Mexico files an Amicus Curiae brief to the Supreme Court of the United States in support of DACA

• In the brief, Mexico stresses how the termination of the program would return its beneficiaries to a state of vulnerability.
• It highlights the contributions that DACA recipients make to Mexico, the United States, and the bilateral relationship.

Today the Government of Mexico filed an Amicus Curiae (Friend of the Court) brief in the Supreme Court of the United States, in the case regarding the rescission of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

In the brief, Mexico highlights the benefits of keeping the program and the negative consequences that its termination would have upon the young recipients, their families, and the Mexican community in the United States.

The termination of DACA would force its recipients back to a situation of vulnerability since they would not be able to get the permits to work, travel, and drive legally.

This would have an impact in the United States’ economy. Estimates suggest that DACA beneficiaries pay 5.7 million dollars in federal taxes and 3.1 billion dollars in state taxes every year. In total, 97% of them are employed or enrolled in high school or higher education.

DACA youth are a fundamental part of the social fabric of the United States. On average, they arrived in the U.S. at seven-years-old, and they have resided an average of twenty-two-years in that country. Approximately 1.5 million persons live with a DACA recipient, including parents, siblings, spouses, and children. If DACA is rescinded, an estimate of 328,000 families could lose their means of livelihood.

Young DACA recipients are the best example of a bicultural generation that embodies a bridge of understanding between Mexico and the United States.

Mexico respects the sovereign right that each country has to decide on its immigration policies. At the same time, it expresses its legitimate and substantial interest to protect the rights of its citizens, in accordance with International Law and its previous practice to submit such legal briefs to the U.S. courts.

Since 2012, when the program began, 800,000 persons have been benefited; of those, approximately 80% are Mexican nationals. The Government of Mexico, through its consular network in the U.S., has organized 17,978 DACA informative workshops, benefitting 1,035,890 persons. Among the participants, the consular network identified 28,526 cases that required consular protection services, such as issuing Mexican passports or other consular documents and providing financial assistance to apply for DACA. From June of 2012 to August 2019, the Government of Mexico had assigned $2.175 million for Mexican DACA recipients.