US President Joe Biden to introduce new citizenship bill in Congress
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Washington DC, February 19: Good news for Indian IT professionals working in the US as President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats allies on Capitol Hill formally introduced major immigration overhaul on Thursday. It would offer an eight-year pathway to citizenship to the estimated 11 million people living in the US illegally.
While introducing the bill, the lead of the bill sponsors Senator Bob Menendez and Congresswoman Linda Sanchez said that the US Citizenship Act of 2021 establishes a moral and economic imperative and a vision of immigration reform that is expansive and inclusive.
Menendez further added Democrats have failed in the past because they have too quickly given in "to fringe voices who have refused to accept the humanity and contributions of immigrants to our country and dismiss everything, no matter how significant it is in terms of the national security, as amnesty.”
What is the bill?
The bill aims to provide citizenship to 11 million undocumented workers, eliminate of per country quota for employment-based green cards and work authorisation for dependents of H-1B foreign workers.
If the bill gets passed chambers of the Congress House of Representatives and the Senate, it would bring citizenship to millions of foreign nationals, including undocumented and those who came to the country legally. The legislation would also benefit hundreds and thousands of Indian IT professionals and their families who are waiting for a Green Card for more than 10 years. They would get the legal permanent residency immediately as they would be exempted from the visa cap.
It should be noted that Democrats have a majority in both the House and Senate, however, they need the support of 10 Republicans in the upper chamber to get the legislation through Congress before it can be signed into law.
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