Family members who may have previously been the primary breadwinners in the country of origin may be unable to find gainful employment due to their undocumented status.

Individuals who lack formal documentation may also feel less empowered to seek legal recourse because of fear of having their undocumented status made known.

When the new immigration laws were passed three years ago, Ms. Sousa, a software designer, decided to deal with her undocumented status.

If you come here and you work hard and you happen to be in an undocumented status, you're one of the people who we want in this city.

She never reported it to the police because of her undocumented status.

"The Southern Poverty Law Center also has encountered numerous incidents where employers destroyed passports or visas in order to convert workers into undocumented status."

Instead, he worries about his undocumented status and repaying the relatives who scraped together $3,000 for him to make the journey from Oaxaca, Mexico.

And if an immigrant were suspected of a crime, the county would be able to detain him solely because of his undocumented status.

The families' undocumented status makes it hard to collect benefits.

Others argue that substantial disparities still exist, with an estimated 3.7 million adults remaining uninsured due to their undocumented status.