Before 1996, immigrants who had been living in the US for at least seven years, were of “good moral character,” and were “conviction-free” could get legal status if they showed that deportation would cause them or their lawfully present relatives “extreme hardship.” Since 1996, a process called “expedited removal” empowers immigration agents to deport immigrants without bringing them before an immigration judge for a hearing if said immigrants cannot prove that they have been in the country for two years.
