Which Los Angeles Immigration Court Has Your Case: Downtown, West LA or Van Nuys?

Los Angeles has three immigration courts: North Los Angeles Street downtown, West Los Angeles on Pacific Concourse Drive, and Van Nuys Boulevard. Your court is the one named on your most recent hearing notice. Federal rules send every paper in your case to that court and no other, and living closer to a different court does not move the case. Asking to move it takes a motion and a judge’s order.

Three courts, three addresses

All three are immigration courts of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), part of the U.S. Department of Justice. They are not USCIS offices and not ICE offices, which belong to the Department of Homeland Security.

• North Los Angeles Street: 300 North Los Angeles Street, Room 4330, Los Angeles, CA 90012; (213) 576-4701.
• West Los Angeles: 5245 Pacific Concourse Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90045; (310) 335-2100.
• Van Nuys Boulevard: 6230 Van Nuys Blvd., 3rd Floor, Suite 300, Van Nuys, CA 91401; (818) 904-5200.

Each court lists public hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and a filing window open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday except federal holidays. The courts share a city, but each has its own address and filing window.

How to tell which court has your case

Start with the newest hearing notice from the immigration court. It names the court, the address, the date and the time. If you are unsure that it is the newest, check EOIR’s Automated Case Information system with your A-number and nationality, or call 1-800-898-7180. EOIR’s case-status page adds two limits: The system will not show a new hearing date until the court has set one, and the court’s own documents, such as hearing notices, are the official source.

The automated system has a third limit. It shows the primary case only, and if an A-number has had more than one case, it shows the most recent. If you once had a case at another court, do not assume the older notice still controls. If a notice and the online result disagree, ask the court that issued the notice, by phone or through the general-inquiry email on its EOIR page.

If you have only a Notice to Appear and no hearing notice yet, check the automated system before going anywhere. EOIR explains that the case begins when DHS files the Notice to Appear with the immigration court, and the hearing notice that follows is the document to rely on. EOIR’s administrative control list also shows that West Los Angeles hears cases filed by the DHS Los Angeles district office only for people who are not detained.

Papers go to your court, not the nearest one

Under 8 C.F.R. § 1003.11, every document in a case is filed with the court that has administrative control of the record and “shall not be filed with any other Immigration Court.” Handing an application to the West Los Angeles window when your case is downtown does not file it in your case.

Email is not a filing method either. Each Los Angeles court page says the court does not accept faxes or other electronic submissions unless court staff or the judge asked for them, and that unauthorized transmissions are discarded without notice to the sender. Use the general-inquiry address for questions, not for applications or evidence.

In person or by internet

Some hearings are held by video. EOIR publishes each judge’s internet hearing link and a telephone access code, and telephonic hearings are reached by calling 1-415-527-5035 and entering that code. EOIR’s own instruction is plain: If you are not sure whether your hearing is in person or by internet, call the court hearing your case. Do not guess from what happened at an earlier hearing.

If you move, or want a different court

A move inside Los Angeles County does not change your court. It does change your duty to report. EOIR says you must give the court any change of address or contact information within five working days, on Form EOIR-33/IC for the court where your case is now being heard, or online through Respondent Access. A USCIS address change does not update the court; our address-change guide explains why.

Moving the case is a separate step. Under 8 C.F.R. § 1003.20, the judge may change venue only on a party’s motion, for good cause, after the other side has had a chance to respond, and only if you give a fixed street address where you can receive notices. Until the judge grants the motion, prepare for the hearing you already have. Our change-of-venue guide covers the motion itself.

Before you go

Each court screens every visitor with a metal detector and a bag check, may ask you to remove your shoes, bars food and drinks unless the judge permits them, and prohibits using cameras or recording devices in courtrooms and other EOIR space. The buildings differ. Downtown, paid parking is nearby, and anyone meeting a lawyer before the hearing is directed to the pro bono room rather than the lobby. At West Los Angeles, parking at the court costs a fee and the entrance is on the back side of the building. At Van Nuys, visitor parking signs are posted; enter through the main lobby and go to the third floor.

Bring the hearing notice, your A-number, identification and copies of anything already filed. Arrive early enough to clear security. Our master calendar checklist covers what the first hearing usually involves.