We hope you are all taking care of yourselves as we plan for safe holiday celebrations. Recently the USCIS has issued two important announcements that we want to share with you.
- TPS
On December 9, 2020 USCIS announced that it would extend TPS [1], Temporary Protected Status for TPS Holders from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua and Sudan from January 2021 to Oct. 4, 2021. In addition to this extension, USCIS will allow these TPS holders to apply for new Employment Authorization Documents (Work Permit), which they had not been allowed to do during prior extensions.
This is a significant opportunity for many TPS holders but it is also important that individuals with TPS try to apply for Legal Permanent Residency (Green Card) [2], if they are eligible, as soon as possible as TPS is only meant to be temporary.
- DACA
On December 4, 2020, a U.S. District Court in New York ruled that USCIS must start accepting new DACA applications [3] and must issue Employment Authorization Documents (Work Permits) for 2 years under the DACA program [4] instead of 1 year. The Court also ordered USCIS to notify the public by Monday, December 7, 2020 of this change, and they complied with that order.
This is important because, despite the fact the U.S. Supreme Court had ruled that Trump’s closure of the DACA program was illegal on June 18, 2020, the Trump Administration had continued to reject new DACA applications, in defiance of that ruling. So it appears that finally USCIS will comply with the law.
If you or anyone you know needs help with an immigration [5], criminal, [6] or personal injury [7] legal matter, our experienced Boston lawyers are here to help. Schedule an appointment to understand your legal options today at: (617) 303-2600 or fill out our online appointment request form [8].