What Catholic Migration Services does

Catholic Migration Services is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal services organization founded in 1971 and headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, with a secondary office in Queens. It provides free immigration, housing, and employment legal assistance to low-income New Yorkers, alongside tenant organizing and community legal education. The organization's core service lines cover immigration matters (visas, green cards, citizenship, deportation defense), housing issues (tenant rights, eviction prevention, housing discrimination), and employment matters (wage theft, workplace discrimination, workers' rights). Services are delivered in person at its two office locations and are provided at no cost regardless of religion, race, national origin, immigration status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

The organization operates as an affiliate of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens, which serves as its parent entity and provides shared infrastructure and donor base. There is no proprietary technology platform; the operating model is human-staffed legal services delivered by an 11-50 employee organization. Funding is sourced from individual donations, corporate contributions, and a diversified set of foundation and government grants, including IOLA Fund, Mother Cabrini Foundation, Robin Hood, NYC Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs, and the New York Community Trust.

Go-to-market is direct service delivery to eligible clients within New York City, supplemented by outreach through email newsletters, social media channels (X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn), and community events such as the annual Impact Reception. The organization does not monetize services to clients, and revenue mechanics are entirely philanthropic and grant-based.

Name

Catholic Migration Services

Legal name

Catholic Migration Services

Website

https://catholicmigration.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Catholic Migration Services is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1971 that provides free immigration, housing, and employment legal services to low-income New Yorkers through offices in Brooklyn and Queens, funded by donations and foundation grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Aid Services

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Diaspora, Family Reunification & Case Management Services (BPADAHAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Refugee & Immigrant Support Services (BPAGAEAI)

Keywords

• Immigration legal services
• Housing legal assistance
• Employment legal services
• Tenant rights advocacy
• Community legal education

Headquarters

HQ city

Brooklyn

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) registered charitable not-for-profit organization, Catholic Migration Services is funded primarily through charitable donations from individuals, corporations, and foundation grants. The organization states that generous financial contributions help continue providing free immigration, housing, and employment legal services.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Catholic Migration Services is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal services organization that provides free immigration, housing, and employment legal assistance to low-income New Yorkers. The organization also conducts tenant organizing initiatives and community legal education, operating from offices in Brooklyn and Queens as an affiliate of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens.

Product overview

Catholic Migration Services is a nonprofit organization offering a unified portfolio of free legal services to low-income New Yorkers. The organization provides three core legal service lines—Immigration Legal Services, Housing Legal Services, and Employment Legal Services—alongside tenant organizing and community legal education programs. Services are delivered through Brooklyn and Queens offices, with all assistance provided at no cost to clients regardless of religion, race, national origin, immigration status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Immigration Legal Services Free legal representation, counsel, and advocacy for low-income New Yorkers on immigration matters, including deportation defense, status adjustment, asylum, and other immigration legal needs. Services are open to all individuals regardless of religion, ethnicity, or background.
• Housing Legal Services Free legal representation and advocacy for low-income tenants in New York on housing-related matters including eviction defense, landlord-tenant disputes, and habitability issues.
• Employment Legal Services Free legal assistance for low-income workers in New York on employment-related matters including wage theft, workplace exploitation, discrimination, and other labor disputes.
• Tenant Organizing Community-based tenant organizing initiative supporting low-income tenants in New York through collective advocacy, leadership development, and tenant association support to advance safe and affordable housing.
• Community Legal Education Educational programs that inform community members in Brooklyn, Queens, and the broader New York area about their legal rights in immigration, housing, and employment matters through workshops and outreach.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Catholic Charities Brooklyn and QueenscoreOthersCatholic Migration Services is an affiliate of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens. Both organizations collaborate to provide comprehensive social services to the Brooklyn and Queens community, with Catholic Migration Services focusing specifically on immigration, housing, and employment legal services while sharing the broader Catholic Charities mission.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Safe Horizon: NYC's largest victim services nonprofit providing free legal and social services including immigration legal support; comparable as a multi-practice free legal aid provider for vulnerable NYC populations.
• Urban Justice Center: NYC nonprofit operating multiple legal services projects serving low-income populations on housing, immigration, employment, and civil rights matters; functionally analogous as a free legal services nonprofit in the same city.
• Make the Road New York: Brooklyn- and Queens-based nonprofit combining immigrant legal services, tenant organizing, and workers' rights advocacy for low-income communities; competes directly with CMS across all three core service lines.
• Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC): National Catholic-affiliated nonprofit network providing and supporting immigration legal services; comparable as a faith-aligned immigrant legal services organization with similar program model.
• The Legal Aid Society: NYC's largest provider of free civil legal services to low-income residents, with overlapping practice areas in housing, immigration, and employment; the most directly comparable free legal aid peer in the same geography.
• New York Immigration Coalition: NYC-based umbrella policy and advocacy organization for immigrant-serving groups, supporting immigration legal services capacity-building and pro-bono programs; peer in immigration legal services infrastructure.
• Her Justice: NYC nonprofit providing free legal services to women in immigration, family law, and related matters; directly comparable as a free legal services nonprofit serving low-income NYC immigrant populations.

Broad incumbents

• International Rescue Committee: Large international nonprofit providing immigration legal services, refugee resettlement, and integration support with NYC presence; broader-scale peer operating in the same refugee/immigrant services space.
• Catholic Charities USA: National network of Catholic Charities agencies; comparable as the broader faith-affiliated nonprofit social services network under whose affiliate structure CMS operates.
• Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens: The parent affiliate organization offering a broader portfolio of social services (food, housing, family support) across Brooklyn and Queens; directly comparable as the umbrella nonprofit with overlapping immigrant and low-income client base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CMSBQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/cmsbq
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/catholic-migration-services
• Instagraminstagram.com/CMSBQ

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Catholic Migration Services