel back to their home country or another country where they have lawful status through the CBP Home Mobile App,” the DHS said.
