Immigration 101: Immigration Policy

The United States immigration system hasn’t changed much since the 1960s. However, the number of immigrants has grown from five million to nearly 44 million.

According to the think tank Migration Policy Institute, nearly thirty percent are unauthorized immigrants, and most of them have been here for at least a decade. So why don't they just get in line? You may ask. Well, one reason: for most unauthorized immigrants, there is no line. 

If you don't have an immediate family member here with permanent status, getting a green card is really hard. You could try immigrating thru your work or profession, but visas are really limited - and even more so  for low skilled jobs. You can also apply for humanitarian protection but the US caps the number of refugees and the asylum process is extremely complex and stringent. Or you can try to win a visa in a lottery system, but good luck with that. 

While some government officials claim unauthorized immigrants are flooding into the US, the fact is Illegal border crossings hit a 46 year low after the election of Donald Trump. The president’s aggressive approach to immigration enforcement may be having a short term effect - but may not do much in the long run.