DACA/DAPA
Are You Really Too Old for DACA?
It is past time to clear up an oft-repeated misconception about President Obama’s deportation deferral program called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA): it is simply not true that individuals must be under 31 to be eligible for DACA. Any individual born after June 15, 1981 is within—and shall remain within—DACA’s age requirements. Only individuals who were 31 years old or older on June 15, 2012 are ineligible for DACA. The age requirements apply to initial applications as well as renewals, and one of the only things we know about renewals is that no one will age out. As a result, there currently are individuals in their early thirties who are eligible for DACA, and assuming the program continues on, over time, greater numbers of DACA recipients will be over 31. Yet, some news articles and even flyers for legal clinics mistakenly assert that people under 30 or 31 don’t qualify—this gets the age ceiling wrong and also implies that individuals can age out of eligibility. Read More
Questions About Traveling Abroad Confront DACA Recipients
Getting approved under President Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for DREAMers carries many benefits. DACA recipients get a renewable two-year reprieve from the threat of deportation, work authorization, the ability to receive a social security number, and, in all but two recalcitrant states where the issue is being litigated, a driver’s license. Importantly, DACA recipients can also apply for permission to travel abroad. This spring, the government issued welcome guidance regarding requests for permission to travel. Nonetheless, important questions and concerns about travel linger, including risks of traveling abroad even with permission. Read More
Why is the Obama Administration Arguing that Undocumented Immigrants Should Not Practice Law?
Today, the California Supreme Court will hear oral argument in a case that asks whether an undocumented immigrant may receive a license to practice law in California. The Committee of Bar Examiners – the entity charged with deciding who qualifies for a law license in California – supports admitting Sergio Garcia to the bar. So do some 48 organizations and 53 individuals who signed on to “friend of the court” briefs submitted to the California Supreme Court. Of the three opposing arguments filed, two came from individuals but the other came from an unexpected source: the Department of Justice. Not only did DOJ voluntarily weigh in with a hypertechnical argument that is tone deaf to the current debate over undocumented status in this country, but it took the same position in a Florida case involving a lawfully present and work-authorized recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Jose Godinez-Samperio. Even if there was a good legal argument for opposing admission of an unauthorized immigrant to the bar, the rationale makes little sense in the context of an individual who is a DACA beneficiary. In both cases, however, the result DOJ seeks would lead to less socio-economic inclusion of the very immigrants the Obama administration seeks to protect. Read More
Positive Gains for DACA Recipients Seen at One-Year Anniversary
Today marks the first year anniversary of the implementation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) initiative and there are overwhelmingly positive outcomes to celebrate as well as important lessons to learn. According to the most recent statistics, USCIS has received 573,704 applications since the program was implemented a year ago. Of those, 430,236 have been approved. Submission and approval rates aside, the one year anniversary of the program also offers an opportunity to look back at DACA’s impact on the lives of the young people who received it. Read More
International Youth Day Highlights Children Impacted by Immigration
In 1999, the United Nations designated August 12 as International Youth Day in order to highlight children’s opportunities, challenges and contributions on the world stage. This year, the focus is on the migration of young people, in order to raise awareness of the positive contributions made by young immigrants as well as the many risks and dangers that children face whose migration is caused by war, poverty, persecution, or unjust migration policies. The United States has examples of both, including the numerous success stories of immigrants who came to the U.S. as children, as well as the accomplishments of many unauthorized DREAMers and DACA recipients. Unfortunately, this is also a day to point out the negative impact that current immigration policies have on some of the most vulnerable migrants. Read More
Anti-DACA Lawsuit Dismissed!
Crane v. Napolitano, the lawsuit brought by Kris Kobach on behalf of several ICE officers opposed to implementing the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (“DACA”) program, was dismissed today on procedural grounds in a U.S. district court in Texas. The court held that the Civil Service Reform… Read More
Happy Birthday DACA!
A year ago, President Obama announced the DACA program from the steps of the White House Rose Garden. The announcement marked a victory for thousands of undocumented immigrant youth whose courage and activism inspired the Administration to take action. Since that day, over half a million young immigrants have come forward under DACA to seek relief from deportation and to secure work authorization. Read More
States Move Forward To Allow Undocumented Immigrants To Drive Legally
In a stark change from the harmful measures that swept across states in previous years, 2013 has started out as a good year for immigration reform at the state level. Lawmakers continue to push for pro-immigrant policies to help immigrants already living in the U.S., while the Georgia legislature’s passage of an anti-immigrant bill stands out as an outlier instead of the norm. There have been resolutions endorsing the need for immigration reform and bipartisan support for allowing undocumented immigrants to pay in-state tuition at state colleges and universities. And in several states, lawmakers either have passed or are pushing for policy changes so that undocumented immigrants can apply for driver’s licenses. Read More
Why Are Some Still UnDACAmented?
The latest USCIS DACA numbers from March show that the agency has received roughly 470,000 applications, which means that just under half of those estimated to be eligible have applied. While the success reflected by the 470,000 figure is not to be downplayed, the new numbers beg the question: What about the other half million? Why are they still unDACAmented? Read More
Despite Governor’s Best Efforts, New Mexico Keeps Driver’s Licenses for the Undocumented
By Joan Friedland, Senior Advisor to the National Immigration Law Center. New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez has failed in her fourth attempt to persuade the New Mexico legislature to repeal the state’s driver’s license law. The law, in effect since 2003, provides access to driver’s licenses for eligible applicants, regardless of their immigration status. This year’s legislative session ended in New Mexico on March 16, after the House and Senate committees considered and rejected driver’s license restrictions. Read More
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