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The differences between immigration paralegals and senior paralegals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both an immigration paralegal and a senior paralegal. Additionally, an immigration paralegal has an average salary of $67,056, which is higher than the $60,125 average annual salary of a senior paralegal.
The top three skills for an immigration paralegal include management system, government agencies and USCIS. The most important skills for a senior paralegal are legal research, litigation, and law firm.
| Immigration Paralegal | Senior Paralegal | |
| Yearly salary | $67,056 | $60,125 |
| Hourly rate | $32.24 | $28.91 |
| Growth rate | 14% | 14% |
| Number of jobs | 4,279 | 4,213 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 55% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
Working alongside immigration lawyers, an immigration paralegal is in charge of liaising and assisting clients through the progress of their visa petitions or other cases. Their responsibilities revolve around gathering and securing foreign documents, coordinating with immigration managers, managing and filing documentation, preparing applications, and handling case systems and other databases. Furthermore, as an immigration paralegal, it is essential to update clients with the progress of their cases, answering their inquiries and helping them navigate through the procedures as needed.
A Senior Paralegal helps attorneys acquire the information needed for legal research, document preparation, and for other assignments delegated to them. They are usually specialized in certain areas of law, such as tax law.
Immigration paralegals and senior paralegals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Immigration Paralegal | Senior Paralegal | |
| Average salary | $67,056 | $60,125 |
| Salary range | Between $45,000 And $97,000 | Between $38,000 And $92,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Pennsylvania | Washington |
| Best paying company | American Express | Amazon |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Finance |
There are a few differences between an immigration paralegal and a senior paralegal in terms of educational background:
| Immigration Paralegal | Senior Paralegal | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 55% |
| Most common major | Legal Support Services | Legal Support Services |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between immigration paralegals' and senior paralegals' demographics:
| Immigration Paralegal | Senior Paralegal | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 26.3% Female, 73.7% | Male, 23.3% Female, 76.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 22.1% Asian, 5.4% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 5.6% White, 60.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |