On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced a series of executive actions that will defer deportation to certain populations. Specifically, there are five initiatives that will be implemented within the next several months:
- Parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent resident who have been in the United States since January 1, 2010, may apply for deferred action and employment authorization for three years under the Deferred Action for Parental Accountability program.
- Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program will be expanded to include young people that were born before June 15, 1981, arrived in the United States before turning 16 years old, have been present since January 1, 2010, and extend their work permits from two to three years.
- The provisional waivers for unlawful presence will now include the spouses and sons and daughters of lawful permanent residents, and the sons and daughters of U.S. citizens.
- Immigrant and Nonimmigrant programs for U.S. businesses, foreign investors, researchers, inventors, and skilled workers will be improved and expanded. For example, spouses of certain H-1B visa holders who are on the path to lawful permanent resident status may be eligible to apply for work permits.
- Encouraging the naturalization process by promoting U.S. citizenship education and public awareness for lawful permanent residents.
While USCIS is not accepting applications for the above-mentioned initiatives at this time, contact us today to find out how you can begin gathering certain documents to prepare for these actions.
