Our Impact

Since its founding in 2016, The Right to Immigration institute has proved itself to be a strong community member and a warm place of welcome to immigrants in Waltham and throughout the Boston area. TRII continues to further its mission of providing immigration and humanitarian help to those in need through legal representation, volunteer and professional training, and community outreach. 

We are actively helping clients obtain immigration benefits including asylum relief, citizenship, and status adjustments. Constantly reevaluating our services based on need, the pandemic and unpredictable national policy have caused some necessary shifts in our activity. Always dedicated to asylum seekers, we have been working to bolster our citizenship services and expand our domestic violence related work after noticing a great need for such services. During the past few months, our volunteers have been busy assisting clients in the citizenship application process, from paperwork, to interview, to naturalization ceremony!

In addition to legal work, we are dedicated to equipping communities and organizations with the tools they need to advocate for immigrants. We hold “Know Your Rights,” “Citizenship”, and “Public Charge” workshops that are popular among teachers, advocacy groups, social service agencies, impacted communities and the general public. Look out for future programs on our website, and please contact us if you are interested in having us facilitate any one of these training sessions for you! Importantly, we also conduct a training program for college students and community leaders, teaching them the skills they need to navigate our complicated immigration system and be strong client-centered advocates. Many of these trainees become dedicated volunteers at TRII.

Staying true to our belief that every individual deserves professional and compassionate help in navigating our complex legal system, we continue to equip student volunteers and pro-bono lawyers to help those who might otherwise be left to represent themselves. We currently have several volunteer attorneys on staff led by our Director of Legal Programs, Douglas Smith Esq. If you’re interested in joining this dedicated team please give us a call to learn more!