President Biden introduced a broad immigration measure in an election year, offering potential relief to 500,000 immigrants without legal status in the United States. This move aims to balance his earlier tough crackdown on illegal immigration at the southern border.
The White House announced on Tuesday that the Biden administration will allow certain undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for permanent residency in the coming months, eventually leading to citizenship. According to senior government officials, this could impact up to 500,000 people.
To be eligible, immigrants must have resided in the United States for 10 years as of June 17, 2024, and be married to a U.S. citizen. If approved, eligible immigrants will have three years to apply for a green card, obtain temporary work authorization, and be protected from deportation during this period.
The Associated Press reported that senior government officials, requesting anonymity, briefed the media on this plan, indicating that about 50,000 noncitizen children – who arrived in the U.S. with a parent and then had that parent marry a U.S. citizen – may also qualify for the same program.
The new program does not have a requirement for the duration of the marriage for spouses, but marriages must have occurred before Monday to be eligible for application.
Senior government officials stated that they anticipate the program to open for applications by the end of the summer, with the application fee yet to be determined.
On Tuesday, Biden will discuss his plan at an event at the White House, coinciding with the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA was an executive order from the Obama era that provided deportation protection and temporary work permits for young immigrants without legal status.
White House officials have privately encouraged Democratic House members to return to Washington, D.C. this week from recess to participate in the announcement ceremony.
Biden will also announce new regulations allowing some DACA beneficiaries and other young immigrants to more easily obtain long-term work visas, providing stronger protection than what DACA offers. Currently, DACA faces legal challenges and is not accepting new applications.
The president’s invocation of executive powers in the spouse policy announced on Tuesday is not unprecedented. Andrea Flores, Vice President of the immigration advocacy group FWD.us, stated to the AP that the policy expands on the “parole in place” used during the Bush and Obama administrations to allow military family members to apply.
Parole in place allows qualified immigrants to gain permanent residency in the U.S. without leaving the country, eliminating a common barrier for those without legal status but married to U.S. citizens.
Flores mentioned that this “fulfills President Biden’s commitment to protect undocumented immigrants and their American families on his first day in office”. Flores previously served as a policy advisor in both the Biden and Obama administrations.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, quoting sources familiar with the matter, that advisors to Biden noted from internal Democratic polls that a majority of Americans support legalizing spouses of U.S. citizens, even if they entered illegally.
Under current law, immigrants who illegally entered the U.S. through the southern border and later marry a U.S. citizen must leave the country for 10 years before being eligible for a green card.
The new program significantly eases the process of applying for a green card. Even if Biden’s rival, former President Trump, were to win the election, he would find it difficult to reverse this provision. Moreover, the new program allows individuals to avoid deportation and obtain work authorization.
Republicans have already begun criticizing the plan, labeling it as a large-scale amnesty.
Two weeks ago, Biden announced one of the strictest immigration policies to date in an effort to reduce illegal border crossings: a blanket ban on illegal border crossers seeking asylum.
Immigrant rights organizations have filed lawsuits against the Biden administration over the border ban directive. A senior government official mentioned on Monday that the directive has led to reduced border conflicts between entry ports.