Deferred Action is President Obama’s program that gives the young innocent undocumented immigrants a temporary relief from deportation. The dream of living legally in the United States has come true for some undocumented immigrants who have received deferred action status but it is still a dream for many. There are many who are still facing challenges and are unable to apply for this temporary status.
According to the USCIS, the agency received 537,662 DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) applications between August 2012 and June 2013. Of these, the agency has so far approved 400,562 applications.
Reports say that when the program was implemented, around 936,000 undocumented youth met all the DACA requirements and they were eligible to take part in this DACA program. But all the undocumented youth who are eligible have not applied for this status. There are different reasons why they have not filed applications for this status.
Some who are unable to afford the Form I-821D filing fee of $465 have not applied for this status. Many do not have the required documents to establish their eligibility to take part in this program. There are some who are still unaware of this program. These are few reasons why many have still not applied for deferred action.
On the other hand, they are some who are waiting for the US Congress to pass immigration reform. They believe that they would be permitted to apply for legal status if immigration reform is passed.
There are several youth who are ineligible for deferred cation status. Activists say that it is very disappointing as many DREAMers are not covered under this program. Rossy Cruz, a Mexican immigrant, who seeks to study in the United States and work there, is unable to apply for deferred action status as she lacks few supporting documents that must be submitted along with her application for DACA.
Likewise, Juan Ramos, a Salvadoran, entered into the United States after September 15, 2007. He is ineligible to apply for deferred action as the undocumented youth who entered into the country prior to June 15, 2012 alone can apply for DACA status. He is looking forward to achieve his American dream. He has now joined the national United We Dream organization, according to Fox news. Similar to these two undocumented youth there are many others who are waiting for the US Congress to pass immigration reform that would help them to become legal residents.