US Immigration Court Grants Ken Ofori-Atta Permanent Residency, Lawyers Confirm
A United States immigration judge has approved former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta’s petition for permanent residency, a development his legal team says vindicates their long-standing position that the criminal charges against him in Ghana lack merit.
The ruling, handed down by a US Immigration Court, approved Mr Ofori-Atta’s I-485 adjustment-of-status petition—the formal application for a green card. His lawyers at Minkah-Premo, Osei-Bonsu, Bruce-Cathline and Partners confirmed the decision in a press release issued on June 16, 2026.
Central to the court’s deliberations was evidence relating to the conduct of Ghana’s Office of the Special Prosecutor during the immigration proceedings. The OSP had publicly designated Mr Ofori-Atta a “fugitive from justice” while he was receiving medical treatment in the United States, a characterisation his lawyers argued was both inaccurate and prejudicial.
The immigration judge, after reviewing the available evidence, found the criminal charges against the former minister “not credible,” according to the legal team’s statement. The court’s assessment, however, was confined to whether Mr Ofori-Atta met the legal threshold for adjustment of immigration status—it did not constitute a ruling on the underlying criminal case in Ghana.
The distinction is significant. While the green-card approval grants Mr Ofori-Atta far greater legal protection in the United States than he previously enjoyed, it does not automatically shield him from extradition. Legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has previously noted that permanent residency “gives him far greater protection than before,” particularly in any future extradition hearing where US courts would need to weigh the strength of the foreign charges.
The charges at the centre of Ghana’s case against the former minister span several matters, including the Strategic Mobilisation-GRA contract, the termination of the ECG-BXC contract, payments related to the National Cathedral project, an ambulance procurement deal, and the utilisation of the Tax Refund Account.
The OSP has already signalled its intention to press ahead with extradition proceedings regardless of the immigration ruling. In a separate statement issued the same day, the anti-graft body stressed that the extradition process operates under a completely different legal framework from US immigration law and that the credibility of the criminal charges would ultimately be determined by Ghanaian courts.
The US Department of Justice, which serves as the central authority for extradition requests, has previously not confirmed whether it has formally served Mr Ofori-Atta with the charges filed against him in Ghana, adding another layer of procedural uncertainty to the case.
For now, the green-card ruling represents a legal victory for the former minister’s defence team, but the broader question of whether he will ever face trial in Ghana remains unanswered. The next chapter in this protracted legal saga will likely unfold in a US extradition courtroom, not an immigration one.
Image Source: GHANAIAN TIMES
