Judith Delus | Atlanta Famiy Law, Immigration, Lawyer

James v. Kassap

Settled out court.

Harris v. Burden

My client successful in their suit!

Under current law, around 1 million people get green cards granting permanent U.S. residence each year. That would rise to between 1.5 million to 1.7 million annually under the Senate bill within about five years of enactment. That means a lot more legally authorized workers in the workforce.  This includes more than twice as many visas for high-skilled workers, a new visa for lower-skilled workers that could go up to 220,000 a year, and more visas for agricultural workers. There are also tens of thousands of new work visas set aside for people from Ireland, South Korea, African and Caribbean countries, and elsewhere that got special deals in the bill. On the other side, the flow of illegal immigration into the country would decrease by one-third or one-half compared with current law.

This will mean fewer resources will be used to keep illegal immigrants out. However, does that now mean more will try to come over to the United States? Illegal immigration has already decreased since due to a combination of factors, including the economic downturn and greater security measures in the wake of the Sept. 11, terror attacks. Current studies cannot predict, but do not believe that there will be great significant change in numbers as most of the current numbers relate to illegal immigrants that are already living in the United States

2000 / 2001

Registered Provisional Immigrant status does not offer Health Benefits to Immigrants

The Social Security Administration expects that nearly three-fourths of the estimated 11.5 million people here will qualify for what is called Registered Provisional Immigrant, status, or RPI. A smaller number of agricultural workers would qualify for a separate program called the blue card. Neither program grants citizenship or permanent legal status, but they provide a pathway to both. Applicants would need to pay a fine, a fee, and pass a criminal background check to qualify for provisional status. The Senate bill also expressly blocks immigrants with temporary status from receiving any health insurance premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. However, individuals can use their own money to buy their insurance through the clearinghouses called exchanges. "If they are poor enough and meet other eligibility criteria, for example, if they are a child or a low-income parent, RPIs may be eligible for emergency Medicaid, as are unauthorized immigrants."

“For children, women who are pregnant or have recently delivered, and medical emergencies, current law allows benefits for the undocumented and the Senate bill does not change that. Furthermore, any outstanding tax bills must be paid. This is to ensure that current limited resources are not drained by the influx of new legal immigrants. both Social Security and Medicare require that a person or their spouse pay into the system for 10 years before they can claim any benefits. This applies to everyone, native born or not. And both programs are available only to citizens or permanent residents.

People with provisional status would have Social Security and Medicare taxes deducted from their paychecks but would be ineligible to use those programs for 10 years.