Quick Facts on DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) The DACA program has changed. It has been phased out by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Here are few quick facts about the program. Around 690,000 undocumented youth have received DACA, as of Sept. 5, 2017.  Deferred action status granted under the DACA program does not confer long-term immigration benefits upon the recipient. It only provides a temporary relief from deportation. Temporary immigration status granted under DACA is valid for only a two-year period, after which it needs to be renewed. This status does not let the recipient live in the U.S. indefinitely.  DACA recipients can keep their deferred action status until the status expires. Unless the status is specifically

On September 5, 2017, Jeff Sessions announced the USCIS will be rescinding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program better known as DACA. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will have a 6-month window to determine the future of DACA. USCIS will adjudicate, on a case by case basis, all properly filed DACA applications. According to DHS, there were 106,341 requests pending as of August 20, 2017 – 34,487 initial requests and 71,854 renewals. The six-month window to wind down the DACA program is designed to give Congress time to craft new immigration legislation, according to reports. President Trump urges congress to pass a replacement before phasing out protections in 6 months. What’s next for DACA recipients? Individuals who are currently DACA

Certain green card applicants will soon be required to undergo in-person interviews. This new policy will go into effect on October 1, 2017. This step could further slow down the green card process that is already slow. The requirement is a part of President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 13780, “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States,” which seeks to strengthen screening of visitors and immigrants coming to the U.S. and improve detection of fraud. In-person interviews will be required for those attempting to adjust their status to that of a permanent resident based on employment. This requirement also applies to the family members of asylees and refugees who apply to join the principal refugee or asylee

President Donald Trump is expected to announce plans to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program implemented by the Obama administration. This program gives young undocumented immigrants a temporary reprieve from deportation. Under this DACA program, more than 800,000 undocumented youth who came here as children have received work permits and a temporary deferral from deportation. Though Trump promised to end the program during his presidential campaign and unveiled certain harsh immigration policies after he took office, he kept the DACA program intact. According to the new report, the President is expected to end the DACA program. But those who received work permits through this program are likely to be allowed to remain in the country until their work

I Have a Conditional Green Card, Am I Eligible to Apply for US Citizenship? You may not be able to apply for U.S. citizenship when you are still a conditional resident. Conditional green cards are valid only for two years. To apply for U.S. citizenship, you must have lived as a green card holder in the U.S. for at least a five year period. If you are conditional resident, you must first apply to remove conditions on your status. Once the conditions on your status are removed, you will get a ten year green card and you can live here as a legal permanent resident. Three years after you get a ten year green card, you can apply for citizenship.

Who Doesn’t Need to Separately Get a Work Permit? Green card holders and U.S. citizens do not need a work permit, also known as an Employment Authorization Document, to work in the U.S. They automatically have permission to work here. Green card holders just need to show their green cards to their employers to show that they are authorized to work in the U.S. as a green card is an evidence of employment authorization. U.S. citizens may have to show their naturalization certificates or U.S. passports. Foreign nationals who hold employer-sponsored work visas that allow them to work for a particular employer are eligible to work in the U.S. They need not get work permits. For example, you can work

President Donald Trump backed the RAISE Act that would overhaul America’s immigration system, proposed by Republican Senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas and David Perdue of Georgia. RAISE stands for Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment Act. This act would reduce the number of legal immigrants to the U.S. by 50 percent over the next decade and would make many more changes to the immigration system. Following are the proposals in the RAISE Act. Number of green cards to be cut down Currently, more than one million green cards are issued per year. But this new proposal would cut down the number of green cards issued. Only 500,000 green cards would be issued per year if the proposal is signed into an act. Employment-based green

Which is the Best Country to be an Immigrant in 2017?   According to ‘U.S. News & World Reports,’ Sweden is now the best country to be an immigrant. Canada, Switzerland, Australia and Germany are the other countries that top the list after Sweden. Despite being home to the world’s largest immigrant population, due to Trump’s recent travel ban on immigrants from certain countries and rising tensions over immigrants in the U.S., the U.S. has got a lower ranking. America is the seventh best country to be an immigrant. Over 21,000 people across the globe were surveyed. The survey used four factors, “economically stable,” “good job market,” “income equality” and “is a place I would live” to determine the best

It is well-known that the easiest way to get a green card in the U.S. is through marriage to a U.S. citizen. When you get married to a U.S. citizen,you will become eligible for a family based green card. Marriage based green card applications are scrutinized to make sure that the marriage is legitimate. These applications will not be approved automatically just because it is filed by a U.S. citizen. Immigration authorities will approve marriage based immigrant petitions only after they make sure that the marriage has not been entered into for the purpose of getting a green card. Marriage fraud is a federal crime that can land you in jail. You will also be imposed a fine of up

The Supreme Court has allowed the Trump administration to implement few parts of President Donald Trump’s executive order that bans the entry of individuals from certain Muslim-majority countries to the U.S. His executive order also bans refugees from gaining entry into the U.S. for 120 days. The Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. government can only ban individuals who do not have a bona fide relationship with someone or with an entity in the U.S. This means individuals from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen, who have a familial relationship with someone in the U.S. will be allowed to enter into the U.S. However, anyone who establishes a relationship just to avoid the travel ban may not be allowed