Thread: Undocumented immigrants may get tax rebates

February 9, 2008


Undocumented immigrants may get tax rebates

Diana Marrero
Gannett New Service

WASHINGTON - The economic stimulus rebate checks that Congress approved Thursday could give money to some undocumented immigrants while denying it to some American citizens, immigration experts say.

Others worry the screening process could cause significant delays for some taxpayers.

Of the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the country, about 40 percent entered the United States legally but overstayed their visas. An estimated 233,000 undocumented immigrants live in Riverside County. Those who entered the country on temporary work visas were able to obtain Social Security numbers that federal officials plan to use to screen out undocumented immigrants.

Experts say about half of all undocumented immigrants in the work force file tax returns, often using fake or stolen Social Security numbers or individual taxpayer identification numbers.

Many file tax returns in an effort to some day earn legal status in the country. Recent legislative efforts to reform the nation's immigration laws have made filing taxes a prerequisite for undocumented immigrants who hope to become U.S. citizens.

Advocates for tougher immigration enforcement say the difficulty in screening out undocumented immigrants who could receive rebate checks highlights the government's inability to control undocumented immigration.

"It shines a light on important issues that we need to address," said Mark Krikorian, of the Center for Immigration Studies, which pushes for tougher immigration laws.

Many citizens and legal immigrants could be denied rebate checks because of language in the bill that would bar the Internal Revenue Service from issuing checks to people whose spouses don't have valid Social Security numbers.

Immigrants can be in the country legally without being issued a Social Security number for a number of reasons. For example, a person could accompany a spouse who is working on a temporary work visa.

"The spouse could disqualify the entire family," said Josh Bernstein, director of federal policy for the National Immigration Law Center.

Immigrant families whose children don't have Social Security numbers also won't receive any money for their children.

Federal officials say the IRS plans to validate the Social Security numbers on all returns filed with information provided by the Social Security Administration.

But they would not answer specific questions about how they would ensure that undocumented immigrants would not receive the checks or that citizens won't be caught in the bureaucratic hurdles.

"We'll have more detailed information on the implementation of the economic growth package in the days to come," said Andrew De-Souza, a spokesman for the Treasury Department.

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I thought this little problem had been taken care of?

Originally Posted by Disillusioned

I thought this little problem had been taken care of?

That's what I thought as well. I heard it was the last issues "fixed" before passing the Senate? (I guess we were given more BS!)