What if you are an American citizen and the immigration authorities tell you to leave the country

The American immigration authorities have issued a frank warning in an unprecedented mass email to people living in the country on temporary protected status: “It is time for you to leave the United States.”

Entitled “Conditional release Notice”, the e-mail said: “If you are not moving away from the United States immediately You will be subject to potential laws for applying the law which will cause your withdrawal from the United States – unless you have otherwise obtained a legal basis to stay here. “He also indicates that” the advantages you receive in the United States linked to your parole – such as work authorization – will also end “.

“Do not try to stay in the United States-the federal government will find you,” concludes the e-mail, a copy of which was examined by NBC News.

The email from the Ministry of Internal Security was intended for the 14 million people living in the United States who fled troubles in countries like Venezuela, Haiti, Cuba and Nicaragua.

But in the days following the distribution of email, shocking reports have surfaced that American citizens Massachusetts,, Arizona And Connecticut All received the opinions.

Nicole Micheroni, an immigration lawyer in Boston and a citizen born in the United States, said that she had received the opinion last week.

“At first, I thought it was for a customer, then I laughed a little, then I was a little worried,” she said. “It was a range of emotions that occurred fairly quickly.”

A senior DHS official said in a press release that customs and border protection “monitored communications and will solve any problem on a case -by -case basis.”

“If a non -personal email – as an American citizen contact – was provided by foreigners, opinions may have been sent to involuntary recipients,” said the official.

Micheroni and other immigration experts agree that American citizens who receive e-mail should not legitimately fear that they can face expulsion.

“This email was specifically addressed to the people who entered the United States in parole, and parole means that the United States has agreed to let you enter the United States and that you have no other visa or a reason to be here,” said Micheroni. “So, if you are an American citizen, you should not enter the United States in parole.”

However, experts warn that American citizens should take measures To protect themselves in the unlikely case, they are approached by the immigration authorities contesting their citizenship.

Kristen Harris, an immigration lawyer in Chicago, said that US citizens who receive the opinion should immediately seek advice from an immigration lawyer.

“There is certainly no legal effect under the law or the current regulation for a citizen to be” licensed “since, in particular an American citizen, would never have been, never was put in parole in his life,” she said. “On the other hand, given how … Fluid The current interpretation of the administration is of the existing law, I think that registration with the Private Council of Immigration would be really advised.”

In recent weeks, the authorities of the Trump administration and immigration have intensified efforts to expel non-citizens.

Last month, the administration challenged a judge’s order and sent hundreds of men to a high security prison in El Salvador, saying that they were all members of a Venezuelan gang known as the Aragua train. Some parents of men sent to megaprison have strongly Disputed complaints that their family members are part of the gang.

Kilmar Abrego GarciaAn immigrant from El Salvador living in Maryland by virtue of a protective order by the court, was one of the persons sent to prison in what federal officials called An “administrative error.“The administration has repeatedly challenged or ignored a court order To return Abrego Garcia to the United States

Trump also launched the idea of ​​expelling American citizens found guilty of certain crimes in recent weeks.

Harris and Micheroni recommend that American citizens who receive the opinion collect their documentation, including birth certificates and American passports, to prove that they are American citizens in case they are approached by the immigration authorities.

“I’m not trying to panic people, but I think if you are accidentally on a list, it’s not crazy, but just make sure you have prepared documentation somewhere,” said Micheroni.

Lawyers have also raised that American citizens could involuntarily grouped together with non-citizens in other scenarios.

THE The New York Times recently reported Whether the Trump administration is evolving to cancel the social security numbers for expelled migrants by adding them to a list of deceased people, by setting them up black to earn or spend money.

Micheroni said she had connected to her online social security account in recent days and confirmed that he was active.

“This particular email is not, hopefully, not connected to the Social Security Administration canceling the social security numbers, simply because it seems that this email has been released to so many different people,” she said. “But it is a concern, and I think that wider problems, errors like this or to accidentally put people on the bad list have very serious consequences.”

Not all experts recommended acting.

Jonathan A. Grode, an immigration lawyer in Philadelphia, said that American citizens should largely ignore the opinions if they receive them. Grode has also received email in recent days and has not drawn attention to it.

“I know that I am an American citizen, not in parole. I do nothing,” he said. “I had a good little laugh and deleted it.”

He suggested that the government probably knew that it accidentally had American citizens on the list of messaging recipients, but did not take any measures to solve the problem.

“It is a government of hammers, not scalpels, right? I personally believe that the United States is a very mature and carried out country, and the movements should be taken in a thoughtful, pragmatic and carefully,” he said. “This government does not share this opinion.”

“They want to be agents of change, and their way of doing so is very large and very daring and very aggressive,” he added.