Trendlines: Court Decisions, Proposed Legislation, and Their Likely Impact on Binational Same-Sex Families

Family is a cornerstone of U.S. immigration policy. The United States grants green cards to every immigrant who is validly married to a U.S. citizen—unless the marriage is to someone of the same sex. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) denies federal recognition of so-called samesex marriages. Recent social, political, judicial, and legislative trends suggest the eventual abrogation of DOMA. Even so, sponsorship for same-sex couples is not automatic and will ultimately depend on how DOMA’s demise is achieved. This Article illuminates a clear path for same-sex binational couples to receive equal immigration benefits in a post-DOMA world. However, if DOMA remains law, same-sex binational couples must turn toward comprehensive immigration reform. The Uniting American Families Act is a proposed piece of legislation that provides a sponsorship route that is unaffected by DOMA, but its requirements may prove difficult for same-sex binational families to satisfy. Thus, for the more than 36, 000 same-sex binational couples who face decisions like separation or exile, an end of DOMA is the preferred—but not exclusive—solution for granting sponsorship rights to all familie