ALEJANDRO

19 I. & N. Dec. 75

• Court: Board of Immigration Appeals
• Decided: July 1, 1984
• Docket: ID 2964
• Status: Published

Opinion

Interim Decision #2964

MArrhli OF ALEJANDRO

In Deportation Proceedings

A-26334316

Decided by Board May 2, 1981

Where the Notice of Appeal (Form I-290A) is not accompanied by the required fee or a correctly executed affidavit requesting waiver of the fee, it is not properly submitted for filing and shall be reject- ed by the officer having administrative jurisdiction over the case. CHARGE: Order. Act of 1952—Sec. 241(aX2) [8 U.S.C. § izmaxm—Entered without inapeo- tion ON BEHALF OF RESPONDENT: ON BEHALF OF SERVICE: Margo Cowan, Accredited Repreacntative Ira T._ Frank El Concilio Manzo, Inc. General Attorney P.O. Box 3007 Tucson, Arizona 85702

BY: Milhollan, Chairman; Maniatis, Dunne, Morris, and Vacca, Board Members

The respondent has submitted a Notice of Appeal (Form 1-290A) from a decision of an immigration judge dated October 13, 1982, finding him deportable under section 241(a)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1251(a)(2) (1982), and denying his application for asylum and withholding of deportation. The file will be returned to the local office without further action. According to the regulations, a Notice of Appeal shall be accom- panied by the appropriate filing fee. See 8 C.F.R. §§ 3.3(b), 103.7(a) (1984). If an alien is unable to pay the filing fee, the regulations provide a specific procedure under which prosecution of the appeal without payment of fee may be sought. The regulations provide that the alien shall file an affidavit x with his Notice of Appeal in

An affidavit is "a written or printed declaration or stateineut of facts, made vol- untarily, and confirmed by the oath or affirmation of the party making it, taken before a person having authority to administer such oath or affirmation." Black's Lain Dictionary 54 (5th ed. 1979).

'74 Interim Decision #2964

which he states the nature of the appeal, his inability to pay the fee, and his belief that he is entitled to redress, and which requests permission to prosecute the appeal without prepayment of the fee. 8 C.F.R. § 3.3(b) (1984). When such an affidavit is filed, the officer from whose decision the appeal is taken can certify to the Board his reasons for believing that the appeal is not made in good faith. The Board may in its discretion authorize the prosecution of an appeal without prepayment of a fee. .td. Where the Notice of Appeal is not accompanied by the required fee or a correctly executed affidavit requesting waiver of the fee, it is not properly submitted for filing and shall be rejected by the offi- cer having administrative jurisdiction over the case. In this case, the self-styled affidavit attached to the respondent's appeal is nei- ther signed by the respondent nor is it notarized. We find that this. appeal has not been correctly filed. As we conclude that this appeal is not properly before us, we will return the file to the local office. 2 ORDER: The record file is returned to the local office without further action.

2 This is not a case in which a question arises regarding the timeliness of an oth- erwise properly filed appeal. See Matter of Torre 19 MN Dec. 18 (BIA 1984); Matter of Gamboa, 14 I&N Dec. 244 (B1A 1972).