Current:Home > reviewsBiden’s offer of a path to US citizenship for spouses leaves some out -CapitalWay
Biden’s offer of a path to US citizenship for spouses leaves some out
View
Date:2025-04-26 10:02:07
MIAMI (AP) — As registration opened Monday for an estimated 500,000 spouses of U.S. citizens to gain legal status without having to first leave the country, Karen and Xavier Chavarria had nothing to celebrate.
Like many others, Karen left the United States voluntarily — in her case, for Nicaragua — as the price of living in the country illegally, planning to accumulate enough time away to be able reenter and reunite with her husband, Xavier, on a path to citizenship.
Joe Biden’s offer of a path to citizenship without having to first leave the country for up to 10 years is one of the biggest presidential orders to ease entry for immigrants since 2012, when the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program allowed temporary but renewable stays for hundreds of thousands of people who came to the United States as young children with their parents.
To be eligible, spouses must have lived in the United States continuously for 10 years as of June 17, 2024, and been married by then. The Biden administration estimates 500,000 spouses could benefit, plus 50,000 stepchildren of U.S. citizens.
“Without this process, hundreds of thousands of noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens are likely to instead remain in the United States without lawful status, causing these families to live in fear and with uncertainty about their futures,” the Homeland Security Department said Monday in a document that details the policy. Forcing spouses to leave the country “is disruptive to the family’s economic and emotional wellbeing.”
Spouses who fall outside the prescribed dates and other eligibility criteria face an agonizing choice: leave the country voluntarily for years for the right to reenter or remain in the United States without legal status.
Karen Chavarria returned to Nicaragua in 2017 and reported to a U.S. consulate for an interview as part of her petition to reunite with her husband in the United States. She crossed the border from Mexico in 2002 and applied for legal status after marrying Xavier, 57, who works a building maintenance job in New York and lives in Garfield, New Jersey. They have two children, both U.S. citizens.
Xavier travels at least twice a year to see Karen, 41, and their 12-year-old son, who live in Jinotega, north of Nicaragua’s capital city of Managua. Xavier said he can’t live in Nicaragua because he can’t find work there, lacks treatment options for diabetes and fears for his safety because his family has been in the political opposition there for years. Their 20-year-old daughter lives in the U.S.
Karen has missed big moments, including her daughter’s high school graduation and birthdays. The Biden administration’s offer to spouses who chose to remain in the U.S. filled her with despair.
“It is something that we have been fighting for and after so much struggle, to get here without giving ourselves any hope,” she said while crying in a video interview from Nicaragua.
It is unclear how many spouses left the U.S. voluntarily. But Eric Lee, an immigration attorney with offices in Michigan and California, said it is a “massive” number. Immigrants and advocacy groups have urged the White House to include them in the new policy.
“The only reason why so many are being punished is because they tried to step out of the shadow, they tried to follow the law,” Lee said.
Homeland Security did not respond to questions about whether people who left the country voluntarily will qualify, saying only that they “may be eligible for continued processing abroad.”
Groups favoring restrictions on immigration consider the policy overly generous. The Federation for American Immigration Reform said Monday that it is a disservice to those waiting to legally immigrate and that Biden is “clearly in a hurry” to enroll people before he leaves office, making it harder for a court to overturn their benefits once they are granted.
The department said Monday that 64% of potential beneficiaries are from Mexico and 20% are from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. They become eligible to remain in the United States for three years under presidential authority known as parole for a $580 fee, which includes ability to apply for work authorization, a green card and, eventually, citizenship.
People deemed national security or public safety threats and those convicted of what are considered serious crimes, including felonies for driving under the influence, are disqualified, as are those found to belong to a gang.
Juan Enrique Sauceda 47, is biding time in Piedras Negras, Mexico, across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas. He was deported in 2019 while married to a U.S. citizen and applied to reenter. His wife and two children live in Houston.
“I want to return to the United States because I grew up there, I have my wife, my children, everything,” Saucedo said. “I don’t fit in here.”
___
Spagat reported from San Diego. Associated Press writer Rebecca Santana in Rocklin, California, contributed.
___
The headline has been rewritten to clarify that the policy puts people on path to citizenship but does not grant citizenship.
veryGood! (7713)
Related
- NHL in ASL returns, delivering American Sign Language analysis for Deaf community at Winter Classic
- After outrage over Taylor Swift tickets, reform has been slow across the US
- 5 entire families reportedly among 39 civilians killed by shelling as war rages in Sudan's Darfur region
- Pictures of Idalia's aftermath in Georgia, Carolinas show damage and flooding from hurricane's storm surge
- Where will Elmo go? HBO moves away from 'Sesame Street'
- Hurricane Idalia's financial toll could reach $20 billion
- North Dakota lawmakers take stock of the boom in electronic pull tabs gambling
- Tori Spelling Pens Tribute to Her and Dean McDermott’s “Miracle Baby” Finn on His 11th Birthday
- Bodycam footage shows high
- Who is Ruby Franke? 8 Passengers family vlogger arrested on child abuse charges
Ranking
- Megan Fox's ex Brian Austin Green tells Machine Gun Kelly to 'grow up'
- New York police will use drones to monitor backyard parties this weekend, spurring privacy concerns
- After years of fighting, a praying football coach got his job back. Now he’s unsure he wants it
- Biden wants an extra $4 billion for disaster relief, bringing total request to $16 billion
- Trump wants to turn the clock on daylight saving time
- Minnesota regulators vote to proceed with environmental review of disputed carbon capture pipeline
- Florida Gators look a lot like the inept football team we saw last season
- Your Labor Day weekend travel forecast
Recommendation
B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
Mississippi authorities to investigate fatal shooting by sheriff’s deputies while attempting arrest
Who is Ruby Franke? 8 Passengers family vlogger arrested on child abuse charges
Hawaii investigates unsolicited land offers as the state tries to keep Lahaina in local hands
Where will Elmo go? HBO moves away from 'Sesame Street'
Grammy-winning British conductor steps away from performing after allegedly hitting a singer
Customers pan new Walmart shopping cart on social media after limited rollout
Manhunt underway after convicted murderer escapes Pennsylvania prison: An extremely dangerous man