Although no one can be certain about the future of DACA, several federal immigration reform bills seem to present a positive future. Two DACA-focused bills are circling Congress at this very moment, one from the House of Representatives and the other from the Senate. The Senate’s bill, the Dream Act of 2021, acknowledges Dreamers as undocumented minors who are/were 17 years old or younger when they entered the country. Dreamers would also have had to have been in the country for at least four years prior to the bill’s enactment, which has not yet occurred. Under the Senate bill, Dreamers would obtain conditional permanent residence status for an eight year period before they are given green cards as legal permanent residents. Criminal convictions unrelated to a lack of immigration status may disqualify applicants. These include drug offenses, crimes of moral turpitude, aggravated felonies, crimes with a maximum of more than 1 year of imprisonment, and three or more offenses which together result in at least 90 days of imprisonment.

The House’s bill, the American Dream and Promise Act of 2021, qualifies a Dreamer as someone who was 18 or younger when they entered the country undocumented. To be a Dreamer, a person must also have been continuously physically present in the United States since January 1, 2021. If this applies, a Dreamer can obtain conditional permanent residence status for 10 years before they receive their green card. Being convicted of felonies, domestic violence, three or more misdemeanors, drug crimes, or crimes of moral turpitude will disqualify a person from this process. Exceptions of crimes include being the victim of certain domestic violence cases, nonviolent civil disobedience, specific marijuana crimes, minor traffic offenses, and crimes related to immigration status.

If you or someone you know does not qualify as a Dreamer in accordance with either bill, you may be happy to hear that a third immigration bill is being headed by President Biden, the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021. Undocumented immigrants, including spouses and children, would be eligible for Lawful Prospective Immigrant (LPI) status if they were in the country on or before January 1, 2021. This would allow them to stay in the country, have work authorization, have social security cards, and leave the United States temporarily (no more than 180 days per year). This status would be renewed after six years, but after only five, people with LPI status would be eligible to be lawful permanent residents and get their green cards, assuming they pass security and criminal background checks. It would then take three years to become naturalized citizens, not the usual five. Others are eligible for this process too. The Center for Migration Studies reports, “Immigrants who engaged in ‘essential critical labor or services’ during the COVID-19 public health emergency, H-2A non-immigrants (temporary agricultural workers), and [temporary protected status] recipients would be eligible for LPI status.” Many more specific qualities might qualify a person for this process, so to check for yourself, visit https://cmsny.org/citizenship-act-2021-explainer/. This bill would also make changes to several different visas, labor protections, and other procedures, which may be of interest.