Why It Matters
A new precedent from federal immigration appellate judges could expose hundreds of thousands of DACA recipients to deportation proceedings. The ruling establishes that active participation in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program does not automatically warrant relief from removal. The decision affects approximately 500,000 immigrants currently protected under DACA nationwide.
What Happened
The Board of Immigration Appeals issued a precedent decision Friday in the case of Catalina Santiago, stating that DACA status alone is insufficient grounds for terminating deportation proceedings. A three-judge panel reversed an immigration judge’s earlier decision to halt Santiago’s removal case based on her active DACA participation. The board sent the matter back to a different immigration judge for further review.
Santiago was detained by Customs and Border Protection officers at the El Paso airport in August while boarding a domestic flight. She remained in immigration detention until a federal judge ordered her release in October. Her deportation case has continued through the immigration court system since.
By the Numbers
DACA currently covers approximately 500,000 people who arrived in the United States illegally as children before 2007. The program was created in 2012 and requires participants to renew their protection every two years. According to the Department of Homeland Security, 261 DACA recipients were arrested between January and November of last year, with 86 removed from the country during that period.
Recent data shows the Board of Immigration Appeals backed government attorneys in 97 percent of publicly posted cases last year, at least 30 percentage points higher than the average over the previous 16 years.
Zoom Out
The ruling represents the latest in a series of administrative actions targeting DACA protections. The Department of Health and Human Services announced last year it would make DACA recipients ineligible for the federal health care marketplace. The Education Department also indicated it would review five universities that provide financial assistance to DACA participants.
DHS officials have emphasized that DACA provides temporary protection from deportation but does not create legal status or a path to citizenship. In correspondence to senators, then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stated the program carries no right to remain in the United States indefinitely.
What’s Next
Santiago’s case will proceed before a different immigration judge under the new precedent. The Board of Immigration Appeals decision sets binding guidance for immigration judges nationwide on how to weigh DACA status in removal proceedings. DHS has not yet responded to inquiries about whether active DACA recipients face increased removal risk under the new standard.