USCIS announces possible modification to the "punishment law".

In my column this week in La Opiniónexplained the new USCIS proposal to modify the process for applying for a "punishment law" waiver:

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) finally took the first step that will lead to a possible modification to the process of applying for a pardon (the "waiver").waiver) to the "punishment law". On April 2, details of the proposal were published in the Federal Register.

This allows the approval process to begin. First, the public must submit comments for 60 days. Then, USCIS reviews them and publishes a final rule.

It is important that everyone write to USCIS to express their opinion on the proposal. The deadline for submitting comments is June 1, 2012, and you can send them to here.

If approved, this change would help thousands of U.S. citizens with undocumented immediate family members - parents, spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21 - when they apply for permanent residency.

Undocumented immediate family members of citizens who are applying for permanent residency could file an application for a waiver of the penalty law and find out if they are approved before they leave the U.S. This would reduce the amount of time undocumented family members are separated while applying for permanent residency. This would reduce the time of family separation while the process is underway.

If the proposal is approved, USCIS would review the case. If deemed valid, it would grant a provisional waiver. The undocumented family member would have to travel to his or her home country to be interviewed by a consular officer. If there are no problems, they would confirm the waiver and the person would be able to return to the U.S. on an immigrant visa.

Currently, parents, spouses or unmarried children under the age of 21 of foreign nationals who entered the country illegally and are currently undocumented and not covered by 245(i) may apply for permanent residency, but must go to their home country to seek a visa. If they were in the country illegally, they are subject to the "penalty law," which prohibits them from re-entering the U.S. for 3 to 10 years.

There are exceptions. The government may grant a pardon known as a "waiver", if the citizen demonstrates that the separation of his family member would cause him "extreme prejudice", be it economic, health or humanitarian, among others.

Under the new proposal, a provisional waiver of undocumented presence may be requested if the person is physically present in the U.S.; is at least 17 years old; is the beneficiary of an approved immigrant visa petition (I-130); is applying for an immigrant visa and has paid the fee for processing the immigrant visa; has no other offenses that would make him or her inadmissible to immigrate to the U.S.; can demonstrate that denying permanent residence would result in extreme hardship to a spouse or parent who is a U.S. citizen.

Please consult with an immigration attorney before beginning the process.