Ft. Lauderdale, FL- With immigration reform stalled indefinitely, President Obama has promised to use his executive powers to change the immigration system. While Congressional action is necessary to make permanent improvements to our immigration system, presidential action would give thousands of immigrants relief from deportation and allow them to remain with their families in the U.S.
What immigration actions the president will take at the end of the year is a matter of speculation but there have been hints from the president and parties involved in immigration talks about the actions he might take.
One possibility is to expand his signature immigration policy, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, to include the parents, siblings, or children of young immigrants eligible for the status. Young immigrants, or Dreamers, who are eligible for DACA are granted reprieve from deportation and granted a temporary work visas while they work on attaining legal status. These rights would be extended to immediate relatives of Dreamers if the president expands DACA, which many believe he will.
He could also change visa rules which he hinted at in a recent speech, telling the attendees that he would use his powers to make “fixes in some of the system” which “includes potentially making the H1B system that is often used by tech companies and some of the other elements of our legal immigration system more efficient, so we can encourage more folks to stay here.” He has talked about granting visas to immediate relatives of H1B recipients– highly skilled immigrants.
Speaking with the Wall Street Journal, Adam Cox, a law professor at New York University (immigration law and policy) suggested that another action the president could take is to issue amended “parole in place” orders.
In terms of immigration “parole” is special status, allowing immigrants, who entered the U.S. without the necessary documents, to remain in the U.S. while they work towards attaining legal status, either through legal permanent residency or naturalization. Undocumented immigrants, who entered illegally, must leave the U.S. up to 10 years, depending on their circumstances, before they can legally reenter the country. These longs periods would separate many immigrants from their American families. This is one of the primary reasons so many immigrants choose to live in the shadow of deportation instead of go through the legal immigration channels.
Cox told the Wall Street Journal that it is conceivable the president change parole in “place policies” to include a larger group of immigrants. He could, without overstepping his constitutionally-mandated powers, expand the eligibility requirements to include, for instance, undocumented immigrants married to U.S. citizens. With “parole in place” status and immigrant still must go through the process of obtaining legal status, they would just be allowed to remain in the country throughout the time consuming process.
Last November, President Obama issued “parole in place” orders to include immediate relatives of immigrants who serve in the armed forces. Spouses, parents and children of military members can remain in the U.S. while they work on attaining legal status and don’t have to fear deportation.
Immigration parole is also granted to some immigrants who face persecution or danger if they return home.
Ft. Lauderdale “parole in place” attorney Paul Goldstein is committed to helping military members and their relatives navigate the immigration so they can stay together and remain in the U.S., the country they call home.
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2014/08/01/qa-obamas-possible-actions-on-immigration/
