Immigration lawyer or paralegal document preparer: which one do you need?
9 min readLegal Prep
There are three kinds of help you can pay for with a USCIS filing: an immigration attorney, an accredited representative at a nonprofit recognized by the Department of Justice, and a paralegal document preparer. They are not three grades of the same service. They are allowed to do different things, they cost very different amounts, and the right one depends on what your case actually needs. This article lays out the difference plainly, including where Legal Prep sits, so you can decide with the facts in front of you.
Who is allowed to do what
Federal rules are strict about representation. USCIS states that only two kinds of people may give you legal advice and represent you before the agency: an attorney in good standing with a US state bar, and an accredited representative working for a Department of Justice recognized organization. Both file a Form G-28 to appear on your behalf, can speak for you at an interview, and can answer USCIS in your name. Everyone else, including a paralegal working on their own, a notary, an immigration consultant or a form preparer, may only help you fill out forms at your direction. USCIS also warns that a notary public in the United States is not an attorney, whatever the word means in Latin America.
In New York, a document preparer is an immigrant assistance service provider under Article 28-C of the General Business Law. The law requires a written contract, a three-business-day right to cancel and get your documents and money back, copies of everything prepared for you, and the return of your original documents on request. It forbids the provider from giving legal advice, calling themselves an attorney, notario or immigration specialist, guaranteeing an outcome, or charging for blank government forms. A preparer who follows that law is doing a legitimate, regulated job. One who does not is the kind USCIS warns about.
| Immigration attorney | Paralegal document preparer | |
|---|---|---|
| Advises you on eligibility and strategy | Yes | No |
| Represents you before USCIS (Form G-28) | Yes | No |
| Attends your interview and speaks for you | Yes | No |
| Immigration court, appeals, waivers | Yes | No |
| Prepares the forms and assembles the evidence | Yes, often through paralegal staff | Yes, at your direction |
| Explains what each form asks for | Yes | Yes |
| Regulated by | State bar, with discipline and malpractice insurance | State consumer law (in New York, GBL Article 28-C) |
| Typical cost, before USCIS fees | $3,500–$6,000 | A preparation fee, far lower, quoted before you commit |
An accredited representative at a DOJ-recognized nonprofit has the same rights as an attorney in the first four rows, usually at low or no cost, and is often the best option for someone who qualifies for their help.
When you need an attorney
The test is simple: does the outcome of your case depend on a legal judgment, or only on doing the paperwork correctly? If any of the following is true, it depends on a legal judgment, and a document preparer is the wrong tool no matter how good they are.
- You are in removal proceedings, have a hearing date, or were ever ordered removed
- You have any arrest, charge or conviction, anywhere, even one that was dismissed
- A previous application was denied, or USCIS ever found fraud or misrepresentation
- You entered without inspection, overstayed for a long period, or are unsure whether a bar to reentry applies to you
- Your case needs a waiver of inadmissibility, such as an I-601 or I-601A
- You are seeking asylum or protection from return
- You want to appeal a decision or file a motion to reopen
- You do not know whether you qualify, and the answer is not obvious from the form instructions
When a document preparer is enough
Most family and naturalization filings are not legal puzzles. They are paperwork, and the paperwork is where they fail: a missing divorce decree, a birth certificate without a translation, a date that differs between two forms, thin evidence of a shared life. A careful preparer exists to prevent exactly that. If your case looks like one of these, preparation is usually what you need.
- A family petition (I-130) or adjustment of status (I-485) for a spouse, parent or child, with a lawful entry and no arrests or prior denials
- Naturalization (N-400) after the required years as a resident, with taxes filed, no trips over six months and no criminal history
- Work permit (I-765) and travel document (I-131) applications and renewals
- Green card renewal or replacement (I-90)
- Removal of conditions (I-751) filed jointly, with a stable marriage and strong evidence
- A FOIA request for your own immigration file
- A response to a request for evidence that asks for documents rather than legal argument
- Any filing where you already know what you are eligible for and want it done right the first time
The third path: consult a lawyer, prepare with a paralegal
The choice is not always either-or. Many attorneys offer a paid consultation, often a flat fee for an hour, in which they review your history and tell you whether you qualify and what to file. That is the part of the case that needs a lawyer. The preparation that follows, gathering evidence, completing forms, checking every line, assembling the package, does not, and it is the part that takes the most hours. Paying for an hour of legal judgment and then for careful preparation costs far less than full representation, and it is often the better-built case, because the person doing the paperwork is doing nothing else. If anything changes along the way, a request for evidence you did not expect, a fact you had forgotten, you go back to the lawyer with a specific question rather than a whole case.
What it costs
Government filing fees are the same whoever helps you. Every form guide on this site shows the current USCIS fee for that form. On top of them, attorneys mostly charge flat fees for common filings: for a marriage-based green card filed inside the United States, published 2026 ranges cluster around $3,500–$6,000, and for a straightforward naturalization around $1,000–$2,500. Cases with a prior denial, an overstay or a criminal record cost considerably more. Document preparation is a separate, smaller fee, and a reputable preparer tells you the number before you commit to anything. The one false economy is a cheap preparer who makes a mistake: a denied filing costs the government fee again, months of waiting, and sometimes the lawyer you were avoiding.
How to check who you are dealing with
- Ask directly: are you an attorney licensed in a US state? If yes, ask which state and check the bar's public lookup.
- If they say they are an accredited representative, find them on the Department of Justice roster of recognized organizations and accredited representatives.
- If they are a document preparer, they must tell you in writing that they are not an attorney and cannot give legal advice. In New York that notice is required by law, and so is a written contract you can cancel within three business days.
- Never sign a blank form, and never let anyone keep your original documents.
- Get a copy of everything filed in your name, with the receipt notice.
- Walk away from anyone who guarantees an approval, claims a special relationship with USCIS, or tells you to answer a question untruthfully.
Where Legal Prep sits
Legal Prep is a paralegal document-preparation service in New York, not a law firm. We prepare filings at your direction, explain what each form asks for, and refer you to an immigration attorney when your case turns on a legal judgment. If you are not sure which you need, tell us your situation and we will say which it is.
Sources
Filing this year?
We'll prepare it right the first time, in English or Spanish.
Figures like these change without notice. We re-check them before every filing, and USCIS publishes its own at USCIS.gov. Ask us about any other number here and we will tell you its source.
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