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| US immigration lawyers welcome senators' plan for citizenship path | US immigration lawyers welcome senators' plan for citizenship path |
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| Immigration lawyers have welcomed the broad outlines of a plan to reform the US immigration system that has been put forward by senators. The bipartisan group said on Monday their plan would create "a tough but fair path to citizenship for unauthorised immigrants". | Immigration lawyers have welcomed the broad outlines of a plan to reform the US immigration system that has been put forward by senators. The bipartisan group said on Monday their plan would create "a tough but fair path to citizenship for unauthorised immigrants". |
| The nonpartisan nonprofit organization American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), a group of more 11,000 immigration lawyers and professors of immigration law, said Congress should embrace the principles outlined in the senators' document. Specifically, the AILA believes immigration reform needs to create a path to citizenship, should strengthen families and should be used to improve the US economy. | The nonpartisan nonprofit organization American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), a group of more 11,000 immigration lawyers and professors of immigration law, said Congress should embrace the principles outlined in the senators' document. Specifically, the AILA believes immigration reform needs to create a path to citizenship, should strengthen families and should be used to improve the US economy. |
| An AILA statement said: "Today the conversation has changed from the realm of rhetoric into a real discussion of the right way to build a new system that meets our country's needs. The devil is, as they say, in the details, but this newly released bipartisan document shows that consensus is not only possible, but closer than ever." | An AILA statement said: "Today the conversation has changed from the realm of rhetoric into a real discussion of the right way to build a new system that meets our country's needs. The devil is, as they say, in the details, but this newly released bipartisan document shows that consensus is not only possible, but closer than ever." |
| AILA president-elect T Douglas Stump, a Republican, has practiced immigration law for more than 30 years in Oklahoma, where he was born and raised. In an interview with the Guardian last month, he said that for immigration reform to be effective, it had to contain a clear path to citizenship. | AILA president-elect T Douglas Stump, a Republican, has practiced immigration law for more than 30 years in Oklahoma, where he was born and raised. In an interview with the Guardian last month, he said that for immigration reform to be effective, it had to contain a clear path to citizenship. |
| President Barack Obama's "deferred action plan", which was set in place last summer, allows undocumented immigrants up to the age of 30, who were brought to the US by their parents before they were 16, to stay in the country for renewable two-year periods. But Stump says it does not go far enough. | President Barack Obama's "deferred action plan", which was set in place last summer, allows undocumented immigrants up to the age of 30, who were brought to the US by their parents before they were 16, to stay in the country for renewable two-year periods. But Stump says it does not go far enough. |
| "When you visit with them, they say, 'What am I going to do? I don't have connections in the neighborhood, I'm not going to find a job,'" Stump said. "They might be fluent in Spanish, but they're not going to be able to excel at the academic level. To them, it's a state of hopelessness." | "When you visit with them, they say, 'What am I going to do? I don't have connections in the neighborhood, I'm not going to find a job,'" Stump said. "They might be fluent in Spanish, but they're not going to be able to excel at the academic level. To them, it's a state of hopelessness." |
| This hopelessness drives some to return to Mexico, in the hope that they can obtain an education or get a job. But by doing this, they make it almost impossible to return to the US legally. "Going back to Mexico is the ultimate hopelessness," Stump said. "Here they have friends, they have opportunities for success. By going home, they give up." | This hopelessness drives some to return to Mexico, in the hope that they can obtain an education or get a job. But by doing this, they make it almost impossible to return to the US legally. "Going back to Mexico is the ultimate hopelessness," Stump said. "Here they have friends, they have opportunities for success. By going home, they give up." |
| Many such people are frustrated by uncertainties inherent in the deferred action plan, which make it hard to put down roots. Stump said: "If I have a two-year work permit, that's renewable every two years at the discretion of the agency – they may or may not extend it. Are most lenders going to give me a loan? So home-ownership is out of the question. Owning a home is a pillar, a foundation, being a family." | Many such people are frustrated by uncertainties inherent in the deferred action plan, which make it hard to put down roots. Stump said: "If I have a two-year work permit, that's renewable every two years at the discretion of the agency – they may or may not extend it. Are most lenders going to give me a loan? So home-ownership is out of the question. Owning a home is a pillar, a foundation, being a family." |
| Most people who are undocumented can only get on a path to citizenship by leaving the US and applying for a green card. In doing so, they set in place either a three- or 10-year or permanent bar on returning, depending on their circumstances. This leaves the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the US with much less motivation to leave. | Most people who are undocumented can only get on a path to citizenship by leaving the US and applying for a green card. In doing so, they set in place either a three- or 10-year or permanent bar on returning, depending on their circumstances. This leaves the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the US with much less motivation to leave. |
| "So what we have then, we've planted people in this country who want to be legal, who we want to be legal, but under the current immigration law have no hope," Stump said. "It's impossible for them to become lawful because they have been barred for life." | "So what we have then, we've planted people in this country who want to be legal, who we want to be legal, but under the current immigration law have no hope," Stump said. "It's impossible for them to become lawful because they have been barred for life." |
| If an undocumented immigrant is in the US illegally for more than six months and leaves the country, he or she cannot come back for three years. If he or she has been in the US for more than a year before leaving, he or she cannot come back for 10 years. If the immigrant has been in the US unlawfully for more than a year, then leaves and comes back illegally, he or she is barred for life. | If an undocumented immigrant is in the US illegally for more than six months and leaves the country, he or she cannot come back for three years. If he or she has been in the US for more than a year before leaving, he or she cannot come back for 10 years. If the immigrant has been in the US unlawfully for more than a year, then leaves and comes back illegally, he or she is barred for life. |
| "Look at the undocumented population there is today," says Stump. "Look at the 12 million. How many of them came in illegally? Probably the majority. But even if it's not the majority, how many of them have been here illegally for more than one year? How many of those have gone home for a Christmas, for a brother's wedding, a father's funeral? A large percentage. And how many of them in turn have come back into the country unlawfully? A significant percentage." | "Look at the undocumented population there is today," says Stump. "Look at the 12 million. How many of them came in illegally? Probably the majority. But even if it's not the majority, how many of them have been here illegally for more than one year? How many of those have gone home for a Christmas, for a brother's wedding, a father's funeral? A large percentage. And how many of them in turn have come back into the country unlawfully? A significant percentage." |
| A form now exists that allows people with the three- and 10-year bars to apply for a waiver if they can prove "extreme and unusual hardship". | A form now exists that allows people with the three- and 10-year bars to apply for a waiver if they can prove "extreme and unusual hardship". |
| "Surprisingly, the approval rate for those waivers is pretty high, it's over 75%, so a lot of people in this country are eligible for a waiver," Stump said. "They simply don't know it. They think it might be impossible to get." | "Surprisingly, the approval rate for those waivers is pretty high, it's over 75%, so a lot of people in this country are eligible for a waiver," Stump said. "They simply don't know it. They think it might be impossible to get." |
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