WASHINGTON: One million undocumented immigrants were not granted citizenship by President Joe Biden in June, despite misleading social media posts about a new program for certain noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens.
A Facebook post on June 18 claimed: “Biden just gave citizenship to 1 million illegal aliens by Executive Order.”
This post misrepresented Biden’s June 18 announcement, which introduced measures to simplify the process for eligible noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens to receive lawful permanent residence (LPR).
According to Reuters, the new program is estimated to be open to around 500,000 noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens and approximately 50,000 children with a U.S. citizen parent, contrary to the figures in the online post. Furthermore, the policy does not grant citizenship to undocumented immigrants directly.
Typically, a noncitizen spouse with LPR must wait three years before being eligible to apply for citizenship through naturalization, as per U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens can already apply for LPR, or a Green Card, through Adjustment of Status. Often, immigrants who enter the country illegally must leave the U.S. for years before re-entering legally. Biden’s action aims to help eligible noncitizen spouses and children of U.S. citizens apply for LPR without leaving the country. Eligible spouses must have been present in the U.S. without admission or parole for at least ten years as of June 17 and married to a U.S. citizen by that date, according to a U.S. Department of Homeland Security Fact Sheet.
Reuters reported on June 18 that the timeframe for eligible spouses to obtain LPR once the program launches remains unclear.
VERDICT
False. Biden did not grant citizenship to one million undocumented immigrants. The new policy simplifies the process for eligible noncitizen spouses of U.S. citizens to obtain lawful permanent residence.
