Biden to announce protection for immigrant spouses of US citizens living illegally

US President Joe Biden is set to announce new protections for immigrant spouses of US citizens who have been living in the US illegally, according to a report by the New York Times. This announcement coincides with the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which protects people who came to the US as children from deportation.

The new policy aims to help Biden gain support in key battleground states such as Nevada, Arizona, and Georgia, where many voters live in “mixed status” households. The policy is expected to shield undocumented spouses of US citizens from deportation, provide them with work permits, and offer a pathway to citizenship.

The New York Times reports that up to 500,000 undocumented spouses could be affected by this new policy. Although marriage to a US citizen provides a pathway to citizenship, those who entered the country illegally often have to return to their home country to obtain a green card, causing long separations from their families. Biden’s new rule aims to keep families together in the US while they work on obtaining legal status.

This move is considered as significant as President Barack Obama’s implementation of DACA, which provided relief to unauthorized immigrants. Biden may also announce new measures to help DACA recipients, known as Dreamers, gain access to work visas.

President Biden is expected to introduce a program called “parole in place” on Tuesday. This program, previously used for groups like military families, provides unauthorized immigrants in the US with temporary protection from deportation and allows them to obtain work permits.

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