Today, the President took action to alleviate the immigration stalemate within Congress. Using the same authority through which many Presidents have granted temporary protected status, the President set out certain rules that will allow qualifying individuals to gain protection from deportation (and work authorization) for two years at a time.
Although the exact details of the program are not yet available, it is certain that qualifying applicants will need to:
- Be 15-30 years old, and have entered before age 16
- Have been present in the U.S. for 5 years as of June 15, 2012
- Have maintained continuous residence
- Have not been convicted of one serious crime or multiple minor crimes
- Be currently enrolled in high school, graduated or have a GED, or have enlisted in the military
Please stay tune as more becomes available.