Vol. 7 No. 02 (2026), Section for Interdisciplinary Studies in the Human Sciences
Vol. 7 No. 02 (2026)

THE HUMANIZATION OF IMMIGRATION LAW: THE ROLE OF THE PARALEGAL IN THE FACE OF THE EMOTIONAL AND INFORMATIONAL VULNERABILITY OF THE MIGRANT

Section for Interdisciplinary Studies in the Human Sciences
Published 2026-04-29
Marcela Manhães
Sou advogada e consultora técnica, graduada em Direito, com sólida formação acadêmica, incluindo Mestrado em Ciências Humanas e pós-graduações em Direito Internacional, Imigração e Migração, além de Gestão Pública. Atuo na área de Direito Internacional, com foco em processos imigratórios, especialmente vistos de imigração para os Estados Unidos, como EB-2 NIW, EB-1A, O-1 e L-1
Stephanie Teixeira
Sou advogada e bacharel em Administração Pública, atualmente cursando MBA em Imigração. Atuo na área de assessoramento estratégico para processos de imigração para os Estados Unidos, com foco em vistos baseados em mérito e impacto profissional, como EB-1A, EB-2 NIW, O-1A e L-1
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Keywords

Immigration Law; Paralegal; Humanization; Vulnerability; Administrative Violence; Access to Justice; Informational Mediation.

How to Cite

Manhães, M. ., & Teixeira, S. . (2026). THE HUMANIZATION OF IMMIGRATION LAW: THE ROLE OF THE PARALEGAL IN THE FACE OF THE EMOTIONAL AND INFORMATIONAL VULNERABILITY OF THE MIGRANT. Revista Gênero E Interdisciplinaridade, 7(02), 926-939. https://doi.org/10.51249/gei.v7i02.2965
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Abstract

This article presents a systematic literature review on the interface between the immigration legal system and the psychosocial and informational vulnerability of migrants, focusing on the humanizing role of the paralegal. The central objective is to analyze how the work of this professional contributes to mitigating administrative violence, acculturative stress, and information access asymmetries experienced by individuals in transit. The research adopts a systematic methodology based on PRISMA guidelines, with database searches covering the period from 2021 to 2026, complemented by classical theorists from the legal, social and information sciences. The results show that the bureaucratic structure of the immigration system operates as a device of depersonalization and informational exclusion, where procedural uncertainty, structural delays, and legal illiteracy produce acute psychological suffering and amplify systemic inequalities. The paralegal emerges as an essential socio-legal actor and informational mediator, whose functions transcend technical support to encompass communicational mediation, procedural time management, curation of accessible legal information, and the construction of institutional trust. It is concluded that the humanization of immigration law is achieved through everyday practices that recognize the migrant in their entirety, with the paralegal being indispensable for the effectiveness of access to justice and for reducing informational barriers that perpetuate structural vulnerability.

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