What Does the President's Announcement on Immigration Reform 2014 Mean for You?

President Obama announced this evening that he will be putting forth executive action for immigration matters.  This action shall not grant permanent status, however, it offers temporary relief from removal from the United States for certain individuals and allow them an opportunity to work legally in the United States, “get right with the law,” and pay their taxes.

My comments below are not legal advice and should be taken to create an attorney-client relationship.  These comments are my opinion based upon the information that I have at this time and cannot be applied to each case individually.  The purpose of this post is to be informative for you.

Based upon the President’s statements, he seeks to give protection to individuals that are parents of United States Citizens or Lawful Permanent Resident children that have been in the United States for a period of five (5) years, I anticipate that this program will very closely model the program offered on June 15, 2012, which is referred to as DACA – Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.  However, this program will likely require the following:

• ·        Proof of physical presence in the United States for the previous five (5) years with the beginning date currently unknown;
• ·                 Proof of Good Moral Character including any court dispositions for any citations, arrests, or charges; and
• ·       Proof that the individual has children that are either United States Citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents in the United States.  This may require showing marriage licenses, birth certificates, and proof of status documents.

It is likely that individuals convicted of certain crimes will be disqualified from this program.  Individuals having the following conviction criteria will likely not qualify:

• ·        Aggravated felonies;
• ·        Gang affiliations;
• ·        Three (3) or more misdemeanors;
• ·        Convictions for significant misdemeanors such as
• o   Domestic violence;
• o   Sexual abuse or exploitation;
• o   Burglary;
• o   Unlawful possession or use of firearm;
• o   Drug distribution or trafficking;
• o   DUI; and
• o   One with time in custody exceeding 90 days;
• ·       Those apprehended for violating the immigration laws and cannot establish that they have been continuously present in the United States since 1/1/2014;
• ·        Those that have abuse visa programs; and
• ·        Those with a final order of removal issued on or after 1/1/2014

For the disqualifying factors there may be ways to overcome those issues, depending upon many factors which will need to be evaluated on a case by case basis.

It is important that if you think that this executive action will apply to you that you schedule an appointment with an attorney and get started gathering your documentation.  Here at my office we are prepared to begin the process immediately, please contact our office to schedule a free consultation.

Update!  The executive actions by President Obama are being reported to include the following details:

For parents of U.S. Citizens and Legal Permanent Residents:

-        Have been in the United States for more than 5 years

-        Relief from removal for 3 years

-        Work permits will be granted to qualifying persons

DACA will be expanded:

-        Eligibility will be expanded to those who arrived as minors before 2010 instead of the current date of 2007

-        The requirement that applicants be under 31 years of age will be lifted

It is unclear when applications can be submitted; although the process of preparing the applications for filing with the government need to be started now.

There will be new deportation priorities, which have been highlighted in the blog post above and which will be discussed in more detail in a later blog post.  The new deportation priorities will make those who have been present in the U.S. for longer than 10 years a low priority absent other factors, such as criminal history.   

Immigration Reform 2014

Many reports are coming out that Immigration Reform is imminent.  What does that mean for you? Right now, there are few specifics, so it could mean a lot of things to different people.  Here's what we can tell you, current and potential clients, right now:

First - immigration reform in whatever shape or fashion will likely include certain eligibility standards.  Past practice tell us that the exact standards will be released by the Department of Homeland Security and United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, but, for now, we can look to the DACA requirements to say that there will probably be an entry date cut-off, good moral character requirements, and a filing fee.

Second - whatever reform occurs will likely only be available to a certain number of people and then everyone else will go on a "waiting list" so to speak.  Even without that, there have been rumors that there may be discounts available for a certain number of naturalization applicants under a "new" process that is potentially going to be released.  Practically, that means that you need to be preparing for immigration reform now.  Having your immigration history evaluated, being advised on documents to have in your immigration file, and having an attorney on retainer to call you the moment reform and the eligibility requirements are announced are all important steps.

Third - have you ever had your immigration history evaluated?  When DACA was first made available, we found that many people who came in were actually eligible for more permanent forms of immigration status and were simply unaware of their eligibility.  Don't wait just because you think there's nothing that can be done because you very well may have a path to legal status now.

We will be monitoring updates on Immigration Reform 2014 closely as well as making staff available for initial consultations.  All initial consultations are free, so why wait?  Schedule an appointment today so that we can begin the process of helping you gain legal immigration status.