US president to offer legal status to 500,000 immigrant spouses

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden will announce a new policy that would protect hundreds of thousands of undocumented spouses of US citizens from deportation, the White House said Tuesday.

"Today, President Biden is announcing that the Department of Homeland Security will take action to ensure that U.S. citizens with noncitizen spouses and children can keep their families together," it said.

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, applicant must reside in the US for at least 10 years and be legally married to a US citizen, according to the fact sheet.

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 is slated to announce the measure later Tuesday at a White House event marking the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, the Barack Obama-era policy that temporarily delays the deportation of those who came to the US as children without documentation.