US president-elect Joe Biden plans to unveil a sweeping immigration bill on “day one” of his administration, hoping to provide an eight-year path to citizenship for an estimated 11 million people living in the US without legal status, a massive reversal from the harsh immigration policies of US President Donald Trump’s administration.
The legislation puts Biden on track to deliver on a major campaign promise important to Latino voters and other immigrant communities, after four years of Trump’s restrictive policies and mass deportations.
It provides one of the fastest pathways to citizenship for those living without legal status of any measure in recent years, but it fails to include the traditional trade-off of enhanced border security favored by many Republicans, making passage in a narrowly divided Congress in doubt.
Photo: AFP
Expected to run hundreds of pages, the bill is set to be introduced after Biden takes the oath of office today, a person familiar with the legislation said on condition of anonymity.
As a candidate, Biden called Trump’s actions on immigration an “unrelenting assault” on American values and said he would “undo the damage” while continuing to maintain border enforcement.
Under the legislation, those living in the US as of Jan. 1 this year without legal status would have a five-year path to temporary legal status, or a green card, if they pass background checks, pay taxes and fulfill other basic requirements.
From there, it is a three-year path to naturalization, if they decide to pursue citizenship.
For some immigrants, the process would be quicker.
So-called “Dreamers,” the young people who arrived in the US illegally as children, as well as agricultural workers and people under temporary protective status could qualify more immediately for green cards if they are working, are in school or meet other requirements.
The bill is not as comprehensive as the last major immigration overhaul proposed when Biden was vice president during then-US president Barack Obama’s administration.
For example, it does not include a robust border security element, but rather calls for coming up with strategies.
Nor does it create any new guest worker or other visa programs.
It does address some of the root causes of migration from Central America to the US, and provides grants for workforce development and English-language learning.
Biden is expected to take swift executive actions to reverse other Trump immigration actions, including an end to the prohibition on arrivals from several predominantly Muslim countries.
During the Democratic presidential primary, Biden consistently named immigration action as one of his “day one” priorities, pointing to the range of executive powers he could invoke to reverse Trump’s policies.
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