News
New Policy Announced to Provide Work Authorization and a Path to Permanent Residence for Qualifying Spouses of U.S. Citizens
On June 18, 2024, the Biden Administration announced a new program that is intended to keep eligible families of U.S. citizens together. Specifically, this policy would allow certain undocumented spouses and children of U.S. citizens to apply for permanent residence (green card) without having to leave the U.S.
Who qualifies for this program?
According to the White House announcement, to benefit from this program the applicant must, as of June 17, 2024, be married to a U.S. citizen and must have resided in the U.S. for at least 10 years.
In addition to these factors, applicants must meet all other eligibility criteria for permanent residence. Particularly, applicants who may be otherwise inadmissible to the U.S. due to criminal record, misrepresentation, certain types of immigration violations, etc. may still be denied permanent residence unless they are able to overcome the inadmissibility grounds.
The Department of Homeland Security will analyze these applications on a case-by-case basis, and decisions will be made entirely within the discretion of the officer(s).
Why is this program beneficial?
Under current law, individuals who came to the U.S. undocumented, without a visa, are not eligible to apply for permanent residence inside the U.S., even if they are married to a U.S. citizen or have U.S. citizen children. Instead, these individuals have to leave the U.S. and apply for permanent residence at the U.S. consulate in their home country.
At the same time, a separate section of the law states that, if applicants resided in the U.S. for one (1) year or more without legal status, once they leave the U.S. to attend the consulate interview they automatically trigger a 10-year bar from being readmitted. If they resided in the U.S. without status for more than six (6) months but less than a year, leaving the U.S. would trigger a 3-year bar from readmission. Therefore, because the law forces them to leave the U.S. to get legal status, many applicants automatically get stuck outside the U.S. for 3 or 10 years, depending on the case, before they can return.
The new policy would allow these individuals to obtain parole-in-place, an immigration benefit that provides temporary work authorization and that also makes the parole holder eligible to apply for permanent residence inside the U.S., without having to leave.
How and when can I apply?
As of the date of this article, the application process is not yet open. The U.S. government anticipates they will be able to roll out the application process by the end of the summer 2024. In the meantime, individuals who believe they may qualify for this program should consult with a reputable immigration attorney to obtain a case assessment and begin preparing all necessary documents to be ready to apply as soon as the application process begins.
If you have any questions regarding this program or any other U.S. immigration benefits, please contact Attorney Raluca Vais-Ottosen at 608.252.9291 or rvo@dewittllp.com.