A federal judge in Texas ruled on Friday that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is illegal and blocked the Biden administration from granting new applications.

The program began in 2012 during the Obama administration to shield illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States as children from deportation. Although Judge Andrew Hanen’s ruling would bar future DACA applicants from admission, it does not immediately cancel current permits for the approximately 635,000 people protected under the program as of Dec. 31, 2020.