Supreme court rules for government on immigrants' residence

Source: Reuters

By James Vicini

WASHINGTON | Mon May 21, 2012 11:20am EDT

(Reuters) - The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the length of lawful residence in the United States by immigrant parents cannot be considered by the federal government in deciding whether their children should be deported.

The justices unanimously handed a victory to the Obama administration and overturned a ruling by a U.S. appeals court that immigrants who entered the United States as children may count their parents' years in this country to satisfy the residency requirements.

Under federal immigration law, people who have been lawful permanent residents in the United States for at least five years and have lived continuously in the country for seven years can seek leniency from the government when facing deportation.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/21/us-usa-court-immigration-idUSBRE84K0T920120521