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Immigration News Briefs

Provided by Humera Subhani

July 2024

President Biden Offers Hope to Undocumented Spouses of U.S. Citizens

On June 18, DHS provided the following information:

DHS will establish a new process to consider, on a case-by-case basis, requests for certain noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens:

who have lived in the United States for 10 years or more.
do not pose a threat to public safety or national security.
are otherwise eligible to apply for adjustment of status.
and merit a favorable exercise of discretion.

If eligible, these noncitizens will be able to apply for lawful permanent residence without leaving the United States.

DHS estimates that approximately 500,000 noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens could be eligible to access this process. Approximately 50,000 children of these spouses also will be eligible for this process.

Eligibility and Process

To be considered on a case-by-case basis for this process, an individual must:

Be present in the United States without admission or parole;
Have been continuously present in the United States for at least 10 years as of June 17, 2024; and
Have a legally valid marriage to a U.S. citizen as of June 17, 2024.

In addition, individuals must have no disqualifying criminal history or otherwise constitute a threat to national security or public safety and should otherwise merit a favorable exercise of discretion. Noncitizen children of potential requestors may also be considered for parole under this process if they are physically present in the United States without admission or parole and have a qualifying stepchild relationship with a U.S. citizen as of June 17, 2024.

Upon receipt of a properly filed parole-in-place request, USCIS will determine on a case-by-case basis whether a grant of parole is warranted and whether the applicant merits a favorable exercise of discretion. All requests will take into consideration the potential requestor’s previous immigration history, criminal history, the results of background checks and national security and public safety vetting, and any other relevant information available to or requested by USCIS.

A Federal Register notice will be published that outlines the specific steps to be considered under this program. To be considered, an individual must file a form with USCIS along with supporting documentation to show they meet the requirements and pay a fee. This program is expected to launch by the end of the summer. Applications submitted prior to the start date listed in the Federal Register notice will be rejected.

Under current law, noncitizens married to a U.S. citizen may apply for lawful permanent residence through their marriage to a U.S. citizen. However, to apply for lawful permanent residence, many noncitizens must first depart the United States and wait to be processed abroad, resulting in a prolonged, potentially indefinite, period of separation from their U.S. citizen family members.

In addition, DHS will join the Department of State in an effort to more efficiently facilitate certain employmentbased nonimmigrant visas for eligible individuals, including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and undocumented noncitizens who have graduated from an accredited U.S. institution of higher education.

APPLICATION FINAL ACTION DATES FOR JULY 2024

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	22Oct15	22Oct15
2A	15Nov21	15Nov21
2B	01May16	01May16
3rd	01Apr10	01Apr10
4th	22Jan06	01Aug07

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	01Feb22	Current
2nd	15Jan12	15Mar23
3rd	22Sep12	01Dec21
Other	15Aug12	01Jan21
4th	01Jan21	01Jan21
5th	01Dec20	Current1B

DATES FOR FILING VISA APPLICATIONS - JULY 2024

FAMILY	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	01Sep17	01Sep17
2A	01Nov23	01Nov23
2B	01Jan17	01Jan17
3rd	01Oct10	01Oct10
4th	15Jun06	01Mar08

EMPLOYMENT	India	Pakistan/Bangladesh
1st	08Feb22	Current
2nd	22Jun12	22Mar23
3rd	01Oct12	01Feb23
Other	01Oct12	01Jan21
4th	01Feb21	01Feb21
5th	01Apr22	Current1B