SAN DIEGO (AP) — A federal judge says he will give the Trump administration six months to identify children who were separated from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border early in the president’s term.

U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw said Thursday in San Diego that it was important to set a deadline for finding potentially thousands of children who were separated between July 1, 2017, and June 25, 2018.

But he says he’ll consider an extension if needed.

The administration set six months as a goal but opposed a deadline. It said it could take as long as two years if efforts to streamline the process fail.

The American Civil Liberties Union has sued over family separations. It wanted the job done in three months but said it could accept six months.