August is going to be an exciting month for many, many people. 

In June 2024 the Biden Administration announced a new parole-in-place for certain noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens, and in certain cases, noncitizen stepchildren of U.S. citizens. The new process (also available in Spanish here) will enable certain undocumented, eligible family members to remain in the U.S. while applying for permanent residence. And on August 19, 2024, families will be able to start applying for this new process.  

Around 1.2 million undocumented people are married to U.S. citizens, without having formal immigration status themselves—even though, in theory, many should have a path to green cards. DHS (Department of Homeland Security) estimates that around 500,000 noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens could be eligible to access this process, and approximately 50,000 children of those spouses will also be eligible for this process. 

To be considered for the parole in place a spouse of a U.S. citizen must:

• Be present in the United States without admission or parole;

• Have been continuously present in the United States for at least 10 years as of June 17, 2024; 

• Have a legally valid marriage to a U.S. citizen as of June 17, 2024; and

• Have no disqualifying criminal history or otherwise constitute a threat to national security or public safety.

A notice in the Federal Register will be published in the coming weeks, with specified guidance for the application process. As this announcement will affect hundreds of thousands of people, the government knows that scammers and notarios will try to take advantage of the situation, and has issued a warning. Although in many Latin American countries a notario público can give legal advice, in the United States they are not authorized to provide you with any legal services related to immigration benefits. ONLY an attorney or an accredited representative working for a Department of Justice (DOJ)-recognized organization can give you legal advice. This is because immigration law in the U.S. is constantly changing, and attorneys and DoJ accredited representatives are registered with the government and held accountable to ensure that they are giving correct and updated information and legal advice. Please make sure that when applying for this new process you are receiving assistance and advice from someone who is legally qualified and authorized to give it to you. 

We are very excited for this new parole in place process to begin, and we know it will be life changing for many people. If you would like assistance with filing for your spouse or another immigration petition, you can reach us at (757) 422-8472, or send us a message on our website. You can also schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys by clicking on this link.