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Keeping Families Together Timeline and Updates

October 03, 2024
Grace Parsons

As of October 2, 2024, the future of the Keeping Families Together Parole in Place program is uncertain. While we are hopeful for a positive outcome in the ongoing lawsuit affecting the program, a current court order has paused Keeping Families Together for now.  Presently, USCIS is not able to approve any applications under the program. However, applicants can still submit their applications for processing. Additionally, if you have a pending application, you can and should still attend any scheduled biometrics (fingerprinting) appointments and respond to any requests for documents or information from USCIS. Please contact your attorney if you have questions, as the status of the program is subject to change!

It is possible that there might be further updates on or after October 10, 2024, when a hearing will take place in the lawsuit challenging the Keeping Families Together program.

Background on Keeping Families Together and Parole in Place: “Adjustment of Status” is a type of immigration application where a person can apply for a green card (lawful permanent residency) from inside the United States. To be eligible for Adjustment of Status, an applicant must meet several requirements, which, in most cases, includes having entered the United States lawfully. Without a lawful entry, a person who otherwise meets the requirements to apply for lawful permanent residency oftentimes must apply through “Immigrant Visa Processing” (sometimes referred to as Consular Processing) – where they attend an immigrant visa interview at a U.S. consulate abroad. The Immigrant Visa Process can be very lengthy, and the requirement to leave the United States to attend an interview with no advance guarantees of approval can be immensely stressful for the applicants and their families. Some applicants are also subjected to “departure bars” which can make their cases more difficult if they have to leave the United States. “Parole in Place” is a benefit that, in certain cases, can provide a pathway for an applicant to become eligible for Adjustment of Status within the United States rather than having to rely on Immigrant Visa Processing. Keeping Families Together is a program which the Biden Administration has attempted to implement to benefit certain spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens with long ties to the United States. A lawsuit led by Texas has left the program in limbo since shortly after its inception in August 2024.  https://www.mmhpc.com/biden-administration-to-expand-parole-in-place-to-spouses-of-u-s-citizens-keeping-families-together/

Timeline of Events in Keeping Families Together Parole in Place (With Most Recent Listed First):

  • October 10, 2024: There could be a change affecting the Keeping Families Together program after this date, as a hearing is scheduled to take place in the pending lawsuit challenging the program.
  • September 11: The Fifth Circuit Court (a federal appeals court with higher authority than the Eastern District of Texas) issued an order freezing the Keeping Families Together program at least until October 10, when there will be a hearing in the case. https://justiceactioncenter.org/news/fifth-circuit-court-of-appeals-pauses-district-court-proceedings-on-case-threatening-keeping-families-together-parole-process/.
  • September 4, 2024: An order preventing USCIS from granting Keeping Families Together requests was extended another 14 days, through at least September 23, 2024.
  • August 26, 2024: In response to a lawsuit filed by Texas and accompanying states, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued an order preventing USCIS from approving any more applications under the Keeping Families Together program for at least 14 days. The order allowed USCIS to continue processing applications, but it prevented USCIS from granting any pending applications. The small number of applicants who were approved before August 26, 2024, at 6:46 PM Eastern Time were not affected. Any applications that were still pending after that time, or that were submitted afterwards, have not been approvable due to the ongoing lawsuit.
  • August 23, 2024: Texas, joined by fifteen other states, filed a lawsuit to prevent the Keeping Families Together program from going forward. The states claim that the Department of Homeland Security does not have authority to implement such a program, and they asked for court orders to prevent USCIS from implementing the program while the lawsuit is pending.
  • August 19-August 26, 2024: Initial applications were submitted to U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS), and a handful of applicants were even granted Parole-in-Place benefits under the Keeping Families Together program.
  • August 19, 2024: The Department of Homeland Security posted a Federal Register notice, providing specific guidance on how the Parole-in-Place program, “Keeping Families Together,” would be implemented. The guidance included specific answers to how prior arrests or convictions, removal proceedings, or other factors might affect an applicant’s eligibility. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/08/20/2024-18725/implementation-of-keeping-families-together.
  • June 18, 2024: The Biden Administration announced a program to allow certain spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for “Parole in Place.” The initial announcement indicated that applicants must: (1) have arrived to the United States without permission; (2) have been present in the United States continuously since at least June 17, 2014; and (3) have been married to a U.S. citizen as of June 17, 2024. Additionally, the program would benefit some stepchildren of U.S. citizens with less strict continuous presence requirements. The initial announcement did not provide specific details on criminal/discretionary factors for eligibility, but it estimated that around half-a-million spouses of U.S. citizens were expected to benefit from the program. https://www.dhs.gov/news/2024/06/17/fact-sheet-dhs-announces-new-process-promote-unity-and-stability-families; https://www.mmhpc.com/keeping-families-together-faq/.

Please note that this information is up to date as of October 2, 2024, but there may be subsequent changes to the status of the Keeping Families Together program. If you have questions about a pending Keeping Families Together request, or would like to apply, please contact Minsky, McCormick & Hallagan for a consultation with one of our attorneys: 312-427-6163.

The material contained in this alert does not constitute direct legal advice and is for informational purposes only. An attorney-client relationship is not presumed or intended by receipt or review of this presentation. The information provided should never replace informed counsel when specific immigration-related guidance is needed.

© 2023 Minsky, McCormick & Hallagan, P.C. All rights reserved. Information may not be reproduced, displayed, modified, or distributed without the express prior written permission of Minsky, McCormick & Hallagan, P.C.

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