http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/15044532.htm

Backlog holds up legal path into U.S.
Millions forced to wait for thousands of visas, some for many years

Posted on Sat, Jul. 15, 2006

FRANCO ORDOŅEZ
fordonez@charlotteobserver.com

Members of the Morales family have been waiting almost two decades for green cards.

Family patriarch Miguel Morales Alcala gained legal permanent residence through a 1986 amnesty. He has since tried to get residency for his wife and six of his children.

But the wait became such an ordeal that he ended up paying a coyote $7,000 to smuggle his family into the U.S. from Mexico.

"It's such a long time," Morales, 66, said from his Charlotte home. "They told me I could bring my children, but we're still waiting and wondering when we can get the papers."

Often lost in the debate over illegal immigration is the massive list of applicants waiting to legally move to the United States.

The wait for a visa can take years, even decades, as several million people worldwide petition for limited spots.

Many immigration lawyers and advocates argue that immigration limits are too restrictive and it should be made easier for people to come here legally.

At the same time, advocates for more restrictive immigration rules acknowledge the process is cumbersome, but say limits benefit the country.

"There are way too many people than we can absorb," said Ron Woodard, director of NC Listen, an immigration reform group. "Would-be immigrants need to understand that just because you're a nice person willing to work hard doesn't mean you can come to America."

Long waits for few spots

Nearly 2 million foreign nationals petitioned for a family- or employment-based visa to move to the United States last year. Yet 167,569 were granted, some of whom waited years.Striving for a global blend of immigration, the U.S. limits the annual number of immigrant visas by country. The Immigration and Nationality Act sets a per-country cap of 7 percent, or 25,620, of available family- and work-based visas.

Immigrants from Western Europe and Japan, where demand is less, can sometimes get green cards within months, even weeks, immigration lawyers say.

But demand for visas is so great from countries such as Mexico, China and the Philippines that waits can last 15 years, said Chris Bentley, spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Applicants for legal entry have also had to deal with a backlog created by a lack of resources and extensive background checks following Sept. 11, 2001.

"The waiting times are so long that they end up coming illegally," said Victoria Gonzalez, a Charlotte immigration attorney. "No one wants to be an illegal immigrant, but there are no avenues for them to come in."

Morales gave up after three years. His wife kept telling him stories of his young sons getting into trouble. He decided his children needed their father.

Once the family was in Charlotte, Morales took them to federal immigration offices in 1991. Agents, he said, told him that many other Mexican immigrants had petitioned for their family members and that there was only a limited number of slots each year. He would have to wait.

He thought it would be several months. That was 15 years ago.

Marriage misconception

Marrying a U.S. citizen is often considered the fastest route to getting a green card. But even then delays can occur.

Those who choose to marry outside of the country may find themselves dealing with a waiting list at local U.S. embassies.

Luis Silva, 38, an American citizen, and his wife, Angela, from the Dominican Republic, had to celebrate their second anniversary over the telephone.

The couple married in May 2004 at a Santo Domingo courthouse. But Silva has yet to bring his bride back to the United States because Angela, 28, has not been given the proper traveling visa -- despite having an approved application.

U.S. Embassy officials in Santo Domingo reported that her visa petition has been approved, but a heavy caseload created a backlog.

More than 26,544 cases are waiting to be heard. As of June 30, Angela was No. 3,648 on the list.

For their anniversary, Silva sent his wife a bouquet that included wildflowers surrounding two roses, representing their time together -- and apart.

"It's aggravating," he said. "We just want to be together."

`Chain migration'

Some academics argue that the growth of legal and illegal immigration are linked. As legal immigration levels have risen markedly since 1965, illegal immigration has increased with it.

In a report for the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington think tank that supports tighter immigration controls, James Edwards Jr., an adjunct fellow with the Hudson Institute, argues that legal immigration must be curbed to reduce illegal entry into the country.

He says legal immigration has started a "chain migration" where family and friends of legal immigrants move to the country, as shown by the Morales family.

Morales' daughter, Gabina, often carries a piece of paper she says her father received from immigration officials in 1986 stating he can apply for his wife and children to receive permanent residency if they are not here legally.

Still, Gabina, 42, says she lives in fear that one day police will stop her and send her back to Mexico. She worries how that would affect her three children who were all born in the United States and speak limited Spanish.

She says she has never seen the beach because she's afraid to travel long distances.

"I'm afraid to go to the supermarket," she said. "We take all precautions." -- Staff Writer Mike Drummond contributed.

-- Franco Ordoņez: 704-358-6180