In this Nov. 24, 2019, file photo, a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office is shown in Santa Clara, Calif.STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images
The Department of Homeland Security seems to be minimizing the repercussions of a policy directive established last week, which had raised apprehension among immigrant rights groups and legal professionals.
Earlier this month, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services released a broad policy directive mandating that most individuals on temporary visas and those granted humanitarian parole residing in the U.S. must depart for their home countries to submit and finalize their permanent resident applications.
Advocacy groups stated that the recently issued directive, presented by the agency as a universal rule, would affect any non-citizen with an ongoing application for a green card filed within the U.S.
In this Nov. 24, 2019, file photo, a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office is shown in Santa Clara, Calif.STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images
However, on Friday, the Department of Homeland Security indicated that the new policy “will lead to some individuals who do not qualify for the discretionary benefit ultimately applying through the Department of State abroad rather than USCIS within the United States.”
The department also commented that the policy “will not prevent any individual from obtaining a green card who legitimately and appropriately meets the qualifications.”
Current green card holders will remain unaffected and will continue to have the liberty to live in the U.S. and travel without restriction, the agency affirmed.
The policy memorandum, issued on May 22 by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services as part of the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement measures, directed agency officials to consider U.S.-based “adjustment of status” applications as an “exceptional form of relief.”
The initial statement and memorandum generated apprehension from advocates and immigration attorneys who suggested that the new regulation could affect a substantial number of individuals on temporary work visas who are seeking permanent residency from within the United States.
Luke Barr from ABC News contributed to this report.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com