While President Trump has made it a priority to curb undocumented immigrants from both coming to and remaining in the U.S. (immigration arrests shot up by 38% in 2017 over the same period in 2016), on August 2, 2017, the President announced his support for the Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment Act (RAISE Act), legislation introduced by Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) and Senator David Perdue (R-Georgia) that would also curb legal immigration into the U.S. Although this bill, combined with other factors such as increased immigration enforcement and anti-immigrant rhetoric coming from the White House, certainly has had a chilling effect on immigration, the RAISE Act faces an uphill battle in Congress and has little chance of passing. The current system of distributing green cards has been largely unchanged for over half a century, despite numerous proposals to do so. Additionally, the current Congress is already busy considering major proposals to reform health care, the tax code, and the government’s budget, and will find it difficult to pass such major legislation before the term is over.
The bill proposes to cut legal immigration to the U.S. by 50%, and would significantly change the way in which individuals qualify for permanent residency (i.e. green cards), which has largely been unchanged since the current Immigration and Nationality Act was passed in 1965. Specifically, the RAISE Act proposes the following changes to our current immigration laws:
For now, the bill is pending, and our current immigration laws remain unchanged. If you have questions regarding this or other proposed legislation to reform our immigration system, or how it would affect you or your business, please call our office to schedule a consultation.
The material contained in this alert does not constitute direct legal advice and is for informational purposes only. An attorney-client relationship is not presumed or intended by receipt or review of this presentation. The information provided should never replace informed counsel when specific immigration-related guidance is needed.
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