The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a final regulation on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The regulation will preserve the Obama-era memo from 2012. The ‘final rule’ was announced on August 24, 2022, and is to take effect October 31, 2022. DACA has been in litigation for several years. Various court challenges have argued that the program is unlawful because it was not created through a formal rule-making process. Many advocates were hoping for DACA to become a pathway for legal permanent residency but that benefit has not materialized.
To be eligible for DACA you must meet the following criteria:
- Must have entered the U.S. before turning 16;
- Must have lived in the U.S. continuously since June 15, 2007;
- Had not yet turned 31 years of age on June 15, 2012;
- Must have completed high school or received a GED, been honorably discharged from the U.S. armed forces, or be enrolled in school;
- Have no felony or serious misdemeanors.
- The changes in the 2022 Final DACA rule clarify what a felony or serious misdemeanor is, and clarifies that certain types of criminal issues no longer make you ineligible for DACA: “expunged convictions, juvenile delinquency adjudications, and immigration-related offenses characterized as felonies or misdemeanors under State laws”.
Under the final rule the work authorizations received through DACA will become invalid when the DACA status ends.
Despite DHS publishing the final regulation on the DACA program, the program remains in a lawsuit in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which bars new applicants from applying. If you submit a new application, USCIS will not make a decision on those new applications but will leave them ‘on hold’. For renewal applications, decisions are being made.
