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Millions working in America green card for indians Not just a document, but considered the key to the ‘American Dream’. But now such a change has happened regarding this Green Card which has given sleepless nights to Indian IT professionals, engineers and skilled workers.

In fact, the American immigration agency USCIS recently implemented a new policy, after which fear arose that people living on temporary visas like H-1B may have to leave America and return to their country for a green card. This means that the process which people used to complete by staying in America for years, now they may have to go back to India for the same.

What is green card?

Green card is official permission to live and work permanently in the US. It is also called ‘Permanent Resident Card’. After getting a green card, a foreign citizen can live in America for a long time, do a job and later can also apply for American citizenship. This is also a big issue for Indians because thousands of people working in America on H-1B visa have been waiting for green card for years.

What were the new rules and what changed?

According to the new policy, foreign citizens living on student visa, work visa or tourist visa would have to return to their country to apply for a green card and complete the process through the US Embassy or Consulate. Earlier, through a process called ‘Adjustment of Status’, people could apply for a Green Card only while living in America. This was considered the biggest and easiest route for Indian H-1B professionals. But the new stance of USCIS clearly indicated that now this process will not be seen as an “automatic right” but as “special relief”.

As the controversy escalated, USCIS changed its tone.

When the controversy over this decision increased and panic started spreading among Indian professionals, then USCIS showed some softness in its stance. USCIS spokesperson Zach Kahler said that ‘After years of ignoring Congress’s intent in adjustment of status applications, USCIS is now just re-clarifying and enforcing that intent.’

He further said that ‘those who submit applications that yield economic benefits or are in the national interest can be allowed to proceed under the existing process. The remaining people may be asked to apply from abroad depending on their circumstances. This means that now America can give priority to those people whom it considers important for its economy or strategic needs.

Why are Indians most worried?

America has the largest number of Indian IT and tech professionals. Especially Indians applying in EB-2 and EB-3 categories have to wait for 10 to 15 years for a green card. Till now, he could live and work in America and wait for the backlog to end. But after the new rules, fear arose that they might suddenly have to return to India and repeat the entire process from there. This can affect not only the job but also the family, children’s education and the entire future.

Why are experts expressing concern?

Immigration expert Nicole Gurnara says that now people are facing a lot of confusion. According to him, for those who are deciding between adjusting their status while staying in America and returning to India and giving a consular interview, this decision has now become more complicated than before. He further said that ‘there are risks in both paths. But applying within the US, which was previously considered the easiest option, is now subject to more stringent discretionary standards. This means that now it will not be easy to decide whether it would be better to apply while staying in America or returning to India.

Is this America’s new immigration strategy?

Experts believe that this change is part of America’s larger immigration strictness. America now wants to send a message that people coming on temporary visas should not expect to settle there forever. For this reason, USCIS now wants to limit the ‘Adjustment of Status’ process and is giving more importance to consular processing. However, it is a matter of relief that high-skilled professionals falling in categories like ‘economic benefit’ and ‘national interest’ can still get permission to stay in America and complete the process. But the biggest question still remains – which people will USCIS consider as ‘national interest’?