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The Golden Door

News and views on immigration law

Posts Tagged ‘work authorization’

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals – a mixed blessing

Tuesday, September 4th, 2012

On June 15, 2012, the United States Department of Homeland Security announced the introduction of a program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.  The new program has been both hailed as a positive step for undocumented immigrant youth, reviled as a run-around Congress by the Obama administration, and received by immigration lawyers as a mixed blessing.  The program, known as “DACA,” which started accepting applications as of August 15, 2012, would grant two years’ of work authorization and a contingent promise not to attempt to deport during that period those undocumented immigrants who, on June 15, 2012, came here before age 16, are not yet 31 years old, are attending or have completed high school or served in the U.S. armed forces, and have a clean criminal history or one that is fairly minor in character.  I won’t get into the nuances of the criminal provisions here, which could be a whole other posting.

DACA is not a statute enacted by Congress and signed into law by the President.  It is not a regulation promulgated by an administrative agency after a period of public comment.  It is a policy put into effect by the executive branch acting through its authority to choose how to implement statutes and regulations.  An administrative agency has some scope of discretion in how it enforces the statutes and regulations that govern its mission, and under the Obama administration the Department of Homeland Security has interpreted its enforcement priorities to mean that it will direct its finite resources towards violent and repeat criminals and serious immigration violators first, and put those whose only sin is having come to the United States as children – often without any choice in the matter, who have lived good lives since then and become valued members of their communities – last.

Although there appears to be some confusion about what DACA is, let’s not mislead anyone:  DACA does not provide a path to lawful permanent resident status or U.S. citizenship.  It does not even provide legal immigration status.  What it provides, and the only thing it provides, is work authorization and a valid social security number and a contingent promise of deferred action with regard to deportation.  As I stated to Michael Matza, a reporter at the Philadelphia Inquirer, on this very issue, you get employment authorization, which is very valuable, but the downside is that you raise your hand and say, ‘Here I am,’ and give your information to the government.  Before, you were under the radar.

Another consideration is how state and local governments will respond to DACA.  Some state government officials, such as in in Arizona and Texas, have already vowed to close off state-level benefits such as driver’s licenses to DACA beneficiaries, in protest of a perceived Obama administration run-around Congress’ refusal to pass the DREAM Act.  (The DREAM Act is proposed legislation that would provide a path to lawful permanent resident status to undocumented, educated immigrant youth with clean criminal records.  If you want to read more about it, here is a good place to start:  American Immigration Council.)

To even get approved for DACA, applicants must face certain thorny issues of proving eligibility.  For undocumented immigrants who have been living quietly away from the attention of governmental authorities, and who have been leery about providing any perceived authority figure with identification information, proving that they resided or went to school in the United States at a certain time and age can be difficult.  And, of course, there will be those who do not meet the timing requirements but who will try to falsely prove that they do anyway.

The benefits, work authorization and a valid social security number and a contingent promise of deferred action with regard to deportation, while of real value to those who have lived here most of their lives but cannot legally work in the United States, must be weighed against the potential cost of voluntarily identifying oneself to a government that may change its mind about DACA at any time.  If you read through the official statement about DACA on the USCIS website you will see this ominous sentence:  “This policy, which may be modified, superseded, or rescinded at any time without notice, is not intended to, does not, and may not be relied upon to create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable by law by any party in any administrative, civil, or criminal matter.”

So, while DACA is a welcome addition to the immigration benefits available to those known as DREAM Activists, it is quite limited in scope and the pros and cons of filing an application need to carefully weighed before submitting the application.  Here at Tran Law Associates, we will counsel you on the benefits and costs of DACA before signing on to represent you.  Although the decision of whether to apply for DACA is, of course, your decision to make, it is our responsibility when you come to us for help to make sure that it is a fully informed decision.