Thanks to executive action taken by President Obama, certain persons residing illegally in the United States may now apply for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).  The purpose of this action is not to grant amnesty to illegal immigrants, but to give persons who came here as children some liberty to work without fear of deportation.  This is not a change to the law.  Instead, this action reflects Presidential discretion in the exercise of his executive powers to enforce the laws in order to dedicate resources to more problematic areas.

Will I be able to travel freely in and out of the United States?  Persons approved for deferral under DACA will be able to obtain a work permit and may travel freely throughout the United States.  However, travel in and out of the United States will continue to be restricted to a great extent.  DACA approved persons may apply for a determination of a justifiable purpose by filing for advance parole using Form I-131, Application for Travel Document.

Will I be able to obtain a driver’s license?  The authority to grant driver’s license resides with the States.  In Florida, DACA approved persons have been applying for a driver’s license using their work permits and have receiving licenses to drive.

Members of the military and their spouses should keep certain things in mind if considering divorce.  Calculating the non-military spouse’s entitlement to the Servicemember’s disposable retirement pay can be quite tricky.  One common rumor is that the non-military spouse is entitled to half of the Servicemember’s retirement.  This is not entirely correct.  Under the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA) the non-military spouse that has been married for 10 years for a concurrent 10 year period of a Servicemember’s military may receive no greater than 50% of the military spouse’s disposable retirement pay.  However, this is no guarantee that the non-military spouse will get exactly 50% of the military spouse’s disposable retirement income.   A member who served in the military prior to getting married or continues to serve after getting divorce may be entitled to a greater proportion of his disposable retirement pay than the non-military spouse.  Moreover, disability ratings for the military spouse may have a impact that reduces the non-military spouse’s entitlement because disability benefits are not considered an asset subject to division among the marital couple.  Should you have a question about this topic, Jurista International is available to consult with military members and their non-military spouses in the South Florida region in matters relating to separation of assets and military benefits.  

For official guidance, please consult the following article provided by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)

http://www.dfas.mil/dam/jcr:1cbbab12-9765-4eee-8b5f-a6bab98b2e2c/AttorneyGuidance-03-07-2014%20%282%29.pdf