Paths to Immigration

            As I have dug deeper into understanding how immigration policy works at the southern border, it has become apparent to me that it is quite difficult for aliens to enter the United States and remain in the U.S. legally.

            There are essentially three pathways to legal immigration into the United States.

            There are family-sponsored immigrants, employment-based immigrants, and diversity immigrants. There are numerical limits on all categories except for one sub-category of family-based immigrants.

            Because of the limits, waiting periods to enter the U.S. as an immigrant can be quite long. That is one obvious reason why the border is flooded daily with aliens trying to cross the border illegally or via requests for asylum status.

            In 2021, almost 400,000 aliens were admitted as legal permanent residents based on their status as immediate relatives of U.S. citizens. Another 200,000 entered based on an employment-based preference, and just over 15,000 entered as diversity immigrants. In addition 35,000 refugees were admitted while only 20,000 were admitted as asylum entrants.

            Of those entrants, the majority settled in California, Florida, Texas, and the New York metropolitan area.

            In the meantime, the U.S. Border Patrol has reported more than 2.2 million alien apprehensions and expulsions in 2022. It is estimated that there are almost 11.5 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. currently, the majority of which come through the southern border from Mexico and Central American countries.

            The most common way of legal entry into the U.S. is as an “immediate relative” of a current U.S. citizen. Spouses, children who are unmarried and under 21 years old, and parents can petition to enter the U.S. without facing any numerical limits. There are numerical limits on the entry of unmarried children over age 21, unmarried children, and siblings.

            Permanent resident aliens – those holding Green Cards – can petition on behalf of their spouses as well. There are often concerns about “marriage fraud,” that is that an alien will enter into a “sham marriage” with a citizen or permanent resident in order to gain legal immigrant status. To avoid the fraud, the marriage must be longer than two years or else the admission is probationary.

            Employment-based immigration divides into five categories and multiple subcategories including aliens of “extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics;” outstanding professors and researchers; and certain multinational executives and managers. Employment-based immigration is not limited to the cream of the crop however. There are employment-based categories allowing for the immigration of unskilled labor, abused juveniles, and those with money to spend and invest in job creation.

            In order for professionals, aliens with exceptional abilities, and skilled and unskilled workers to gain legal immigration status, the Department of Labor must certify that there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, qualified, and available” for work and that employment of the alien will “not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States who are similarly employed.”

            That is a high burden for a would-be immigrant to clear which explains why the number of legal entrants in this category on an annual basis is relatively low.

            Finally up to 55,000 diversity immigrants can enter the country from low-immigration countries by virtue of an annual lottery.