After the U.S. Supreme Court issued its non-decision in the DAPA case, essentially stating that the lower court’s ruling remains in effect, the DAPA case continues as if the Supreme Court had never accepted the case in the first place.
The case is in the early stages. It will now return to the U.S. District Court in south Texas, presumably to continue the process of determining whether President Obama’s plan to provide temporary relief from removal to parents of U.S. citizens, and to expand DACA (“DACA 2.0”), is valid or not.
One thing is clear. The original DACA program remains valid. You might be eligible to apply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) if:
- You were born after June 15, 1981;
- You came to the United States before reaching your 16th birthday;
- You have continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007, up to the present time;
- You were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making your request for consideration of deferred action with USCIS;
- You entered the United States without inspection before June 15, 2012, or your lawful immigration status expired as of June 15, 2012;
- You are currently in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States; and
- You have not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.
But the future of DAPA and DACA 2.0 is uncertain. Because the Supreme Court did not decide the issue, the case is now back at the federal district court in south Texas. The case will probably remain pending for many months, and will likely not be decided before the inauguration of the next President of the United States. The next President could decide to continue to try to move forward with DAPA and DACA 2.0, or to terminate the program.
For now, one thing is clear, at least until the inauguration of the next President: The original DACA program is still in effect.