DHS Announces Details of Biden’s Amnesty for Illegal Immigrant Spouses; Immigrants Prepare for New Biden Protections With Excitement and Concern

DHS announces details of Biden’s amnesty for illegal immigrant spouses:

President Biden’s new “parole” program for immigrants who are married to citizens but in the U.S. illegally will apply even to those who are defying court-issued deportation orders, according to the guidelines the Department of Homeland Security published Friday.

The program is slated to start Monday.

Officials expect the program to cover 500,000 such immigrants who say they have been in the U.S. for at least a decade and who have married a citizen. As many as 50,000 immigrant children of migrant spouses who are in the U.S. illegally are also expected to be eligible.

According to the new guidelines, the program applies to people facing deportation hearings or who have already been ordered removed but are fugitives.

“If you are in removal proceedings or have an order of removal, you may still qualify for parole,” the guidelines said.

Some experts say that makes the program “amnesty” since it can postpone or cancel a looming deportation.

Immigrant rights groups had been anxiously awaiting the new guidance, hoping to get a quick start to filing applications next week. Some organizations have sign-up clinics planned.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said applications must be filed online. The agency is creating an all-virtual division to handle the cases, though the hiring process is moving slowly.

Much about the program remains murky, including the cost of applying and what crimes will be overlooked.

The guidelines say migrants with a “disqualifying criminal history” are ineligible, but it doesn’t say what is disqualifying. —>READ MORE HERE

Immigrants prepare for new Biden protections with excitement and concern:

Roberto Garcia crossed the border from Mexico in 2009 looking for a better life. For the past eight years, he has been married to an American woman, and they have three kids who are all American citizens. The only one in the family who is not is Garcia.

Seven years ago, he applied to legalize his status through a process that, if approved, would still require him to return to Mexico with no guarantee that he would be allowed back into the United States.

The possibility of being separated from his family or – in a worst case scenario – being unable to return home to Los Angeles has been stressful. So has the wait. It has been seven years and Garcia has not yet gotten an appointment at the U.S. Consulate in Ciudad Juarez, just across the border in Mexico.

Now, a Biden administration program launching Monday will allow some spouses of U.S. citizens without legal permission to stay in the U.S. to legalize their status without leaving the country. That is giving Garcia, and others like him, new hope.

“Finally, there is a light that this is possible,” the 37-year-old said. “I imagine I will soon have the important documents that so many people want to have.”

The new program offers a rare opportunity to erase the threat of deportation and one day earn citizenship. But tempering that excitement is concern: Who will benefit from what has been described as the most expansive U.S. protections for immigrants in over a decade? Will the program face legal challenges? And most important, will it survive the presidential election?

Under the policy Democratic President Joe Biden announced in June, many spouses without legal status will be able to apply for something called “parole in place,” offering permission to stay in the U.S., apply for a green card and eventually get on a path to citizenship.

To be eligible, they must have been continuously in the U.S. for at least 10 years, not pose a security threat or have a disqualifying criminal history, and have been married to a citizen by June 17 – the day before the program was announced. They must pay a $580 fee to apply and fill out a lengthy application, including an explanation of why they deserve humanitarian parole and a long list of supporting documents proving how long they have been in the country.

They apply to the Department of Homeland Security, and if approved, have three years to seek permanent residency. During that period, they can get work authorization.

The administration estimates about 500,000 people could be eligible, plus about 50,000 of their children. —>READ MORE HERE

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