Obama´s Dreamer´s Policy

CMSC
California-Mexico Studies Center

DREAMERS’ DEFERRED ACTION GUIDELINES

On June 15, 2012, President Barack Obama announced that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would not deport certain DREAM Act–eligible undocumented youth. Under a directive from the secretary of DHS, these youth will be given a type of temporary permission to stay in the U.S. called “deferred action.” Deferred action will be valid for two years and may be renewed at the end of the two years. Individuals who receive deferred action may apply for and may obtain employment authorization. The federal government began accepting deferred action requests on August 15, 2012.

Deferred action is a kind of administrative relief from deportation that has been around a long time. (“Administrative” relief is relief that may be granted by DHS, without the person necessarily having to go to immigration court.) Through it, DHS authorizes a non-U.S. citizen to temporarily remain in the U.S. The person may also apply for an employment authorization document (a “work permit”) for the period during which he or she has deferred action status. Deferred action will be granted on a case-by-case basis. Even if you meet the requirements outlined below, DHS will still have to decide whether to grant you deferred action. A grant of deferred action is temporary and does not provide a path to lawful permanent resident status or U.S. citizenship.

To be eligible for deferred action, you must:

  • Have come to the United States before your sixteenth birthday.
  • Have continuously lived in the U.S. since June 15, 2007, and up to the present time.
  • Be present in the U.S. on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making your request for deferred action.
  • Not have lawful immigration status on June 15, 2012. This means you must have entered the U.S. without papers before June 15, 2012, or, if you entered lawfully, your lawful immigration status must have expired as of June 15, 2012.
  • Be at least 15 years old, if you have never been in deportation proceedings or your proceedings were terminated. If you are currently in deportation proceedings, have a voluntary departure order, or have a deportation order, and are not in immigration detention, you may request deferred action even if you are not yet 15 years old.
  • Be 30 years old or younger as of June 15, 2012 (a person who had not yet turned 31 on that date is also eligible).
  • Be in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or be an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or U.S. armed forces. If you are enrolled in school on the date that you submit your deferred action application, that will be considered to “be in school.” See below for more information about meeting the “be in school” requirement.
  • Have not been convicted of a felony offense. A felony is a federal, state, or local criminal offense punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year.
  • Have not been convicted of a significant misdemeanor offense or three or more misdemeanor offenses.
  • Not pose a threat to national security or public safety (DHS is still defining what these terms mean but has indicated that they include gang membership, participation in criminal activities, or participation in activities that threaten the U.S.).
  • Pass a background check.
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DREAMers Deferred

By Libby A. Nelson, INSIDE HIGHER EDUCATION, August 20, 2012

As young immigrants whose parents came illegally to the U.S. flocked to learn more about the Obama administration’s “deferred action” program, which would allow them to stay in the country and work without threat of deportation, many colleges prepared to inform their students about the program and help them to apply.

The deferred action program, established by President Obama, allows undocumented immigrants who arrived in the country before the age of 16 to get a two-year work permit if they have graduated from high school, served in the military or earned a G.E.D; have no felony convictions; and have lived in the United States for at least five years.

While many students in the U.S. illegally, as well as their advocates, view the policy as potentially life-changing, its direct impact on higher education is limited. Students who are eligible to remain in the country under deferred action don’t gain legal status and won’t be able to receive federal financial aid. Nor will they qualify for in-state tuition, unless they live in one of the 13 states that grant students in-state tuition regardless of immigration status, or unless states begin accepting deferred action status — rather than legal residency — as a qualification for in-state rates.

Even the latest version of the DREAM Act, which would provide a permanent path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children — and which many young activists see as an ultimate goal — would not permit them to get federal financial aid or in-state tuition.

When the deferred action program wasfirst announcedin June, many students who are in the country illegally greeted it with a mix of hope and trepidation. They feared that applying for deferred action could mean singling their families out for deportation, or that the situation could change if Mitt Romney wins the presidency in November.

The Obama administration has worked to ease concern about enforcement, in part by handling requests for deferred action through a different agency than the one that handles deportations. And despite some lingering concerns, colleges are working to more fully explain the program to students and to help them apply if they choose.

Some of those informational programs are in the states where illegal immigrants are most common: Texas, New York, Illinois and California. At the University of Texas Pan-American, about 600 students are believed to be eligible for deferred action, said Robert S. Nelsen, the university’s president. More than 300 came to an emotional four-hour information session Wednesday night, the first day students could apply.

The university’s Minority Affairs Council, which has advocated for DREAM Act-eligible students, brought in three lawyers to talk about the application process, Nelsen said. Many students remain concerned about the potential impact on their families and about the outcome of the presidential election. The application fee of $465, meant to defray the cost of administering the program, is also prohibitive for many.

At the University of Houston, where about 1,000 students are eligible for deferred action, students who work in the law school’s clinic will help process applications. Right now, the university’s focus is on reaching out to students who are interested and making sure they know that the law clinic is available to help, said Janet Heppard, director of the law center’s clinical programs. In most cases, the lawyers and law students will advise the students about deferred action, but the students will file the papers themselves — a process that can be perilous, since lying on the detailed application can trigger deportation.

“The bigger thing that we’re trying to do is get the information out to the students,” Heppard said. “We don’t want them come up with the notarios,” unlicensed immigration consultants who charge high fees in exchange for the promise of a green card or other legal documents, “who often pretend to be attorneys and are not. It’s my understanding if they don’t do it correctly the first time they’re not going to get a second chance.”

The City University of New York, which operates a full-time citizenship and immigration office, has heard from about 1,000 students interested in the program after only minimal outreach, said Sofia Carreño, communications coordinator for Citizenship Now!, the college’s immigration law center.

As at Pan-American, many students are concerned about what might happen to them should Romney win the presidency. Romney hasn’t said whether he will continue the policy if elected. Carreño said students should apply regardless. “We’re basically encouraging them to apply,” she said. “We don’t think that’s something they should be concerned about.”

The first week of applications will see information sessions at campuses around the country — not just in immigration-heavy states such as Texas, Florida and Nevada, but also at Ivy Tech Community College, in Indiana; Linn-Benton Community College, in Oregon; Union County College, in Elizabeth, N.J.; and many others.

But the issue hits particularly close to home at Pan-American, less than 25 miles from the Rio Grande. Students at the forum worried not just about themselves and their family members, but about high school classmates who dropped out and wouldn’t be eligible for deferred action, Nelsen said. The university intends to do all it can to help those students get G.E.D.s.

As well as connecting students and would-be applicants with resources, Nelsen says he plans to raise money — although not through the university’s development office — to help pay for students’ applications. The university is urging students to apply as quickly as they can.

“Somebody who was there yesterday wrote a check for $500 for one of the students,” Nelsen said.But “with 600 students, that’s a lot of money.”

Read more:http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/08/20/colleges-work-inform-undocumented-students-about-deferred-action#ixzz246HWgDkf
Inside Higher Ed

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