[Picture from same article - copyright
migrationinformation.org, 22/1/2013 – Courtesy of Flickr user
janinsanfran]
22.01.2013. Earlier this month, the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a rule that will make it easier —
and more predictable — for some immediate family members of US citizens to
obtain permanent residence in the United States. The new rule is intended to
remedy the consequences of a 1996 immigration law that can potentially separate
US citizens from their sponsored relatives for years while their applications for
permanent residence are being processed.
The rule, first proposed in April 2012 and
which goes into effect on March 4, is the latest move by the Obama
administration to use its executive powers to revise immigration procedures
without congressional action. Other examples of the use of this executive
authority include the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program,
announced last June, and the exercise of prosecutorial discretion in
immigration removal actions. The new rule will benefit a sizeable number of the
estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the country.
