On Aug. 19, 2024, the Biden Administration began receiving applications for the new, expanded parole in place program (“PIP”), hoping to allow families to remain together. This new program opens the possibility of legal status for many people in the United States who, although undocumented, are related to a U.S. citizen.

PIP allows these non-citizens, specifically a noncitizen spouse or stepchild to remain physically present in the country based on the discretion of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (“USCIS”).  Under PIP, the spouse or stepchild files Form I-131F, Application for Parole in Place for Certain Noncitizen Spouses and Stepchildren of U.S. Citizens. Upon USCIS’s approval, the program will allow the non-citizen to apply for work authorization and seek adjustment of status without being required to travel abroad to a U.S. embassy endure separation from the family.

The requirements for non-citizen spouses and those for non-citizen stepchildren differ slightly. To qualify as a non-citizen U.S. spouse, you must:

• Be physically present in the United States;
• Not have been inspected and admitted;
• Have been continuously present in the United States since at least June 17, 2024;
• Have no disqualifying criminal history or other non-favorable characteristics according to immigration law;
• Submit biometrics for a background check; and
• Submit form I-131F online with the applicable filing fee.

To qualify as a non-citizen stepchild, you must:

• Be physically present in the United States;
• Not have been inspected and admitted;
• Have been under 21 years old and unmarried on June 17, 2024;
• Have a non-citizen parent who entered a legal marriage with a U.S. citizen before June 17, 2024, and the applicant’s 18th birthday;
• Have no disqualifying criminal history or other non-favorable characteristics according to immigration law;
• Submit biometrics for a background check; and
• Submit form I-131F online with the applicable filing fee.

If USCIS denies your application, the agency generally will not refer your case to the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) for removal proceedings, though discretionary exceptions exist. However, if USCIS approves your application the approval lasts for 3 years unless DHS discretionarily revokes it, or you leave the country.

It is important to keep in mind that the PIP program is discretionary and subject to several lawsuits seeking to terminate it. In fact, on Aug. 26, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a temporary injunction, prohibiting the implementation of the program. The DHS also has discretion to terminate an individual’s parole or even to terminate the program entirely, depending on the presidential administration and its priorities.

Regardless of lawsuits, the USCIS is continuing to receive PIP applications, and this may prove a necessary avenue for many non-citizen spouses and children to remain with their family in the U.S.