Last week on December 4, 2020, Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis of the US District Court in Brooklyn ordered that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must immediately fully reinstate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, reversing a memorandum issued this summer by Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf that restricted the program to those already enrolled. Judge Garaufis ordered that DHS post a public notice stating that it is accepting new, initial DACA applications with work permits that are valid for two years and that DACA recipients are eligible to apply for Advance Parole for international travel. Judge Garaufis also directed the government to notify immigrants eligible for DACA to let them know of the change.

“This is a really big day for DACA recipients and immigrant young people,” Karen Tumlin, director of the Justice Action Center, who litigated the class-action case, told the New York Times. “It’s a day that many of them have been waiting for for over three years.” Tumlin said the judge’s order could benefit hundreds of thousands of immigrant youths “who have been unfairly denied their chance” under the DACA program. The Trump administration could appeal the ruling in the coming days. We will post updates as we receive them.