What is an Immigrant?
An immigrant is a foreign-born individual who has been admitted to reside permanently in the United States as a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR).

How Do Immigrants Get Admitted to Permanently Reside Here?
Typically a foreign-born individual seeking to become an LPR can attain legal status in one of two ways:

• Through family-sponsored immigration, a U.S. citizen can sponsor her spouse, foreign-born parent (if the sponsor is over the age of 21), minor and adult children, and brothers and sisters. A lawful permanent resident can sponsor her spouse, minor children, and adult unmarried children.
• Through employment-based immigration, a U.S. employer can sponsor someone for a specific position where there is a demonstrated absence of U.S. workers.

A small number of diversity visas are also awarded through a special lottery to individuals from specifically- designated countries.

What is a refugee?
A person outside of the United States who seeks protection on the grounds that he or she fears persecution in his or her homeland is a refugee. To attain refugee status, the person must prove that he or she has a "well-founded fear of persecution" on the basis of at least one of five specifically-enumerated and internationally-recognized grounds. Those grounds include the person's race, religion, membership in a social group, political opinion, or … national origin.

A person who has already entered the United States, and who fears persecution if sent back to his country, may apply for asylum here. Once granted asylum, the person is called an "asylee." Like a refugee, an asylum applicant must also prove that he has a "well-founded fear of persecution" based on the same enumerated grounds.

Both refugees and asylees may apply to become LPR's after one year.

What is an Undocumented Immigrant?
An undocumented immigrant is a person who is present in the United States without the permission of the U.S. government. Undocumented immigrants enter the U.S. either:

• Illegally, without being inspected by an immigration officer, or by using false documents; or
• Legally, with a temporary visa, and then remain in the U.S. beyond the expiration date of the visa. Four out of ten undocumented immigrants enter the U.S. legally.

What are Non-Immigrants?
Non-immigrants are individuals who are permitted to enter the U.S. for a period of limited duration, and are given only temporary visas. Some non-immigrant (temporary) visas are given to: students, tourists, temporary workers, business executives, and diplomats.

What is a Naturalized Citizen?
Lawful permanent residents are eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship through a process called naturalization. To qualify to naturalize, applicants must reside in the U.S. for 5 years (3 if they are married to a US. citizen) demonstrate a knowledge of U.S. history and government, show they have committed no serious crimes, have paid their taxes, are of "good moral character," and demonstrate that they understand, speak, and write ordinary English.

Family Immigration is how U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents bring family members from other countries to live permanently in the U.S. Citizens may only bring their spouses, unmarried children, parents (if the citizen is over 21 years), married children, and brothers and sisters (if the citizen is over 21 years). Lawful permanent residents (LPRs) may only bring their spouses and unmarried minor and adult children. To begin the process, the citizen or LPR must file a petition with the

Immigration and Naturalization Service, seeking an "immigrant visa" for the family member. All citizens or LPRs wishing to petition for a family member must also earn at least 125% of the poverty level and, beginning sometime in 1997, sign a legally enforceable affidavit of support to that effect. Petitioners are allowed to get another person to co-sign the affidavit of support on behalf of the immigrant to satisfy this financial requirement.

Family Members Eligible for Sponsorship

• CITIZENS may sponsor: spouses, unmarried children, parents, married children, brothers and sisters.
• LPRs may sponsor: spouses, unmarried children.

The INS divides the family members eligible for sponsorship into two tiers: 1) those who are "immediate relatives" of U.S. citizens and receive an unlimited number of visas each year, and 2) the rest, who fall into the "family preference system" which places an annual maximum limit of 226,000 visas issued to these relatives. Visas are not permitted to bring in more distant family members, such as aunts, uncles, and cousins.

FAMILY-SPONSORED IMMIGRANTS ENTER AS EITHER IMMEDIATE RELATIVES OF U.S. CITIZENS, OR THROUGH THE FAMILY PREFERENCE SYSTEM

Immediate relatives are the: spouses, unmarried minor children, and parents of U.S. citizens who receive an unlimited number of visas each year (approximately 235,000 have been issued annually in recent years).

The Family Preference System allows in: unmarried and married adult children, and brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens and spouses and unmarried minor and adult children of LPRs (these relatives are eligible for a maximum of 226,000 visas each year).

Under the FAMILY PREFERENCE SYSTEM, visas are distributed among four different categories (called "preferences"), with the first receiving top priority.

When Visas Are Not Available
The law requires that preference visas be issued to eligible immigrants in the order the petitions are filed. When there are more applicants applying for visas in a preference category than there are visas available, the preference category is considered "over-subscribed." Applicants must then wait until a visa becomes available before they can immigrate to the United States. Currently, waits can be up to almost eleven years depending on the preference category. In most cases, family members must wait outside the United States until a visa is available, and thus remain separated from their families. Control over the order and numbers of visas granted in each preference category remains in effect despite the existence of a waiting list.

Sources:
Immigration and Nationality Act, 102d Cong., 2d sess., April 1992.
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Visa Bulletin, no. 70, vol. VII (January 1997).

The Employment Preference System allows immigrants who have skills and talents needed in the United States to be admitted to work. Currently, immigration law allots 140,000 employment-based visas to immigrants.

How Does the System Work?
Employment-based visas are divided into the following categories:

First Preference: Up to 40,000 visas a year may be issued to priority workers. People who have "extraordinary ability" or who are "outstanding professors and researchers" or "certain multinational executives and managers" fall into this category. In addition, any visas left over from the fourth and fifth preferences (see below) are added to this category.

Second Preference: Up to 40,000 visas a year (plus any visas left over from the first preference) may be issued to persons who are "members of the professions holding advanced degrees or aliens of exceptional ability."

Third Preference: Up to 40,000 visas a year (plus any visas left over from the first and second preferences) may be issued to skilled workers, professionals, and other workers. The other workers category covers workers who are "capable of performing unskilled labor," and who are not temporary or seasonal. Workers in this category are limited to 10,000 visas per year. Skilled workers must be capable of performing skilled labor requiring at least two years training or experience.

Fourth Preference: Up to 10,000 visas a year may be issued to certain special immigrants, including ministers, religious workers and others.

Fifth Preference: Up to 10,000 visas a year may be issued to persons who have between $500,000 and $3 million dollars to invest in a job-creating enterprise in the U.S. At least 10 U.S. workers must be employed by each investor. The amount of money can vary depending on which area of the country will benefit from the investment. If the investor alien fails to meet the conditions specified, he or she can lose permanent resident status.

How Are U.S. Workers Protected?
Before visas can be issued in the second and third preference categories, the employers must first obtain a "labor certification" from the U.S. Department of Labor confirming that there are not sufficient U.S. workers who are able, qualified, and willing to perform the work. The Labor Department must also confirm that employment of the alien will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers.

The law further provides that when applying for a labor certification, the employer must provide notice to the union representing the employer's employees or to other workers at the site. Any member of the public may challenge an application for a labor certification by showing that sufficient U.S. workers are available to perform the work or by demonstrating that the employer is offering wages or working conditions that adversely affect U.S. workers.

How Long Does It Take?
There are essentially no delays in obtaining visas in any of the preference categories with the exception of the third preference, other workers. Successful applicants in that category can expect to wait in excess of ten years to receive their visa.

Sources:
Immigration and Nationality Act, 102d Cong., 2d sess., April 1992.
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Visa Bulletin, no. 70, vol. VII (January 1997).

How is an Immigrant's Eligibility for Public Benefits Determined?
Immigrants considered "qualified" are eligible for some, but not all, federal public benefits. An immigrant's eligibility for public benefits will depend on her immigration status, whether she entered the U.S. before the welfare reform law was passed, and whether she was already receiving assistance when the welfare law passed. Access to certain benefits will also vary based on which state the immigrant lives in.

What Hurdles Must "Qualified" Immigrants Overcome to Receive Benefits?
A large number of legal immigrant bars and restrictions to public benefits resulted from the 1996 welfare law. Eligibility for certain programs now varies depending on when the immigrant entered the U.S. For federal means-tested public benefits, newly arriving immigrants (those admitted to the U.S. on or after 8/22/96) are:

1. barred for their first five years in the U.S.; and
2. subject thereafter to a process called "deeming" where the income and resources of the U.S. citizen or LPR sponsoring the immigrant are added to the immigrant's own income to determine whether the immigrant is poor enough to qualify for the benefit under the program's financial guidelines. Deeming continues until the new immigrant either naturalizes or works 40 "qualifying quarters" (at least 10 years)&emdash;the work of a spouse (or of a parent in the case of a child under 18) also counts towards the 40 quarters. After becoming naturalized citizens, or working for 40 quarters, legal immigrants are generally eligible for federal and state programs provided they meet the general program criteria.

There is not yet an official definition of "federal means-tested public benefit," but at a minimum the programs exempt from this bar include: emergency Medicaid; non-cash emergency disaster relief; School Lunch Act programs; Child Nutrition Act programs; immunizations; Head Start; higher education loans and grants; and certain job training programs among other programs specified by the Attorney General. Not subject to any prospective bar on most federal means-tested benefits including Medicaid and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF &emdash; formerly AFDC).

Are Aliens Classified As "Not Qualified" Entitled to Any Government Services?
Yes, but very few. While "not qualified" aliens are ineligible for nearly all federal benefits, they are still eligible for certain very basic kinds of assistance, including: emergency Medicaid; immunizations; testing and treatment of the symptoms of communicable diseases; short-term non-cash disaster relief; school lunches and breakfasts; and other critical programs specified by the Attorney General.

Based on August 1996 estimates from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), while changes in immigrant eligibility for public benefits represent approximately 44% of the federal budget savings from the 1996 welfare law, immigrants themselves represented, only about 5% of all public benefits recipients.

Shouldn't Family Sponsors Be Responsible for the Immigrant's Care?
They are. U.S. citizens or LPRs wishing to sponsor an immigrant relative for admission to the U.S. now must sign a legally enforceable affidavit of support which requires their income level to be high enough to ensure that the immigrant will not become a public charge. These documents make the sponsor liable for the immigrant's use of benefits until citizenship, or until the arriving immigrant works 40 "qualifying quarters" (at least 10 years) without using means-tested services.

Who Provides Services to Immigrants?
Despite the fact that the federal government reaps the lion's share of immigrant tax dollars (approximately two-thirds), states and localities provide the bulk of services immigrants use&emdash;most notably education, health, and public assistance. As a result, states and localities often find themselves "shortchanged"&emdash;forced to provide services without sufficient revenue. The 1996 welfare reform law, which barred or restricted legal immigrants' access to most federal public benefits, exacerbated this dilemma by withholding even more federal funds for immigrants. In the wake of those dramatic changes, states and counties with high immigrant populations may end up "holding the bag" when it comes to providing for the care of these legal residents if they should fall on hard times.

Immigrant Tax Dollars
The vast majority of immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, contribute to the national coffers through Social Security deductions and income taxes. According to the Urban Institute, legal and undocumented immigrants combined pay approximately $70.3 billion per year in taxes-an amount far in excess of what they take out in services.

Ý Acknowledgement: Much of the information contained in this document is based on materials produced by the National Immigration Law Center and research conducted by the Urban Institute.

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