On August 3, 2012, USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas provided updated information on the deferred action program for childhood arrivals. New information included the following:
Beginning on August 15, 2012, and not prior to that date, USCIS will begin receiving applications for deferred action status for young arrivals.
A new application will be used for this process and may be submitted with an application for employment authorization. Total filing fees will be $465.00 (this includes the application for deferred action and employment authorization).
Employment authorization must be renewed after two years.
Applicants may be interviewed by USCIS if fraud is suspected.
Applicants must demonstrate that they were physically present on June 15, 2012. If they entered the United States lawfully, their status must have expired prior to that date.
Applicants must be 15 years of age or older at the time of the application unless they are in removal proceedings.
Any travel outside the U.S. after the initial entry will bar the applicant from deferred action unless the departure was “brief, casual, and innocent.” Any travel outside the U.S. after August 15, 2012 will bar the applicant from deferred action unless they apply for and receive travel authorization. Travel authorization will only be granted after a grant of deferred action status, and only for those individuals who have educational, humanitarian, or employment purposes for travel.
Supporting documentation for the application includes, but is not limited to, financial, medical, school, and employment records.
Affidavits alone are insufficient to establish the requirements for deferred action status, but may be used in addition to other documents to fill any gaps in the period of required continuous residence or to establish that a trip abroad was “brief, casual, and innocent.”
USCIS will require fingerprinting and a criminal background check for all applicants.
A felony offense, a significant misdemeanor offense, or three or more misdemeanor offenses will bar an applicant from deferred action.
A “significant misdemeanor offense” is defined as an offense involving domestic violence, sexual abuse, burglary, possession of a firearm, or if the sentence exceeded 90 days in jail.
Minor traffic offenses are not considered misdemeanors.
An applicant’s criminal history, even if not the basis for an automatic bar from deferred action, may be the basis for a discretionary denial of deferred action status.
Our office will be representing applicants for deferred action. Contact us at (954) 241-4209 to schedule an appointment.
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