Obama rule would let undocumented stay in U.S. during application
By Peter Nicholas
January 5, 2012, 10:12 p.m.
Reporting from Washington—
The Obama administration will announce Friday a proposed new regulation that would allow certain undocumented immigrants to remain in America while applying for legal status -- a step aimed at keeping families intact and one that may also shore up the president's support with Latino voters.
As it stands, people living in the U.S. illegally who leave the country to apply for a green card face years of separation from family members.
Depending on how long they've lived in America, once they leave they are barred from returning for up to 10 years.
They can claim that their absence would pose a hardship for their spouse or parent and ask the Department of Homeland Security to waive the re-entry restrictions ...
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-obama-immigration-regulation-20120105,0,2762934.story