By Vanessa Ajualip Hernandez, Intern

On Tuesday, June 18th, the Biden Administration announced a new program that would allow undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to process their green card applications without having to leave the country. Dubbed “Keeping Families Together", the program’s expansion of parole in place for mixed-status families would benefit a government-estimate of over 550,000 spouses and step children of American citizens. The program took effect on August 19, but implementation was quickly stalled by a federal lawsuit filed by 16 Republican-led states. An administrative stay issued on August 26 allows USCIS to continue accepting applications, though it may not grant parole in place under the program. 

Explaining the Keeping Families Together program

One of the largest obstacles in obtaining permanent residency in the United States for undocumented spouses is a ban on re-entry. In order to obtain a green card, an individual must have entered the United States through a legal channel. If they have not, they must leave the country to obtain an immigrant visa through consular processing. Those who have remained unlawfully in the U.S. for more than one year can face up to a 10 year restriction on returning to the US post-departure, commonly known as the “10 year ban”. 

Historically, “Parole in Place” has been used to provide status relief to undocumented family members of military personnel. Parole in Place allows such family members to remain within the United States as they pursue legal status. The new policy would allow noncitizens who have been in the country for at least 10 years and are married to a U.S. citizen, and their children, to apply for permanent residence without having to leave the country. This essentially waives an re-entry ban the spouse would have accumulated. 

Reactions to Parole in Place

When the program was announced, immigration advocates applauded the new policy for the long overdue relief from fear it grants families from being separated as they pursue legal status. The Immigration Law and Justice Network has named that while this emotional relief is “immeasurable”, there is work left to be done to help the other 11 million undocumented migrants that live within this country.

On Friday, August 23, Texas led a coalition of 16 Republican-led states– including Tennessee–  in a legal challenge to the policy, arguing that it was an example of executive overreach in an attempt to sidestep Congress. A federal judge in Texas issued an administrative stay on Monday, August 26, temporarily prohibiting USCIS from approving applications under the Keeping Families Together program. The same day, six families who would be helped by Keeping Families Together filed a motion to join the government in defending the policy in court. The stay is currently in place for two weeks, but the court stated they expect to extend it until at least mid-October. 

How parole in place strengthens our country

Though President Biden announced Keeping Families Together just days after heavily restricting asylum access, immigration opponents criticized the administration for rewarding undocumented migrants they view as undeserving. This couldn’t be further from the truth. When announcing this new policy, President Biden specifically mentioned that this order would not benefit people who are recently arriving; rather, it would help people who “are paying taxes and contributing to our country” and their family members. However, this is the reality for many of the undocumented immigrants living in the United States, not just the ones married to U.S. citizens. 

Immigrants, regardless of their citizenship status, pay the same taxes as US citizens including sales, federal income, property, and social security taxes. According to the American Immigration Council, in 2022, immigrants paid $529.1 billion in taxes and held $1.6 trillion in spending power. Of this, the AIC estimates that $35.1 billion of these taxes were paid by undocumented immigrants who held $254.8 billion in total spending power. 

Immigrants participate in the labor market at higher rates than U.S-born workers, helping address our nation’s labor shortage. According to the US Chamber of Commerce, throughout all of the United States, there are only 42 available workers for every 100 jobs available. In Tennessee specifically, there are only 56 available workers for every 100 jobs available. Our economy benefits greatly from the contributions of these immigrants, and undocumented immigrants deserve the opportunity to work and live without fear of deportation or retribution. 

Biden’s new executive order is a step in the right direction, but it lacks the permanency needed for immigration reform. As ongoing legal challenges to the program make abundantly clear, executive orders are easily reversible, creating instability for families who will attempt to pursue legal status using this new policy. Instead, we need new, permanent solutions that enable families to have multiple paths to citizenship, including solutions for families who have lived and contributed to our society for decades.