November 2014          

Thursday President Obama announced that he was taking Executive Action on immigration, creating major immigration reforms that will provide relief for certain undocumented immigrants, foreign workers, individuals caught in the long green card backlogs, investors and many others.

The most sweeping change is for individuals who have been in the country for over five years with United States citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident children.  They will be allowed to obtain a work permit if they undergo a background check and began paying taxes under a program called Deferred Action for Parents (DAP).

This will help shield from deportation up to 5 million undocumented individuals in the United States and allow them to obtain Social Security numbers and, at least in the state of Wisconsin, driver's licenses.

Another major change is that the current Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program will be expanded to remove the upper age limitation (which was previously 31-years-old).  In addition, DACA applicants will now be able to receive employment authorization for three year periods rather than for two years.

President Obama is also making changes to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  This includes strengthening border security and changing ICE priorities to mainly focus on deportation of recent entries, those with more serious criminal backgrounds and individuals who have ignored a final order of removal. 

Additional changes to immigration regulations include:

• Expanding the categories of individuals who can apply for a waiver of unlawful presence without leaving the U.S. (provisional waivers);
• Directing agencies to look at modernizing the visa system, with a view to making optimal use of the numbers of visas available;
• Helping individuals with an approved employment-based immigrant petition who are caught in the quota backlogs to obtain work authorization and travel documents without waiting;
• Updating and clarifying multiple employment-based processes; and,
• Creating new options for investors and entrepreneurs.

Noviembre 2014           

Ayer, el presidente Obama anunció que estaba tomando una acción ejecutiva sobre el tema de inmigración, creando importantes reformas inmigratorias que proporcionaran alivio para ciertos inmigrantes indocumentados, trabajadores extranjeros, personas atrapadas en los largos retrasos para obtener sus tarjetas de residencia, inversionistas y muchos otros.

El cambio más radical es para las personas que han estado aquí por más de cinco años y tienen hijos Ciudadanos o Residentes Legales Permanentes de los Estados Unidos. Se les permitiráobtener un permiso de trabajo si se someten a una verificación de antecedentes y empiezan a pagar impuestos bajo el programa llamado Acción Diferida para Padres (DAP).

Esto ayudará hasta 5 millones de personas indocumentadas en los Estados Unidos a ser protegidas de una deportación y les permitirá obtener números de Seguro Social y, al menos en el estado de Wisconsin, podrán obtener licencias de conducir.

Otro cambio importante es que el actual programa de Acción Diferida para los Llegados en la Infancia (DACA) se ampliará para eliminar el límite de edad (que anteriormente era de 31 años de edad). Además, los solicitantes de DACA ahora podrán recibir autorización de empleo por períodos de tres años en lugar de dos años.