Immigrants prepare for new Biden protections with excitement and concern

Roberto Garcia crossed the border from Mexico in 2009 looking for a better life. For the past eight years, he has been married to an American woman, and they have three kids who are all American citizens. The only one in the family who is not is Garcia.

Seven years ago, he applied to legalize his status through a process that, if approved, would still require him to return to Mexico with no guarantee that he would be allowed back into the United States.

The possibility of being separated from his family or — in a worst case scenario — being unable to return home to Los Angeles has been stressful. So has the wait. It has been seven years and Garcia has not yet gotten an appointment at the U.S. Consulate in Ciudad Juarez, just across the border in Mexico.

Now, a Biden administration program launching Monday will allow some spouses of U.S. citizens without legal permission to stay in the U.S. to legalize their status without leaving the country. That is giving Garcia, and others like him, new hope.

“Finally, there is a light that this is possible,” the 37-year-old said. “I imagine I will soon have the important documents that so many people want to have.”

The new program offers a rare opportunity to erase the threat of deportation and one day earn citizenship. But tempering that excitement is concern: Who will benefit from what has been described as the most expansive U.S. protections for immigrants in over a decade? Will the program face legal challenges? And most important, will it survive the presidential election?

Under the policy Democratic President Joe Biden announced in June, many spouses without legal status will be able to apply for something called “parole in place," offering permission to stay in the U.S.,