Mexico is testing a cellphone app that allows migrants in the United States to alert their consulate if they believe they’re about to be detained.
The application’s “Alert Button” is designed as sort of an emergency button. With one tap, Mexican migrants who suspect they’re about to be detained by U.S. immigration authorities can let their consulate know.
Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary, Juan Ramón de la Fuente, presented the phone app as part of his country’s preparations for possible mass deportations in the new year under President-elect Donald Trump.
“This permits us to be notified from the moment someone perceives imminent risk that they could be detained,” de la Fuente said.
He said the app is already being tested on a small scale and is working well.
The Mexican government estimates there are nearly 5 million undocumented Mexican nationals in the United States.
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the federal agency tasked with processing immigration applications, currently recommends DACA recipients file their renewal applications between 120 and 150 days before the expiration date of their current status. -
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