Thousands of undocumented Irish people who are living in the USA have been warned this week by the Irish government and immigration groups not to return home at Christmas. The warning comes after hopes were raised for the festive season when it was announced that a new executive order from Obama will reportedly protect up to five million undocumented immigrants from deportation. However, it has now been revealed that this will not be available until spring of next year. Speaking this week, a number of Irish immigration groups have warned the Irish not to return home unless they have contacted an immigration centre or lawyer to check their eligibility. Irish Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan also warned about the dangers on Twitter.

undocumented Irish planning to return home for Christmas should contact Irish immigration centre or lawyer to check eligibility to travel. — Charlie Flanagan (@CharlieFlanagan) November 23, 2014

“I’ve heard of people who are thinking of going home to Ireland for the holidays and family events,” Kieran O’Sullivan, a counsellor in Boston told the Irish Times. “We have issued a general note of caution on such travel and the point we want to make is that anyone about to leave the USA should first speak to an immigration attorney. Leaving the US carries great risk if an individual does not consult an experienced immigration attorney,” he continued. It has been widely reported that the Obama government are planning to issue undocumented Irish people with an Employment Document Authorization (EDA) which will be subject to background checks and a cleared application. However, people looking to return home and then go back to America legally will then also need "advanced parole" which will show that they need to return as a result of illness or a funeral - though it has been reported that it could take up to nine months for these to be issued. The new rules will reportedly protect up to five million undocumented immigrants from deportation and allow them to apply for legal status.