Over the past few days, President Trump has made broad statements regarding comprehensive immigration reform and his plans to create a new merit-based system, as well as promises to create a pathway to citizenship for DACA holders. He has spoken at times about an immigration bill (which has not yet been authored or formally proposed), while also claiming the power to use an executive order to accomplish his immigration objectives. His contradictory statements have created widespread confusion and uncertainty for many, but should not be the cause of any alarm or panic for the time being.

While President Trump has broadly stated that “nobody will have done what I’m doing in the next four weeks” and that “very big” changes are coming to merit-based immigration, it is important to understand that any proposed changes will take time. If President Trump does intend to sign “a very good bill and merit-based bill,” that bill must first be drafted, proposed, and passed by both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. Obviously, any legislative attempt to overhaul the U.S. immigration system is likely to be met by challenges from the Democrats and is unlikely to succeed, particularly during an already tumultuous election year.

On the other hand, if President Trump attempts to instead sidestep Congress and impose a brand-new merit-based immigration system through an executive order, it will undoubtedly be met with swift legal challenges in federal court. This would likely entail an injunction or temporary restraining order to prevent its enforcement until the legal challenges could be resolved – which could take years, as we just saw in the DACA decision. While President Trump has stated he believes that decision gives him expanded executive powers, his interpretation is untested and will be promptly challenged if he tries to use it to avoid the proper legislative process. Either way, major reform is unlikely to come any time soon and ILBSG encourages its clients to remain calm until we have more information.

In the meantime, ILBSG can offer some clarity for prospective DACA applicants. Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision last month, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has been silent on the Department’s plans to resume processing new DACA applications. However, on Friday, Judge Paul Grimm of the U.S. District Court of Maryland issued an order requiring that DHS restore DACA to the way it operated before the Trump Administration tried to terminate it in the fall of 2017. This means that prospective DACA applicants should be able to resume applying for the program soon.

As always, ILBSG will keep you up to date on any new developments and stands ready to navigate any coming changes to ensure continued success for our clients.

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