The US has announced stricter Green Card rules that may require students, tourists and temporary workers to leave the country before applying for permanent residency.
The passage of the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act by the Senate on Wednesday comes as a big relief to Indian IT professionals who come to the US on H-1B work visas and their current waiting period for Green Card or permanent residency is running into decades.
Indian IT professionals, most of whom are highly skilled and come to the US mainly on the H-1B work visas, are the worst sufferers of the current immigration system.
On June 22, as unemployment touched the highest-ever numbers on record in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, US President Donald Trump issued a proclamation to temporarily suspend H-1B and other work visas till the end of the year.
The proposed suspension could extend into the government's new fiscal year beginning October 1, when many new visas are issued, a media report has stated.
In April, President Donald Trump had said that he was suspending immigration for green card seekers for 60 days, arguing the controversial move would help Americans find work again after Coronavirus caused a surge in unemployment amid the current lockdown.
A Green Card allows a non-US citizen to live and work permanently in America.
However, the plan has been slammed by immigrant and advocacy groups saying that it would undermine democracy and penalize parents for seeking help to feed their children.
As of now, about 66 per cent of the green cards are given to those with family ties and only 12 per cent are based on skills.
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