Thorsteinn Laufkvist Thorsteinsson, Ragnheidur Qudradsdottir and Ragnheidhur Thorsteinsson v. Immigration and Naturalization Service

Three Icelandic citizens (the Thorsteinssons) petition for review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (the Board) denying their motion to reopen their prior deportation proceedings. Because the Thorsteinssons failed to exhaust their administrative remedies and departed from the United States before seeking judicial review of the Board’s order, we conclude that we lack jurisdiction to hear this petition.

I

The Thorsteinssons are natives and citizens of Iceland. Following two vacations in the United States, the Thorsteinssons decided to immigrate to this country. They claim to have sought advice about immigration from personnel at the United States embassy in Reykjavik, Iceland. According to the Thorsteinssons, the embassy personnel told them that investing in American business would be the best way to obtain immigrant visas. In February 1978, the Thorsteinssons entered the United States with nonimmigrant visas and invested substantial sums in an Arizona business. They applied to become lawful permanent residents of the United States. The Thor-steinssons claim the embassy personnel in Iceland told them that they would obtain their immigrant visas approximately twelve…