Want a Green Card? Please wait for 195 years

A senior Republican senator has said that the backlog for an Indian to get a permanent residency in the US is more than 195 years, and urged the US Senate to address this issue with a legislative resolution.

A Green Card, or a Permanent Resident Card, is a document that is issued to immigrants into the US which acts as proof that the bearer of such a card has been granted the privilege to reside permanently in the country.

Senator Mike Lee said that the current Green Card policy offered nothing to the offspring of an immigrant whose deceased parent’s Green Card application was eventually refused since her/his job no longer existed.

“Someone from India entering the backlog today would have to wait 195 years to receive an EB-3 green card. Even if we give their children this limbo status, none of them will have a prayer of becoming a US citizen,” Lee said. The Utah senator was responding to the legislation moved by Illinois Senator Dick Durbin that demands protection for immigrant workers and their kids who are trapped in the Green Card quicksand.

In 2019, Indians received 9,008 category 1 (EB1), 2,908 category 2 (EB2), and 5,083 category 3 (EB3) Green Cards, according to news agency PTI.

“Green cards are critical in the lives of so many who are here on temporary work visas. The backlog puts families at risk of losing their immigration status as they wait year after weary year to finally make it through this green card backlog,” Durbin said.

“Our bipartisan agreement would add critical protections that were not in the original bill for immigrant workers and their immediate family members who are stuck in the backlog. They would be able to switch jobs and travel without losing immigration status. And children of immigrant workers would be protected from aging out so they will not face deportation,” Durbin added.