Legal immigrants fear reform bill effects
Lawbreakers may be pushed to head of line, some worry

Originally posted on May 27, 2007


Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON — As part of a broad plan to overhaul the nation's lumbering immigration system, the Senate is focusing on the issue that's generating the maximum controversy among voters — how to deal with the 12 million undocumented foreigners in the United States.

Lost in the debate, legal immigrants say, is the fate of 1 million law-abiding and well-educated workers and their families across the United States who've been waiting for years to get permanent residency, or green cards, the crucial first step to eventually becoming naturalized U.S. citizens.

Many are among those stuck in green-card limbo even though their employers filed the paperwork because the workers have specialized skills U.S.-born employees don't, according to Immigration Voice, a lobbying group co-founded by South Brunswick, N.J., resident Vineet Agarwal.

"This is a set of people who contribute effectively to the economy and honestly pay their taxes," said Agarwal, 32, a native of New Delhi, India, who's been waiting for his green card for four years. "We're not a burden on society. At least give us a fair deal."

backlog concerns

Frustration is high because the Senate proposal fails to wipe out huge backlogs in green card applications filed by the employers on behalf of employees holding H-1B, or work, visas, said Varsha Das, a 30-year-old work permit holder from Mumbai, India, who lives in Bridgewater, N.J.

Additionally, the Senate proposal would cancel permanent residency applications filed after May 1, 2005, and require employers to file them anew. That provision is particularly unfair, critics say, because it would create even longer delays for those who've already waited for years.

"A lot of talk on (Capitol) Hill is of undocumented immigrants. There's hardly any talk of people like us who've been waiting for years for our green cards," said Das, who works for a high-tech company she declined to name for fear of involving her employer in a political issue.

She and others say it's unfair that the Senate is thinking of granting provisional legal status to millions of illegal immigrants, which critics deride as giving amnesty to those who sneaked into the United States while legal immigrants get no similar consideration.

"It's not a good bill for us," said Das, who's been waiting for her green card since her employer filed for it in 2003. "We are skilled immigrants. We come from educated backgrounds. We were invited into this country. Why would we leave home, sweet home in India to come here if we didn't think that would help us achieve the American dream?"

professionally 'stuck'

Das and her husband, who's also on a work permit, have purchased a home and she's working part time on a master's degree in business administration at Rutgers University. Though she's taking steps to blend into U.S. society, Das said she faces uncertainty and may be forced to give up her life here and return to India because of bureaucratic delays.

Under the terms of her work permit, she said she's "stuck" at her job unless some other employer is willing to file for a fresh permit on her behalf, something U.S. companies are increasingly reluctant to do because of lengthy delays. Additionally, unlike permanent residents and U.S. citizens, temporary workers like Das can't look for other employment if they're laid off, a possibility in an age of cutbacks and downsizings.

Agarwal, who works as a business consultant for a Princeton, N.J., firm he also declined to name, said he's being held back professionally because he doesn't have a green card.

He said he has an idea for a high-tech product and can get financing to start his own company and employ Americans in the process, but he can't do it because his work permit ties him to his employer. If he had a green card, he'd be free to pursue any job or quit to start his own company.

"A lot of people like me are thinking of going back," Agarwal said. "This country will lose the competitive edge unless this gets fixed."

Under the compromise, millions of undocumented immigrants could get legal status quickly, but other immigration reforms would be delayed until border security improves. The deal between Democrats and Republicans was reached after months of tense private negotiations.

The Senate will take up the legislation when it returns from a weeklong Memorial Day recess.

Green cards and work permits

Gannett News Service

Q: What is a green card?

A: Green cards allow citizens of foreign nations to live and work in the United States forever. Green card holders — formally called permanent residents — can switch jobs and move anywhere in the United States like native-born Americans. But they can't vote in federal elections and hold some types of federal jobs. Before applying for U.S. citizenship, immigrants must first obtain green cards and live in this country for an extended period of time, normally five years. People usually get green cards through marriage to a U.S. permanent resident or citizen or through their employers, who file on their behalf.

Q: What is an H-1B visa?

A: That category of work visa is awarded to people with college degrees and specialized skills. H-1B permit holders typically work in the computer and high-tech industries, concentrated in states like California and New Jersey. Under current law, 65,000 H-1B work permits are awarded each fiscal year. The permits are good for three years and can be renewed for three more. Within that time frame, companies must apply for green cards for those workers they want to retain beyond six years.


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