To the Editor:

DACA, an abbreviation for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, is a federal program that gives work permits to young undocumented immigrants, who entered the country unlawfully as children.

Last week, the US Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled that DACA is unconstitutional, in agreement with anti-immigration Texas Judge Andrew Hanen. That means that new DACA applications will no longer be allowed, and over 1 million undocumented Dreamers in the United States must continue to live without legal status.

Individuals whose DACA requests have previously been approved can still apply to renew their DACA status at present. However, with the case going back to Judge Hanen’s court, there is uncertainty as to whether these renewals will be possible for much longer.

All eligible DACA recipients are being encouraged to renew as soon as possible.

That said, applying for DACA involves filling out complicated legal forms and few eligible immigrants can afford to pay an immigration lawyer hundreds of dollars in legal fees.

ImmigrationHelp.org is a nonprofit founded in Harvard University’s iLab in 2019 to expand access to economic opportunity for low-income immigrants.

Over the past 3 years, ImmigrationHelp has helped over 10,000 immigrants at various stages of their immigration journey with asylum, marriage green cards, and citizenship. ImmigrationHelp is now helping DACA recipients apply for renewals online for free.

Interested immigrants can visit ImmigrationHelp.org to see if they’re eligible for the nonprofit’s free help.

Fernando Urbina — ImmigrationHelp

Cambridge, MA