A green card is officially known as a permanent resident card.
Washington:
An Indian citizen has been lagging behind to obtain a permanent residence permit or green card for more than 195 years, said a top Republican senator and urged his senate colleagues to submit a law to address this issue.
A green card, officially known as a permanent resident card, is a document issued to immigrants to the United States to demonstrate that the holder has been granted the privilege of permanent residence.
Senator Mike Lee said Wednesday that the current green card policy did nothing for an immigrant's child whose green card application for deceased parents was ultimately rejected because his job was no longer available.
"Someone from India who is lagging behind today would have to wait 195 years to get an EB-3 green card. Even if we give their children this pending status, none of them will have the prayer to become a US citizen." Lee said on the Senator floor.
In the 2019 financial year, Indian citizens received 9,008 Category 1 (EB1), 2,908 Category 2 (EB2) and 5,083 Category 3 (EB3) Green Cards. EB1-3 are different categories of employment-related green cards.
Utah Senator Lee spoke about Senator Dick Durbin's legislation aimed at protecting migrant workers and their children who are lagging behind in the Green Card.
"Green cards are vital to the lives of so many people applying for a temporary work visa here. The backlog carries the risk of families losing their immigration status as they wait year after year to finally overcome this green card backlog." , said Durbin.
"Our bipartisan agreement would add critical safeguards that were not included in the original law for migrant workers and their immediate family members who are lagging behind. They could change jobs and travel without losing immigration status, and migrant children would do so . " be protected from aging so that they are not deported, "he said.
The Lee Durbin Agreement would make three changes to the fairness law for highly skilled immigrants. First, it would immediately protect immigrants and their families who are lagging behind by allowing them to apply for green cards "early".
This would allow workers to change jobs and travel without losing immigration status and prevent migrant children from "aging" green card workers so that they are not deported while on wait for a green card.
Second, the change would create a green card for immigrants who are unable to submit "early" because they are stuck overseas.
Finally, the change would curb the misuse of H-1B temporary work visas by outsourcing companies by prohibiting a company from hiring additional H-1B workers if the company's workforce comprises more than 50 employees and more than 50 percent temporary workers.
The H-1B visa is a non-immigration visa that US companies can use to employ foreign workers in special jobs that require theoretical or technical expertise. Companies rely on hiring tens of thousands of employees from countries like India and China every year.
"While we continue to discuss how best to remedy the green card backlog, we should make sure that no children of the affected families are injured or deported. Quite simply. I offered a new bill for protection, to put it simply Children are about migrant workers. This short tripartite bill would ensure that children do not age while waiting for a green card, "said Durbin.
"Imagine you brought your children to the US, worked on an H-1B visa, and your children are waiting for you for the green card. You pay for attending college because you don't consider yourself American Qualifying Citizens They make huge sacrifices for them and then the day comes when they can turn 21 and be deported and your family can be shared, "he said.
"Why should we want to let that happen?" Mr. Durbin asked.
The senator noticed that he had met many of these young people and said it was heartbreaking to hear their story that they could reach a point where they would age and be deported.
"That is why I wanted to offer this special individual regulation. There is no reason why these children should be punished for a broken immigration system. It is not beyond our control to help them," he added.