President Obama's Executive Action announcement in November 2014 included a major benefit provided to parents of American citizen and lawful permanent residents. While the details of the policy have yet to be announced by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), such as the form, filing fees and processing times, the basic requirements of the program are known. In order to be included, applicants must meet these requirements:
1. An undocumented individual living in the United States who, on the date of the announcement, is the parent of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.
2. Have resided continuously in the United States since January 1, 2010;
3. Are the parents of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident born on or before November 20, 2014; and
4. Are not an enforcement priority for removal from the United States, based upon a memorandum issued by USCIS on November 20, 2014.
USCIS has made clear that each application will be judge on a case-by-case basis. As of the date of this posting, USCIS continues to develop the specific guidelines, but stay tuned for additional information that will be released on this exciting new development.
Please feel free to contact Robert Brown LLC with any questions or concerns at 919.225.3963 or at immigration@brown-immigration.com.