Promising Change for Marriages between Citizens and Non-Citizens

One of the great myths in immigration is that marriage to a U.S. citizen solves all problems and provides an immediate path to residence. It has even provided plots for 1991’s Green Card and 2009’s The Proposal, the latter telling the story of a Canadian played by Sandra Bullock badgering her personal assistant, Ryan Reynolds, into marrying her so that she can remain in the U.S.

Unfortunately, such marriages only work out neatly in movies. In real life, if Sandra Bullock’s character entered the country without authorization, she could not (in most circumstances) adjust her status to permanent residence while inside the US, even if married to a US citizen. Leaving the U.S. to start the process at an embassy can mean sitting out for 10 years or navigating a lengthy, tricky, and risky waiver process.

But that might be changing.

On June 17, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it “will establish a new process to consider, on a case-by-case basis, requests for certain noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens who have lived in the United States for 10 years or more; do not pose a threat to public safety or national security; are otherwise eligible to apply for adjustment of status; and merit a favorable exercise of discretion,” according to a statement. Under this change, qualifying spouses out of status married to U.S. citizens can avoid having to leave the country to apply for a status change—a leave that can last 10 years—will be granted parole and can remain in the country while their status change is processed.

This change won’t go into effect until August 19, and DHS has announced that it will reject any applications sent before then. At that point, individuals that meet the following criteria will be able to remain in the U.S. while their application for lawful permanent resident status is considered:

• Be present in the United States without admission or parole;
• Have been continuously present in the United States for at least 10 years as of June 17, 2024; and
• Have a legally valid marriage to a U.S. citizen as of June 17, 2024.

“In addition, individuals must have no disqualifying criminal history or otherwise constitute a threat to national security or public safety and should otherwise merit a favorable exercise of discretion,” the statement says.

Noncitizen children of spouses applying for parole will also be considered for parole if they are physically present in the U.S., don’t have any disqualifying conditions, and qualify as a stepchild to a U.S. citizen as of June 17, 2024.

Parole is a long established procedure in immigration law. It is not new, but it has historically been used in very narrow (almost non-existent) ways. This will benefit people with long residence in the U.S. and strong ties to the country. If you have questions about whether or not you or someone you know would benefit from this change, contact an experienced, reputable immigration lawyer. At this point, we do not have all of the details yet on this program, but it is promising.