Local Attorney Urges Young Illegal Immigrants to Get Ready

CLEARWATER, Fla., Aug. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- President Obama recently announced an Executive Order directing the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to grant relief from deportation to certain undocumented young people who came to the United States, through no fault of their own, as children. President Obama's Order gives hope to an estimated 890,000 young illegal immigrants.

If the USCIS approves an individual's petition, the person will be granted deferred action. Essentially, this means the government has decided not to pursue any action right now even though an individual may be deportable under the law. In mid-August, the government is expected to reveal the procedure for eligible young people to submit a petition for deferred action. Until then, they have asked for people to not submit a petition just yet.

Eric E. Ludin, partner and the lead immigration lawyer at the firm of Tucker & Ludin, has been following the developments of this immigration reform very closely. He refers to these young people as "innocent illegals" for a reason. "They are here illegally, but they were brought here as children without a choice. Since they were raised here, they feel like Americans, many do not even know the language of the country in which they were born," adds Ludin.

"Right now we are urging these young people to start gathering all of their documentation together. This is the single most important first step people can take in order to be prepared for when the USCIS finally has the procedure in place to take petitions," said Ludin. "Because every circumstance is unique, we want to be one of the first to know exactly how these petitions will be handled in order to provide the best legal counsel to our clients. To help us assist these young people, the USCIS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) directors have had conference calls for immigration attorneys to keep us up to date on the creation of the procedure."

Following the President's announcement, many immigration attorneys have been busy fielding calls from interested potential clients wanting information on the Order. The biggest voiced concern relates to the client's fear that by applying for deferred action, he/she will have to turn in parents who could end up being deported. "We tell them what the USCIS director, Alejandro Mayorkas, told us in a recent conference call. He said that an application for deferred action will not, by itself, change the standard for determining who to put in removal proceedings, " Ludin said. The ISCIS director and ICE director recognized that the Executive Order is not to be used as an enforcement tool to catch illegal immigrants and deport them.

About Tucker & Ludin

Building on decades of experience, the attorneys and legal staff of Tucker & Ludin are committed to providing counsel and representation on issues including: Immigration, VA disability claims, Social Security disability, insurance claims, ERISA, personal injury, employment-based claims, securities, and commercial litigation. With offices in Clearwater and Tampa, Tucker & Ludin serve individual clients and businesses on the local, state and national levels. For more information about Tucker & Ludin please visit: http://www.tuckerludin.com/.

Media Contact: Kristy Tucker Tucker & Ludin law firm, 727-572-5000, [email protected]

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SOURCE Tucker & Ludin law firm