Green Card Backlog Crisis Of USA: A Life Sentence for Thousands of Indian Immigrants

Green Card Backlog Crisis Of USA: A Life Sentence for Thousands of Indian Immigrants

In an alarming revelation, a recent report from the US-based think tank Cato Institute has shed light on the grave ramifications of the extensive backlog in employment-based green card applications for Indians. The report portrays a grim picture, projecting that more than 400,000 Indians are anticipated to pass away before they ever acquire a green card, thereby effectively making this backlog a “life sentence” for hopeful immigrants.

The US immigration system, particularly in the employment-based category, is mired in a shocking backlog, with more than 1.1 million pending green card applications from Indian nationals. In the grand total of 1.8 million pending employment-based green card applications across the nation, Indians account for a significant 63 percent of the backlog. The 8.3 million applications that are currently pending in the family-sponsored system have been increased by this worrying amount.

For new Indian candidates, the backlog corresponds to an unbelievable 134-year wait period. According to the research, more than ninety percent of the candidates for green cards based on job are Indian and are expected to sadly perish away while waiting for their documents. It is predicted that around half of newly sponsored immigrants will pass away before acquiring their green cards because Indians make up the majority of new employer-supported applicants.

The quota established on the annual allocation of green cards to citizens of a single country, which is now set at just 7 percent, is at the core of this crisis. Indian and Chinese candidates, who make considerable contributions to the US labor force, are severely disadvantaged by this restriction. Advanced degree holders working for US companies, especially highly qualified STEM workers and graduates with US educations, make up the majority of the backlog. Despite their significant contributions to the nation’s economy and innovation, the crippling backlog makes their futures questionable.

In the United States, the protracted wait for green cards has turned into a rising humanitarian issue. The situation is still terrible despite the Biden administration’s efforts as well as initiatives introduced by Indian-American lawmakers to change the immigration system. Numerous Indian applicants are still in limbo, unsure of whether they will ever be able to fulfil their ambitions of living in America.

The report emphasizes the enormous challenges connected with legal immigration to the United States, describing the process as nearly impossible. Even reaching the point of entering the backlog is deemed a stroke of luck, as well as those fortunate few who do make it through the complicated procedure face the terrifying possibility of potentially never receiving green cards for decades, or even within their whole lifetimes.

This is more than a number; it is a tragedy that is playing out in real time, hurting the lives and dreams of countless Indian immigrants as well as their families. It advocates for immediate and comprehensive immigration reform that addresses the backlog while also providing a fair and equitable path to permanent residency for individuals who contribute to the nation’s development. Until then, the American Dream will continue to be painfully out of reach for far too many.

Statistical Analysis of the Backlog

This emerging dilemma was brought to light by a recent analysis from the Cato Institute, which focused in particular on a backlog of 123,234 permanent labor certification applications, which are essentially where the employment-based green card line begins. A shocking 424,000 applicants may tragically pass unexpectedly while waiting for their green cards, according to the analysis, which highlights the serious consequences this growing backlog is having on individuals who are currently in line. Unsettlingly, ninety percent of these candidates are from India.

The agonizing 17-year waiting period for Chinese candidates emphasizes how serious the situation is. Long wait times are also experienced by applicants from Guatemala, Honduras, as well as El Salvador, which compounds the whole problem. The 8.3 million case backlog in the family-sponsored system combined with the employment-based green card application backlog creates what the research describes as an almost insurmountable obstacle to legal immigration to the United States. The situation has gotten to the point where just getting into the backlog is seen as fortunate. Those who are lucky enough to get to this point face the ominous possibility that they won’t get their green cards anytime soon—possibly not even in their lives.

Untold numbers of hopeful immigrants along with their loved ones have been left in uncertainty as a result of this backlog, making it impossible for them to confidently plan their futures. To solve this backlog and give people who significantly contribute to the workforce and economy of the country a fair and equitable pathway to permanent residency, urgent and comprehensive immigration reform is essential.

Around 80,000 employment-based pleas were still outstanding as of March of this year, including about 171,635 applicants, their spouses, as well as minor children. 289,000 applications are awaiting a status modification, and a startling 1.3 million applications are still on the backlog. Although the US State Department has yet to give full information on this matter, some immigrants who are there because of employment are waiting for their immigrant visa decisions at consulates abroad. The effects of the growing green card backlog crisis in the US are reverberating through the lives of Indian immigrants, causing traumatic family separations, and placing their children in difficult situations.

Family Separation and H-4 Visa Dilemma

The disconnection of parents from their children is one of the most heartbreaking effects of the green card backlog. Parents are constrained to stay in India while their children live in the United States in this heartbreaking predicament. Both the parents as well as their children are under tremendous stress as a result of this mentally and logistically taxing experience because they are left to handle life’s challenges by themselves.

These families have some hope thanks to the H-4 visa, which is intended for the partners and kids of H-1B visa holders. Children frequently immigrate to the US on the H-4 visa, which enables them to stay with their parents while they work there on H-1B visas. However, when these kids turn 21, a sobering reality begins to take shape. A dilemma arises for H-4 visa holders when they reach 21 because they are no longer permitted to stay in the country under the H-4 visa category. These young people, who are frequently referred to as “documented dreamers,” are then given two choices, none of which assures a straightforward route.

First, they can apply for an F-1 student visa, which allows them to study in the US but does not grant them permission to work without an Employment Authorization Document (EAD). This document must be obtained through a time-consuming as well as expensive process, and approval is not certain. The other option is to go back to their country of origin and wait for their parents’ green cards to be approved. However, there is no guarantee that their parents’ applications for green cards will finally be approved, so this too can be a drawn-out as well as unpredictable process.

Root Causes and Potential Solutions

The country caps limiting the distribution of green cards are at the core of this situation; regardless of the number of pending applicants, only 7% of green cards are granted per country of birth. As a result of the system’s severe backlog, applicants from nations like China and India are disproportionately affected. The Biden administration has put up a regulation that would give H-4 visa holders employment authority after turning 21, but this rule has not yet been adopted in response to these difficulties. The administration has also increased the amount of available green cards by 300,000 per year in an effort to reduce the overall green card backlog.

In addition, efforts are being made to set up a system that gives family members of US citizens as well as permanent residents priority in receiving green cards. While these initiatives offer some relief to individuals waiting in line for green cards, broader immigration reform is still urgently needed. The wide-ranging effects of the backlog highlight how urgent it is to resolve this matter so that prospective immigrants can construct their lives with assurance and harmony rather than being torn apart by an unforgiving system.

The personal accounts of separated families as well as “documented dreamers” serve as an agonizing reminder of the human cost of a flawed immigration system in the context of an increasingly difficult and heartbreaking green card backlog situation. The dreams and aspirations of numerous individuals are still stuck in limbo, caught in a web of bureaucratic complexity as well as arbitrary country caps.

Although there are glimmers of hope in proposed reforms as well as increased green card availability, the path forward remains arduous and uncertain. Comprehensive immigration reform is urgently required to alleviate the suffering of those affected by this backlog, to reunite families, as well as to offer a fair and equitable pathway to permanent residency.

For individuals looking for opportunity and hope for a better life, the United States has long been a representation of both. It is the responsibility of legislators and politicians to defend these ideals and provide a framework that demonstrates the country’s dedication to equity, cohesion, and prosperity for all, regardless of where they are from. As we look forward to the future, we want that the American Dream will continue to be available to those who desire it and that the backlog situation would end and no longer be a source of ongoing sadness.