WASHINGTON (AP) — About 21,000-22,000 young immigrants, many brought to the country illegally as children, did not submit their status renewal applications in time.
That’s according to preliminary numbers released Thursday by the Department of Homeland Security.
President Donald Trump last month announced an end to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA program, which protected hundreds of thousands of young people from deportation.
But he said those whose authorizations were set to expire within six months could apply for renewals — so long as they did so by Oct. 5.
DHS spokesman David Lapan says roughly 133,000 of the 154,000 people eligible for renewals submitted their paperwork by the deadline.
Advocates complain DHS didn’t do enough outreach. Lapan says he’d be “hard-pressed” to think recipients weren’t aware of the change.
