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Immigration Legal Services

UC Immigrant Legal Services Center (UCImm)

Operating out of UC Davis School of Law, UCImm serves the immigration-related legal needs of students, staff, and faculty in the University of California system and their immediate family members (parents, spouse, siblings, and/or children). 

Free-of-charge legal assistance includes:

  • Confidential consultation to assess eligibility for all immigration relief programs
  • Legal advice for students, staff, and faculty who plan to travel and want to assess potential risks 
  • Direct representation 
  • Know Your Rights workshops 
  • UC-wide informational webinars

Cases they support include: 

  • Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), 
  • Advance Parole for students eligible to study abroad, 
  • U-visa for survivors of crime, 
  • T-visa for survivors of trafficking, 
  • Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS),
  • Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) for survisors of domestic violence,
  • Family Based Petitions, 
  • Adjustment of status (i.e., green card application)
  • Naturalization (citizenship)

Meet the UC Santa Cruz Staff Attorney

ritu-headshot-2023.jpeg

Ritu Goswamy (they/them) is a Staff Attorney with the UC Immigrant Legal Services Center and serves UC Santa Cruz. They are a graduate from Barnard College, Columbia University (B.A. Psychology, minor in English) and Boston College (Joint J.D./M.S.W. degrees). Prior to joining the Center, Ritu worked as a child welfare worker in Oakland, and as an attorney with the Legal Aid Society – Employment Law Center (now Legal Aid at Work) and Legal Advocates for Children & Youth (part of the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley). Ritu was an Equal Justice Works Fellow with Homeboy Industries, where they founded the legal services program serving formerly gang-involved and previously incarcerated people. Ritu then ran their own private immigration law practice for 15 years focused on complex family-based and naturalization cases, U visas, VAWA, asylum, and removal defense. Ritu is also a leadership and wellness coach and published author. They enjoy hiking, walking on the beach, farmers markets and ayurvedic wellness practices. Ritu is a second-generation immigrant, and proficient in Spanish and Hindi. 

Schedule an Appointment

To schedule a consultation, please email Ritu Goswamy at <ritu.ucimm@law.ucdavis.edu> or call Tel: (530) 574-9414.

[Note: If your matter is high-priority (according to the list below), please mention the situation in your email to Ritu.]

High-priority situations:      

  • You may be eligible for Special Immigrant Juvenile status (SIJS) due to abuse, abandonment, or neglect by one or both parents and will be turning 21 within the next year. Explanation of SIJS available here.    
  • Your DACA is expiring within the next 4 months or already expired less than a year ago. More information on the DACA court case (litigation) available here.    
  • You have a pending immigration case in which you have received an interview or hearing notice, a Request for Evidence (RFE), or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID).    
  • You or an immediate family member are currently in removal proceedings in immigration court or are currently in immigration detention.    

Frequently Asked Questions about UCIMM (updated March 2025)

1. What types of services do UCIMM legal service providers offer?

UCIMM offers legal services in the following areas:

Type of Legal Assistance:
  • Legal intakes/comprehensive consultations
  • Advice
  • Representation and/or referrals
  • Legal support for informational and know-your-rights sessions
Types of cases we handle include:
  • DACA renewals
  • Advance parole
  • Special Immigrant Juvenile Status ("SIJS")
  • U visa
  • T visa
  • Relief under the Violence Against Women Act ("VAWA")
  • Family-based petitions
  • Adjustment of status (i.e., green card applications)
  • Waivers and consular processing
  • Naturalization
  • Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA") request
  • Temporary Protected Status and renewal
  • Green card renewal

UCIMM does typically not provide legal services or representation for employment-based (e.g. H-1B, L-1, P visas) or student visas (e.g., F-1, J-1), which are outside of our area of expertise. However, if you are a DACA worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area, you may be eligible for immigration legal services through our partner organization, Path2Papers. Those outside of the Bay Area seeking information about employment-based pathways may wish to seek a free consultation with Pathway for Immigrant Workers.

2. Who is eligible to receive support from the UC Immigrant Legal Services Center (UCIMM)?

Our services are available to a wide range of UC affiliates:

  • STUDENTS: enrolled students at one of nine University of California Campuses (UCD, UCI, UCLA, UCM, UCR UCSB, UCSC, UCSD, or UCSF. * UC Berkeley students are eligible for comprehensive services through the East Bay Community Law Center.

  • STAFF/EMPLOYEES/FACULTY: A noncitizen employee, staff member, or faculty at UCB, UCD, UCI, UCLA, UCM, UCR, UCSB, UCSC, UCSD, or UCSF may be eligible for our services. Note: Due to a high-volume of inquiries, we will prioritize employees in need of DACA renewal assistance where the work permit will expire within 6 months, inquiries from TPS recipients, and employees who have been arrested or detained by immigration.

  • IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBERS OF UC STUDENTS: Specifically, parents, spouse, siblings, or children of a student enrolled at UCD, UCI, UCLA, UCM, UCR, UCSB, UCSC, UCSD, or UCSF, are eligible for our services at the campus where the student is enrolled.

3. Can my family receive immigration legal services through UCIMM?

Immigration legal services through UCIMM are available to low-income family members of UC students, specifically, parents, spouse, siblings, or children of a student enrolled at UCD, UCI, UCLA, UCM, UCR, UCSB, UCSC, UCSD, or UCSF. If eligible for UCIMM services, family members of UC students may seek services from the campus where the student is enrolled.

4. Are services available to UC Alumni?

In some cases, yes. UCIMM is part of a special initiative that allows us to temporarily assist some UC alumni with ties to the Bay Area in our areas of services. We currently offer immigration legal services to UC graduates who have a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area and who have DACA, had DACA, or qualify for but never received DACA. The San Francisco Bay Area includes the following counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, Sonoma, and Yolo.

5. Can UCIMM help with my deportation (removal) case?

At this time, we do not provide full-scope representation to people in deportation (removal) proceedings. However, if a UC affiliate is arrested or detained by immigration authorities, UCIMM is available as a first point of contact, and can assist in such cases when we have capacity. Depending on capacity and the nature of the case, we will endeavor to assist detained individuals in securing their release from immigration custody. If we are unable to do so, we will assist in supporting the individual detained and their loved ones, including by identifying  resources and to help triage. If you are a UC affiliate and have been arrested or detained by immigration enforcement, you or an authorized point of contact can request assistance by emailing at ucimmhelp@law.ucdavis.edu to request assistance. This email address will be monitored 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and occasionally on weekends.

6. How do I find appointments with a UCIMM immigration legal services provider?

You may book an appointment online with your campus attorney by visiting Book an Appointment | UCIMM If there are no available appointments, please follow the instructions on your campus attorney’s booking link.

7. Does UCIMM offer immigration legal services in languages other than English?

Yes. Most of our staff speaks Spanish. If you or a family member speaks a language other than English or Spanish, please let us know and we can find an interpreter or translator to facilitate our first meeting.

Download a copy of these Frequently Asked Questions

Resources & FAQs

The UC Immigrant Legal Services Center has compiled a variety of resources including Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and recordings of past UC-wide webinars. Please visit their website (https://ucimm.law.ucdavis.edu/legal-resources-faq) to access the following resources: