Immigration courts by city: addresses, hours and free lawyers

The seven cities compared

Data as published by EOIR on each court's page (updated between October 8 and October 22, 2026) and in the Justice Department's October 2026 pro bono list. Each row links to the city's section, which holds the address, phones and the full list of free providers.

Looking for the USCIS office that handles your green card or citizenship interview instead? Those are different buildings and a different agency: see USCIS offices by ZIP code.

What is the same at every court

All seven belong to the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). They are courts, not USCIS: green card, citizenship and asylum interviews happen at USCIS offices. These rules apply in every city below, so the sections that follow only list what is different.

• OfficialPeople without an attorney or accredited representative always default to an in-person hearing, whatever the court's video settings say. EOIR, internet-based hearings page.
• OfficialYou must report a new address within five working days on Form EOIR-33, with a copy to ICE's legal office. The court sends every notice to the address on that form and won't update it from anything else you file. Form EOIR-33/IC, rev. Feb 2026.
• OfficialEvery document in Spanish you give the judge needs a complete English translation with the translator's signed certification of competence and accuracy. 8 CFR 1003.33.
• OfficialCourts keep federal hours, Monday to Friday except federal holidays, and can close without warning for weather: check EOIR's operational status page before you leave home. They don't accept faxes or emailed filings unless the judge or staff asked for them. EOIR court pages.
• OfficialEach court has its own mailbox only for asylum work-permit (EAD) clock requests. EOIR asks for your name, your A-Number and why the clock should be adjusted, and says the court does not answer any other message sent there. Ask your lawyer first: whether a clock is adjusted depends on your case. EOIR court pages.
• OfficialA federal court vacated ICE's and EOIR's 2025 courthouse-arrest policies (final judgment June 30, 2026) and on July 10, 2026 refused to pause that while the government appeals. ICE can still arrest people inside courthouses in the limited circumstances its earlier policies allowed. Pablo Sequen v. Albarran, N.D. Cal.

Before your hearing, step by step

1. Find your court and your date

   Your Notice to Appear (NTA) or Notice of Hearing gives the court, the address, the date and the time. Confirm it online at EOIR Automated Case Information with your A-Number (the 9-digit number starting with A on your papers) and your nationality, or by phone at 1-800-898-7180 (TDD 800-828-1120). A rescheduled date only shows up once the court has set it, so check every few weeks and always after you move; the paper notice is the official word.

2. Fix your address now, not later

   If you've moved since your NTA, or the NTA has the wrong address, file the EOIR-33 online through Respondent Access (no login needed), in person at the filing window or by mail, one form per person with a case. Then send a copy to ICE's Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, through the ICE eService portal or by mail. Telling USCIS (Form AR-11) does not update the court, and the court doesn't update USCIS: do both. See change of address: USCIS, court and ICE.

3. If you moved to another state, ask to move the case

   A new address doesn't send your case to a new court. You, or better your lawyer, file a written motion to change venue (8 CFR 1003.20), with your new address already on file. Until the judge grants it, your hearings stay in the same court and missing one has the same consequences.

4. Look for a lawyer the day the notice arrives

   Free help is limited and can fill up weeks ahead. Call the providers in your city's section, ask for a consultation, and bring every paper you have. If you can't get anyone before a first hearing (a master calendar hearing), go anyway and ask the judge for time to find a lawyer. Never send a notario or a friend in your place.

5. Translate what you'll file

   Birth certificates, police reports, medical records: anything in Spanish needs a full English translation and the translator's certification. Same rule as at USCIS: how to do it right.

6. Plan the day

   Arrive early: everyone goes through a metal detector and a bag check, and you may be asked to remove your shoes. No food or drinks unless the judge allows them, and no photos, cameras or recordings. Hearings are generally open to the public (the law sets some exceptions), so a family member can usually come with you and wait.

How the free-help lists work

Each city's section lists the providers on the Justice Department's official pro bono list for that court (October 2026 edition, updated every January, April, July and October). They commit to pro bono hours before that court, and many take only certain people: children, detained people or asylum cases, so the "who they help" column matters.

• OfficialABA Immigration Detention Hotline, on the list for every court below: speed dial 2150# from detention, or families can email the ABA. Only for people detained by ICE or in federal prison, and it helps you prepare your own case (pro se); it doesn't represent you.
• OfficialFull or partial accreditation. Beyond the pro bono list, the Justice Department recognizes nonprofits whose accredited representatives can help, often free or low cost (ask what they charge). Full accreditation lets a representative appear before the immigration court and the Board of Immigration Appeals as well as DHS; partial (“DHS only”) means USCIS only, not the judge. 8 CFR 1292.12.
• LimitThe roster counts accredited representatives, not attorneys, and groups them by organization, not by office: an organization with only partial representatives may still have lawyers who can go to court. Ask who would go with you to your hearing.

Only attorneys and accredited representatives can represent you in immigration court. A notario, a tax preparer or an “immigration consultant” can't, and a wrong filing in court is very hard to undo. Phones can change, so confirm before you travel. If you're Venezuelan and lost TPS, read asylum after TPS: the deadline is running before your first consultation, and see what changed when TPS ended. To see recognized organizations near your ZIP code and whether they can go to court, use the ZIP code tool. Hearing for someone held by ICE? See how to find a person detained by ICE.

Atlanta immigration courts

Atlanta has two downtown courts and a third one for detained cases at the Stewart Detention Center. All three share the same Assistant Chief Immigration Judge. Public hours at all three are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (filing window until 4 p.m.); downtown, street parking is metered and a few lots charge a fee.

The Peachtree trap: court or USCIS

The USCIS Atlanta Asylum Office is at 401 West Peachtree Street NW, Suite 2400, the same street address as the W. Peachtree immigration court (Suite 2600). They are different agencies in different suites. An asylum interview is USCIS; a hearing before a judge is the court. If you have a Notice to Appear (NTA), you are in court proceedings; check the agency name at the top of your notice before you go. At Ted Turner Drive, EOIR asks visitors not to wait in the lobby or near the entrance; to meet your lawyer before the hearing, tell the security officer, who will direct you to the pro bono room.

• OfficialAddresses, phones, emails, hours, judges and the MARTA stations above. All three court pages were last updated on October 8, 2026. EOIR court pages.
• OfficialAsylum clock mailboxes: Ted Turner Drive, W. Peachtree and Stewart.
• ReportedGeorgia law bars a notary who is not a lawyer from services that amount to practicing law, and from advertising as a “legal consultant”. We could only read summaries and an older edition of the code (O.C.G.A. 45-17-8.2), not the current official text. FindLaw.

Free legal help for the Atlanta courts

The Atlanta court's list has only three entries, and only two take people who are not detained. That is not a mistake on this page: call them all, and then use the recognized organizations below. The Georgia Asylum and Immigration Network is on the Atlanta court's list even though its accredited representative on the roster is DHS-only (attorneys are not counted there). The Family and Immigration Rights Center in Tallahassee takes only unaccompanied children in North Florida, South Georgia and South Alabama.

Beyond that list, the Justice Department recognizes 18 organizations in Georgia that serve mostly low-income people at little or no cost.

Source: EOIR roster, report updated November 8, 2026. An asterisk on the roster means pending renewal. Under 8 CFR 1292.16, when an organization asks on time for renewal, its recognition and its representatives' accreditation stay valid while the Justice Department decides, so a pending renewal is not an expired one. Checked November 10, 2026.

Chicago immigration court

One court, in the Loop, on the 15th floor of an office tower. EOIR's judge directory lists 22 judges in Chicago, including the assistant chief immigration judge. If you moved out of Illinois, your hearing is still in Chicago until the judge grants a change of venue.

• OfficialAddress, phone, hours, transit and parking above. Page last updated October 22, 2026. EOIR court page.
• ReportedIn May 2025, federal agents arrested at least four people who came to their scheduled hearings inside the Chicago court. WBEZ.

Free and low-cost legal help for the Chicago court

Checked October 24, 2026.

Dallas immigration court

One court, in the Earle Cabell Federal Building downtown, with 18 permanent judges. It opens earlier than most courts, at 7:30 a.m., and the building's security line can be long then: everyone enters through metal detectors and X-ray machines at the north or south entrance, and the court screens you again.

• OfficialAddress, phone, hours, transit and parking above. Page last updated October 8, 2026. EOIR court page.
• ReportedIn May 2025, lawyers and reporters saw plainclothes ICE agents detain people in the Dallas court's hallways right after the government had their cases dismissed at a first hearing. CBS News Texas.

Free and low-cost legal help for the Dallas court

Checked October 24, 2026. Also in Texas: Houston.

Denver and Aurora immigration courts

The Denver area has two courts. The one in Aurora doesn't look like a court: you enter through an ICE detention center with its own security check. Denver's page lists seven immigration judges and one temporary judge; Aurora's lists five. For context, USCIS's Denver field office had 11,333 naturalization (N-400) applications pending on June 30, 2026, with 1,042 approved and 218 denied in the period April 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026 (USCIS N-400 data, FY2026 Q3).

• OfficialAddresses, phones, emails and hours above. Public hours at both are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (filing window until 4 p.m.). The Denver page was last updated October 9, 2026 and Aurora's on October 22. Everyone passes through a metal detector and a bag check each visit, and you don't need to tell the court you're coming. EOIR court pages.
• OfficialAsylum clock mailboxes: Denver and Aurora.
• ReportedOn May 29, 2025, a family of three, including a 1-year-old, was arrested outside the Stout Street court right after their hearing, in front of a Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network attorney; advocates said six plainclothes officers surrounded them. Colorado Newsline. On June 3, 2025, attorneys for asylum seekers from Mauritania said ICE agents detained several of their clients without explanation; attorney Nicole Murad said two of her clients were detained for questioning after court even though the judge had denied the government's motions to dismiss their cases. All were released. CBS Colorado. Both are from before the 2026 court ruling above.

For the day itself: public transportation to the downtown court runs through the Regional Transportation District (RTD). For Aurora, plan for the detention center's entry process on top of the court's: EOIR calls the building the Denver Contract Detention Facility (GEO) and sends you to ICE's detention facilities page for how to get in. To find someone held in Aurora, see how to find a person detained by ICE: the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network runs a detention hotline at 303-866-9308.

Free and low-cost legal help for the Denver courts

Not every row fits everyone. The list describes RMIAN's Denver program as for children and families in removal proceedings, and the Colorado Asylum Center as asylum applications and appeals only. For an adult alone with another kind of case, ask each organization what it takes.

Recognized organizations around Denver, and who can go with you to court

The October 18, 2026 roster for the Denver area:

* The roster marks the renewal of the organization's recognition as pending; it's still listed as “Active”. Contact details are supplied by each organization to the Justice Department: call before you go. Some serve specific communities, so ask whether they take your case and speak your language. Checked October 25, 2026.

Houston immigration courts

There isn't one Houston immigration court: there are four places where hearings happen, plus Conroe for people in ICE detention. Go to the address printed on your hearing notice, not the one a friend went to: 1919 Smith Street was the downtown court until August 2024 and is now its annex. Public hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Houston (filing window until 4 p.m.) and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Conroe.

• OfficialAddresses, phones, emails and hours above. The Greenspoint Park page was last updated October 16, 2026, and Jefferson Street's on October 8. Parking downtown is paid; at Greenspoint Park it's free. EOIR court pages.
• OfficialThe old Houston – Smith Street court moved to 500 Jefferson Street on August 27, 2024 and was renamed; 1919 Smith Street stayed on as its annex. Old notices and websites still say “Smith Street”. EOIR notice, Aug 15, 2024.
• ReportedIn June 2025, lawyers reported that ICE detained at least six men just outside the South Gessner courtrooms right after a judge dismissed their cases, to place them in expedited removal. ABC13 Houston.

Free and low-cost legal help for the Houston courts

Checked October 24, 2026. The USCIS side of Houston (green card, citizenship, asylum interview) has its own section in the USCIS offices guide.

Miami and Krome immigration courts

Three places, two courts. Krome and Broward sit inside detention centers controlled by ICE, so visiting someone there follows ICE's rules, not the court's.

The downtown court at a glance

• OfficialAddresses, phones, hours and the elevator schedule above. Miami page updated October 8, 2026; Krome page, October 22, 2026. EOIR court pages.
• ReportedIn May 2025, a man whose case was dismissed at his first hearing in Miami was arrested as he left the court and sent to a detention center in Washington state. Government lawyers were asking judges to dismiss cases so people could be put in fast-track removal. Stateline, citing a class-action lawsuit.

Miami's two local rules: see a lawyer before the first hearing, especially if ICE's attorney might ask to dismiss your case, because a dismissal can be the step before fast-track removal and whether to oppose it is a decision to make with a lawyer, not alone in the courtroom. And arrive before the elevators close: there's a metal detector and a bag check on the court floor.

Free and low-cost legal help in Miami, in Spanish

The Justice Department also recognizes these Miami organizations. On the October 18, 2026 roster, Catholic Charities Legal Services of the Archdiocese of Miami (305-373-1073, 28 W. Flagler Street) has 3 representatives with full accreditation out of 7, while the Florida Immigrant Coalition (305-571-7254) and St. Thomas University's clinic (866-491-6737) each list one representative with partial accreditation only. Checked October 24, 2026. The USCIS side of South Florida has its own section in the USCIS offices guide.

Orlando immigration court

The court moved in March 2024 to 500 N. Orange Avenue, so if a website or an old letter says 3535 Lawton Road, that address is out of date. The court closed its old location on March 13, 2024 and reopened for all business at the new address on March 26, 2024, with the same phone number. EOIR's judge directory lists 33 judges for Orlando, including the assistant chief immigration judge. The court can close for hurricanes and storms.

• OfficialThe move and the new address: notices printed after March 2024 carry the Orange Avenue address; if yours says Lawton Road, the hearing is still at 500 N. Orange Avenue, Suite 1100. EOIR notice, March 11, 2024.
• OfficialAddress, phone, hours, parking and the ID requirement above: everyone entering must have a government-issued identification and go through security screening. EOIR doesn't list which IDs it accepts, so a passport is the safest choice; bring your hearing notice too. Page last updated October 8, 2026. EOIR court page.
• OfficialOn the October 2026 pro bono list for Orlando, three of the five organizations (not counting the ABA hotline) take only children. EOIR pro bono list.

Free and low-cost legal help in Orlando

None of the providers on the list take walk-ins: call the day your notice arrives.

For adults that's a short list, so widen it with these Orlando organizations recognized by the Justice Department (roster updated October 18, 2026), often free or low cost (ask what they charge):

Checked October 24, 2026. The USCIS side of Orlando has its own section in the USCIS offices guide.