On November 20, 2014, President Obama announced that
he would be granting deferred action to certain parents of U.S. citizens or
lawful permanent residents. Deferred
action is the same benefit that was offered to childhood arrivals (DACA) that
has essentially been extended to another, larger group of people.
DO I
QUALIFY?
·
You must have a
U.S. citizen child or lawful permanent resident child on this date. Children born after 11/20/2014 will not make
you eligible.
·
You must have
lived continuously in the U.S. since before January 1, 2014.
·
You must be
physically in the U.S. on November 20, 2014 and the date you apply for DAPA.
·
You must not be
in lawful status as of November 20, 2014.
·
You must not be
an enforcement priority to ICE because of criminal issues. This means you cannot have a felony
conviction or a serious misdemeanor. If
you have a question about whether a conviction is considered serious, contact
us soon to discuss.
WHEN CAN
I APPLY?
President Obama has instructed immigration to be ready
to accept applications for DAPA within 180 days, so the estimated start date
for receiving application will be approximately May, 2015.
YOU
ARE NOT ABLE TO APPLY NOW. This is important. Though we know more or less what the forms
will be and what documentation will be required, if you file your application
before time you risk losing your filing fee, and your case will be denied or
rejected. There will be notarios and
unethical attorneys taking money now and promising to file cases now. Don’t be fooled!
WHAT CAN
I DO TO GET READY NOW?
·
You should save
money, if you have not done so already.
The filing fees will be around $465 (just as with DACA).
·
Schedule an
appointment ASAP if you have any criminal issues to help determine if they will
affect your DAPA application.
·
Visit an attorney
to review the specific facts of your case and get information so that you are
ready to file when applications are ready to be accepted.
·
Get your
passport! You will need this at various
stages of the application process. Do
this now, as there will likely be a wait time with your consulate.
·
See an
accountant. Make sure that your taxes
are in order for the last several years.
Immigration will be requesting these as part of the application
process. We can provide you the contact
information for some trusted and fair accountants who can assist.
·
Gather
documents. You will need to file
documents with your application to show that you are eligible for DAPA. The following list is a good starting point
of documents you will need to provide:
1.
Two passport size photographs;
2.
Copy of passport
biographical page of passport, visas and forms I-94;
3.
Copy of birth
certificates for you and your children;
4.
Copy of marriage certificate
or divorce, if applicable;
5.
Copy of every
court case on record, specifically any criminal convictions, and copies of all
police reports, and proof and that all traffic tickets have been paid;
6.
Copies of any
immigration documents you may have;
7.
Copy of college transcripts, degree, and
other evidence of you attending post high-school courses, if any;
8.
Proof of presence
before and since January 1, 2010:
ü
Tax returns filed
by you, or including you;
ü
Past leases,
receipts, records dating to before that date which show living in the United
States;
ü
Affidavits from
relatives, friends, teachers, employers, neighbors attesting to your presence
in the United States;
ü
Photographs
placing you in the US before 2010; and
ü
School records if
you attended school in the U.S.
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