Page 216

MRG

UPDATED: JANUARY 2009

653

OTHER ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION STATUS

PRUCOL

the status of the request for deferred action or other relief. These efforts to monitor the status of the initial request must occur during the six-month period that begins with the date that the alien, or the alien’s representative, mailed to the federal immigration agency the initial letter requesting relief. If the applicant, or the applicant’s representative, fails to make any effort to follow-up on the request within this period, this indicates that the request was not a “good faith” effort to seek relief.

This policy is consistent with court cases that have found otherwise removable aliens to be PRUCOL when the federal immigration agency was made aware on numerous occasions of the alien’s presence in the U.S. but neither responded to the alien’s letters nor took any action to enforce the alien’s departure.

Applying these guidelines, local departments of social services should determine that the alien is PRUCOL when, based on all the facts and circumstances of the particular case, it appears that the federal immigration agency is acquiescing, at least for now, to the alien’s presence in the U.S. Three examples of circumstances in which the local department of social services should conclude that federal acquiescence to the alien’s presence exists, and the alien is thus PRUCOL, are illustrated below:

1. The federal immigration agency does not respond to the alien’s initial or subsequent letters within six months after mailing and made no effort within that six-month period to enforce the alien’s departure from the U.S.

In this example, the alien would be PRUCOL effective on the date that is six months after the alien, or the alien’s representative, mailed the initial letter requesting relief provided that the alien, or the alien’s representative, made reasonable and good faith efforts to follow-up on the status of the initial request during this six-month period. An exception applies if other evidence indicates that the federal immigration agency contemplates enforcing the alien’s departure from the U.S.

2. The federal immigration agency responded to the alien’s initial letter within six months after mailing by referring the matter to another entity and the entity to which the letter was referred did not respond within that same initial six-month period.