Immigration Reform

Obama's Plan For Immigration Reform

1. Undocumented immigrants must first come forward and register, submit biometric data, pass criminal background and national security checks, and pay all fees and penalties before they would be eligible for a provisional legal status. Agricultural workers and those who entered the United States as children would be eligible for the same program. Individuals must wait until the existing legal immigration backlogs are cleared before getting in line to apply for lawful permanent residency (i.e. a “green card”), and ultimately United States citizenship. Consistent with current law, people with provisional legal status would not be eligible for welfare or other federal benefits, including subsidies or tax credits under the new health care law.

[The current backlog for family-sponsored visas is so vast that it could take up to 11.5 years for the visa to be processed.]

 

2. Those applying for green cards must pay their taxes, pass additional criminal background and national security checks, register for Selective Service (where applicable), pay additional fees and penalties, and learn English and U.S. civics. As under current law, five years after receiving a green card, individuals would be eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship like every other legal permanent resident.

 

3. Children brought here illegally through no fault of their own by their parent will be eligible for earned citizenship. By going to college or serving honorably in the Armed Forces for at least two years, these children should be given an expedited opportunity to earn their citizenship. The President’s proposal brings these undocumented immigrants out of the shadows.

 

4. An individual whose provisional lawful status has been revoked or denied, or whose application for adjustment has been denied, will have the opportunity to seek administrative and judicial review of those decisions.

 

5. Obama's proposal authorizes funding to enable DHS, the Department of State, and other relevant federal agencies to establish fraud prevention programs that will provide training for adjudicators, allow regular audits of applications to identify patterns of fraud and abuse, and incorporate other proven fraud prevention measures.

Things to note about immigrants and immigration reform:
Immigrants started one-fourth of all new businesses in 2011.
Immigrant-owned small businesses employ 4.7 million people.
American Action Forum estimates that immigration reform would boost per capita income by $1,700 over ten years and reduce the federal deficit by $2.7 trillion.