UPDATE - Biden to offer legal status to 500,000 immigrant spouses

ADDS REMARKS FROM BIDEN

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden announced a new policy Tuesday that will protect hundreds of thousands of undocumented spouses of US citizens from deportation.

Biden said the Department of Homeland Security will take action to ensure that US citizens with noncitizen spouses and children can keep their families together.

The action will protect 500,000 spouses of US citizens and 50,000 noncitizen children under the age of 21 whose parent is married to a US citizen.

To be eligible, applicants must reside in the US for at least 10 years and be legally married to a US citizen.

If a qualifying immigrant’s application is approved, that applicant would have three years to apply for a green card and receive a temporary work permit and be shielded from deportation.

Biden said the move would help the US immigration system become less "unfair" and "unjust" for the benefit of immigrants, married couples and Americans.

"The steps I’m taking today are overwhelmingly supported by the American people," he told an event at the White House marking the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the Barack Obama-era policy that temporarily delays the deportation of those who came to the US as children without documentation.

"The action I'm announcing today will go into effect later this summer," he added.