Provisional Waivers of Unlawful Presence Expanded

The Department of Homeland Security recently announced a new rule expanding the availability of Provisional Waivers. Provisional Waivers may be requested when a foreign national accrues more than 180 days of unlawful presence. If the foreign national is unlawfully present in the U.S. for 180 days, they are subject to a 3 year inadmissibility bar of re-entering the U.S., after they depart. This bar increases to ten years if the period of unlawful presence lasted more than a year prior to the departure from the U.S. This means that s/he is not allowed to return to the U.S. for either three or ten years from the time s/he leaves the country and triggers the bar.

DHS has expanded the category of who may request a Provisional Waiver and this means more qualifying family members have a chance to build their futures in the U.S. without long absences from their families for immigration processing. Contact me if you are interested in hearing more about this program and whether you are eligible.