Many Americans ask the same question in today’s immigration debate: “Why don’t immigrants come legally? Why don’t they get in line?”
There is no border for the majority of the 12,000,000 undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. Due to restrictions on family-based immigration, low availability of employment-based green card, and outdated immigration laws, there is very little supply of green cards. People who are granted legal status will have to wait for years before naturalizing in the U.S. The increase in applications and lack of personnel means that Citizenship and Immigration Services are extremely backedlogged.
There are four legal routes for an immigrant to enter the U.S.
– Employment: Employers may petition to hire qualified workers for certain occupations if they are unable to find an American. These immigrants must demonstrate a high level education and have previous experience. For the whole U.S., there are only 5,000 green cards per year for low-skilled workers. This is a shockingly small number considering that demand has risen while supply has declined as more Americans get better educated.
– Family: U.S. citizen relatives can petition to obtain green cards for spouses and parents as well as their children, siblings, and children. If they meet other requirements, legal permanent residents cannot petition for spouses or unmarried kids. The availability of green cards in most family categories is limited, but there has been a lot of demand.
– Refugees: The Immigrants Who Can Prove They Are Legally Acceptable to Remain in the United States “well-founded fear of persecution”They may be granted asylum or refugee status. They must show that the harm they have suffered is justified. “race, religion, membership in a social group, political opinion, or national origin.”This requirement is not met, but they are subject to quotas. Because of the severe economic circumstances in their home countries, immigrants cannot be granted refugee status.
– Lottery: 55,000 green cards are available for people from low-immigration countries to the United States. This excludes people from countries like India, China, and Mexico. The applicant must have two years work experience and a high school diploma.
The U.S. immigration system has been deemed outdated and overloaded by green card applicants. It is virtually impossible to maintain. “come legally.”As a nation made up of immigrants, the U.S. must reform the broken immigration system to make it work for everyone.
For more information regarding immigration policies, please visit www.aila.org.
