What is an Immigration Evaluation, anyway?
Written by Sara Camilleri LMSW of Sand River Therapy
Initial Publication: September 25, 2026
Reaching out for an immigration mental health evaluation can be an incredibly vulnerable moment. For many, it may have been recommended that they complete this process for their court case but what the process exactly is can be unclear. Folks may wonder if they can trust others with details of their lives. Not to mention, additional factors can impact this such as language differences or terminology. Even for myself, as an evaluator who works in this area, I often get asked by other clinicians “What’s that? I’ve never heard of that.” If you find yourself wondering what this is or why it’s important, you aren’t alone. Hopefully the following information will help give you more of an understanding.
WHAT AN IMMIGRATION EVALUATIONS IS AND IS NOT
First, what this evaluation is NOT:
It’s not therapy. While it is a form of mental health care, it is not therapy because it’s actually a biopsychosocial assessment. The intent of this work is to understand your story not to treat it.
It’s not something just any clinician can do. While mental health professionals can provide these evaluations, not all clinicians are trained to provide them. Therefore, it’s important to go to someone who has training and experience with this work.
Second, what this evaluation IS:
It is a place to explain the experiences that have impacted your migration journey. Many find this experience helps the court system to better understand a more holistic picture of their life.
It is trauma-informed. This means that your mental and emotional safety are my number one concern during this process. Some parts of our life are hard to talk about. I’m here to help understand your experiences and help the court understand how they may or have affected you as a human.
It is rooted in science. This process upholds clinical standards of practice and evidenced based techniques to help connect the human experience to what we know about psychology and factors of impact.
THE PROCESS & WHAT IS INCLUDED IN THE FEE
The standard fee for an evaluation at Sand River Therapy is $960, which can feel jarring to hear at first. However, this fee includes the entirety of the service from start to finish. This includes:
2-3 appointments to complete a thorough evaluation
The time for the Clinician to write up a detailed report for the court system
Interpreter services for the evaluation appointments if needed
Help coordinating or connecting to referrals to community resources as needed
The tools of conducting the evaluation (meeting space in-person or virtually, etc.)
It can be helpful to know what to expect during this process, especially if you’ve never interacted with a Mental Health Provider before. Here is what it commonly looks like:
You or your attorney inquire about the service.
You and the Clinician may complete an initial consultation. This includes going over when we could meet, pricing, payment plan information, where we could meet and most importantly, for what type of court case you need this evaluation. This also allows us to get to know each other!
We schedule either the first or both appointments at a time that works for both of us.
Sand River Therapy sends you all the paperwork that is needed to be completed before we start our first appointment.
We meet for the evaluation appointments. You get to tell me your unique story at the pace that works for you. The Clinician guides you through information that I need to know for completing the assessment. Fees are collected at the end of the appointment.
After our last meeting, the Clinician gets your report ready within 2 weeks.
The Clinician provides both you and your legal team a copy of the report and information about any community resources that could be helpful.
If you have more questions, check out the Frequently Asked Questions.
IMPORTANT TAKEAWAYS
Getting to know what to expect and understand this process can help you and your legal team feel more comfortable and at ease. There can be many unexpected changes through the immigration court process, oftentimes in the same day, month or year. Having an understanding of what you can expect helps us work together and build trust with each other. Furthermore, the legal system for immigration is layered with complexities and nuance. Sand River Therapy strives to make this part of the process easy and straightforward. Our goal is to create a safe and inclusive space so you can feel comfortable to tell us more about your journey. We all deserve a place to do that judgement-free.
Ready to get started? Schedule an initial consultation today. We want to hear more about you.