Parole in Place: Keeping American Families Together

Keeping Families Together: The Case for Parole in Place

Update 8/26/24 8:00PM ET:

A federal judge has issued an administrative stay that prevents the administration from granting parole under the “Keeping Families Together” parole in place process, in response to a lawsuit filed by anti-immigrant organizations.

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We stand with the hundreds of thousands of American families whose lives are at stake, and we will not rest until this vital program is fully implemented.

The new Keeping Families Together process will allow thousands of eligible undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for the opportunity to adjust their status in the United States, through parole in place.

Parole in place (PIP) is a long-utilized method to provide relief for certain undocumented individuals who are already building their lives in the United States. President Biden’s June 2024 PIP announcement, the Keeping Families Together process, will allow eligible undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for work authorization, protection from deportation, and the opportunity to adjust their status in the United States.

Many undocumented immigrants who marry U.S. citizens are barred from adjusting their status unless they leave the U.S. for often 10 years or more. If they stay in the United States, they remain undocumented, and do not have the opportunity to work legally, and live at risk of deportation. The Keeping Families Together process is a commonsense step, grounded in 70 years of immigration law, that removes a barrier and lets these individuals adjust status and use this pathway from within the U.S.

On August 19th, 2024 USCIS began accepting applications for the Keeping Families Together process, which will allow thousands of eligible undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to apply for the opportunity to adjust their status in the United States, rather than leaving the country and being separated from their families and loved ones for years while doing so.

Hundreds of thousands of U.S. citizens live in families where one or more relatives could be at risk of deportation. Parole in place can keep families together.

The new Parole in Place policy for spouses of U.S. citizens will help keep American families together and marks an important step forward toward delivering lasting protection and relief for undocumented immigrants.

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