United States: Federal District Court Strikes Down Parole Program for Spouses and Stepchildren of U.S. Citizens
November 8, 2024
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At a glance
- A federal district court in Texas has determined that the Biden Administration’s Keeping Families Together (KFT) program, which was to offer parole and ancillary benefits to qualifying undocumented spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens, exceeded President Biden’s executive authority.
- The court found that the federal government lacks the statutory authority to grant parole to individuals who are present in the United States.
- The ruling comes after the court’s earlier temporary halt to the program, which permitted individuals to continue to apply for the KFT program but blocked U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services from adjudicating those applications.
- It is not yet known whether the Biden Administration will appeal the ruling.
The issue
Late Thursday, U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker issued a declaratory judgment and a permanent injunction against the Biden Administration’s Keeping Families Together (KFT) parole-in-place program for the undocumented spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens. Judge Barker determined that the executive branch of government lacks the statutory authority to grant parole to individuals who are present in the United States. The case is Texas et. al. vs. DHS et. al., Case No. 6:24-cv-00306 (E.D. Tex.)
Background
The Biden Administration announced the KFT program in June of this year and began to accept applications for the program on August 19. The KFT program was to grant qualifying spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens up to three years to apply for permanent residence within the United States through the adjustment of status process, instead of needing to depart and apply abroad at a U.S. consulate and risk lengthy waits outside the United States. Grantees were also to be protected from removal and eligible to apply for parole-based work authorization for the duration of their parole validity.
On August 23, Texas and 15 other U.S. states filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security, seeking to block the new program. The plaintiffs claimed that the program was unlawful under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) as arbitrary and capricious and exceeding statutory authority, among other grounds. The plaintiffs asked the court to temporarily restrain, preliminarily enjoin, or stay implementation of the program immediately, as well as to fully vacate and permanently enjoin the program. On August 26, Judge Barker issued an administrative stay that temporarily halted approvals under the program, but allowed U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to continue to accept applications while the court deliberated whether the program should be permanently enjoined as unlawful.
What This Means for Foreign Nationals
The court order means that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will not be permitted to adjudicate pending applications for or grant benefits under the KFT program. USCIS is expected to issue an update on how it will handle pending applications filed during the court’s temporary stay of the program. It is not yet known whether the Biden Administration will appeal Judge Barker’s ruling in the remaining days of the months of the Administration.
Fragomen will provide further updates on the impact of the court ruling as developments occur.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.
