The application period opened Monday for a new federal immigration program that allows undocumented spouses to remain in the U.S. as they apply for legal status.
President Joe Biden announced the program, known as “parole in place,” in June through an executive action that could prevent an estimated 500,000 immigrants nationwide from being deported.
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To be eligible, individuals must have lived in the U.S. for at least 10 years and have been married to a U.S. citizen before the program was announced on June 17. Applicants can be disqualified if they have a criminal history or are determined to be a threat to national security.
“This is a huge game changer, this is probably the biggest immigration day in over a decade since DACA was announced,” said attorney Esther Valdes, referring to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that allows undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children to stay in the country.
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Before the “parole in place” program, federal law required many undocumented spouses of American citizens to return to their country of origin and apply for a visa from a consulate abroad. Individuals approved under the new program will be allowed to remain in the U.S. as they navigate a pathway to citizenship.
“They’re here with their families, they’re earning an income, their children aren’t despairing that mom’s never going to come home, and they can stay here with their families and be able to legalize here,” said Valdes. “For a lot of people that have been trying to do it the right way, they have been trying, they’ve already been in the immigration loop, the wait lists are so long that they haven’t been able to get their green card."
One such couple is Elizabeth and Jacob Naputi, of San Diego. They said they met “by accident” in a chatroom 10 years ago, when they started talking and “just never stopped.”
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For so long, their conversations have been filled with fear that she could be deported at any time. Elizabeth Naputi is undocumented, brought to the U.S. from Mexico as a 1-year-old. She’s a DACA recipient and has been applying for her green card since she and Jacob Naputi got married six years ago.
“Emotionally, it’s a lot,” Elizabeth Naputi said. “We're all very aware of the risks that I run just by being here every day, and even with that possibility of leaving and not being able to come back.”
“There were days and nights where we just couldn't sleep. It would always be in the back of our minds,” she continued. “We would sit down and have discussions, like, what happens if I do have to leave? Like, how are you going to support yourself emotionally? With only half an income?”
Jacob Naputi said he's lived in fear that he would return home and she would simply be gone.
“There were, like, some nights I didn't know if I would see her the next day,” he said. “You hear a lot of stories about people who are undocumented staying here with their families and getting their families taken away, like without any notice, coming home to like an abandoned home, basically. And I didn't know if that was going to be my home.”
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They said they’ve taken out loans and spent countless hours applying, and renewing her DACA every two years as they waited. At the first chance they could on Monday, they submitted the paperwork for Elizabeth Naputi to stay in the U.S.
“It finally gives me a little peace of mind, knowing that if everything goes well for me and if they approve me, I can be here. I can continue my life with him,” she said.
They said they reached this point through their love for one another.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better husband,” Elizabeth Naputi said. “He’s super understanding, he’s super patient. It just, like, really helps with all the stress of everything that we've gone through, because I know that at the end of the day, I can rely on him and he'll be there for me.”
Jacob Naputi said she’s changed his life, and he’s “here for the ride.”
“She makes me a better person,” he said. “I've struggled with a lot of mental health issues, so before meeting her, I didn't want anything in my life, I kind of just wanted to stay in my room and play video games all my life.”
“She's shown me that there's, there's more out there than just four walls. There's more than four walls,” he said.
