A new precedent-setting decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) within the Justice Department has made it easier to deport immigrants protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The ruling states that holding active DACA status is no longer sufficient to automatically stop deportation proceedings.
The case involved a DACA recipient whose deportation proceedings were halted by an immigration judge based solely on her DACA status. The BIA overturned this decision, siding with the Department of Homeland Security, and ruled that the judge erred. This decision sets a binding precedent for immigration judges nationwide, potentially weakening protections for the roughly 506,000 DACA recipients across the country.
While DACA provides temporary work authorization and defers deportation, it does not grant legal status or a path to citizenship. This ruling is part of a broader push by the Trump administration, which has seen nearly 300 DACA recipients detained in a 10-month period. Combined with severe delays in DACA renewals, many "Dreamers" are facing unprecedented uncertainty and fear of removal.