New DACA and DAPA Denied at Fifth Circuit

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Arjun Mishra

Fifth Circuit Denies New DACA and DAPA

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied an appeal of a preliminary injunction of President Obama’s executive actions for expanding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (new DACA and DAPA) on November 9. A federal judge in Texas struck down the executive actions in February of this year and the Department of Justice has been litigating against states opposed to the implementation of the executive action programs. The decision was divided, but it means that the executive action programs remain unusable. The Obama Administration is expected to seek an immediate review of the decision by the US Supreme Court.

On November 20, 2014, President Obama delivered a speech and unveiled a series of executive actions to improve the immigration system. New DACA and DAPA received most of the attention because of the effects it was scheduled to have on millions of people living in the United States without status. The programs are not immigration status. Rather, they were supposed to provide temporary protection to accepted applicants and work authorization. It was supposed to benefit individuals without a criminal record and not priorities for removal. The programs were nixed by a federal judge before implementation and the millions counting on the viability of the programs have to continue to wait. The executive actions were a response to Congressional inaction over years in implementing legislative immigration reform.

Emergency Stay Filed by DOJ

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Arjun Mishra

The Department of Justice filed an emergency stay today in the Obama administration’s quest to restart the DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans) and expanded DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) programs that were enjoined last week. Judge Harlam of a federal court in Texas issued an injunction last week, shutting down the two programs before they could accept applications. Guidelines were issued for both DAPA and DACA. DACA was set to begin on February 18 and DAPA was tentatively scheduled for May.

Deferred action is a type of prosecutorial discretion that the executive branch exercises to allow migrants who lack immigrant or non-immigrant status to remain in the United States. Neither of the deferred actions would grant actual status. They would allow qualifying applicants to acquire an employment authorization card, so that they could work legally, along with a three-year grant to stay in the United States without the threat of removal or deportation. The criteria for the programs can be found here and here.

The overriding policy of US immigration law is family reunification and the programs were designed with that mind. Immigration action has come in the form of executive action, a result of congressional inaction on passing immigration reform or the DREAM Act. The programs are supposed to be temporary measures while meaningful reform can occur through the legislative process.

26 states, led by Texas, petitioned to shut down the expanded DACA and DAPA programs, citing economic harm and executive overreach. The Department of Justice has announced its intention to appeal the federal decision.

Other aspects of the executive actions from November are unaffected. In addition, DACA as originally implemented on June 15, 2012 remains in effect for recipients and future applicants.

TPS for Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone

Posted on November 25, 2014 by Andrew Wood

Department of Homeland Security Announces Temporary Protected Status for Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone.

Lost in the immigration news avalanche of last week, in which President Obama announced executive action for deferred action, business immigration reforms, and enforcement priorities, was the granting of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to nationals of three countries. On November 20, the Department of Homeland Security granted TPS to nationals of Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone, in response to the ebola crisis that is ravaging those nations.

Temporary Protected Status means that nationals of those countries (and stateless people who last habitually resided there) will not be removed from the United States and will have work authorization, effective November 21, 2014. The grant lasts for 18 months (May 2016). Not all nationals are automatically eligible. Nationals must pass a criminal background check and cannot be national security threats. There is a 180 day registration period. An applicant must show that he or she has been continuously residing in the United States since November 20, 2014 and has been continuously physically present in the United States since November 21, 2014. The date requirements are strict. Nationals cannot start arriving from those countries and request TPS. It is a very limited grant of status – it is nothing like asylum status or a green card – but it is often a necessary protection for individuals fleeing civil war, disease, natural disasters, and awful country conditions,

Other countries currently with Temporary Protected Status include El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, and Syria.

If you have any questions about your eligibility for Temporary Protected Status or would like assistance, please contact immigration attorney Andrew Wood.

Immigration Action to be Announced!

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Andrew Wood

Tomorrow, November 20, 2014, could be a momentous day in the history of immigration reform. President Barack Obama is poised to announce an executive order on immigration tomorrow night in prime time. From Del Sol High School in Las Vegas, NV, the president is expected to at least outline action to provide immigration relief to up to five million undocumented immigrants. Immigration reform has been building momentum over the past decade towards the purpose of providing some forms of relief to millions of immigrants who either entered illegally or have stayed past their legal status because they have built meaningful lives in and contributed to the United States. DACA provided limited relief to some children who were brought to the United States without status. Perhaps tomorrow will bring an updated DACA but for adults. The president is also expected to address other immigration issues, such as the low H1B visa cap, the fact that dependents count against the employment caps, and measures to attract and retain more high-tech workers.

There are multiple dimensions and issues at play for the president. The prospects of comprehensive immigration reform have ebbed and flowed over the past seven years. There have been times of great Democratic and Republican support; there have been periods of harsh opposition. The DREAM Act has not yet materialized, even though it seems like the least controversial measure to pass. Comprehensive immigration reform seemed like a slam dunk following the November 2012 elections, but consistent opposition have foiled that probability through legislative actions. Seeing that the legislative options have not produced any positive results for hopeful immigrants, the president has decided to resort to executive action. Considering the Republican composition of both houses of Congress and the inability of Congress over the past two and seven years to pass immigration reform, the executive order seems like the next best option.

The specter of executive action has roused indignant opposition – both at the nature of the reforms being ordered and the very idea of using the executive order. Even though President Obama has used the executive order infrequently throughout his presidency compared to other presidents, opponents are accusing him of kingship, royalty, dictatorship, and the like for usurping what they see as Congress’ job. Immigration is affirmed as a federal matter and every president since Eisenhower dating back sixty years has issued an executive action on immigration. Political opposition is fierce and when an immigration executive order was considered during the summer, congressional Democrats in close elections begged Obama to hold off, fearing backlash would oust them from Congress. It turns out that Obama delayed action for nearly three months on their behalves, and they were rejected out of office anyway.

Comprehensive immigration reform has dominated national headlines for seven years because it addresses one of the most important issues in the United States. There are perhaps 12 million undocumented migrants. Resources can be spent on enforcement and border security, but many intelligent and comprehensive solutions are required to this multi-faceted problem. That is in addition to the variety of legal immigration problems that need solving. While it is unlikely green cards will be available for undocumented migrants, one hope is a pathway to US citizenship for qualifying undocumented immigrants. The possibility announced last week was deferred deportation and work authorization for up to five million undocumented immigrants, with family ties and enough years of residence, as covered in the previous blog post. That is a relatively vanilla action compared to pathways to citizenship naturalization and lawful permanent residence.

Whatever happens tomorrow, we can be sure that there will be strident opposition and threats to undermine it. Regardless, prime time

Immigration Reform

tomorrow night could be an important night for millions of people whose lives hang in the balance of uncertainty. The Immigration Attorney and staff at the Law Offices of Andrew Wood commends President Obama for taking action, and awaits the President’s announcement with hopes that millions of hard working individuals will benefit from the upcoming change.