Washington: More than 2,27,000 Indians are waiting in line for family-sponsored Green Card or legal permanent residency, according to the latest official data.
Currently, there are about four million people waiting in line for family-sponsored Green Cards against a Congressional cap of 2,26,000 per annum.
The largest number of 1.5 million waitlist is from America’s southern neighbour Mexico, followed by a distant India with 2,27,000 and China with nearly 1,80,000.
The majority of those in the family-sponsored Green Card waiting list are siblings of US citizens. Under current law, US citizens can sponsor their family members and blood relatives for Green Cards or permanent legal residency.
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President Donald Trump is against such a provision which he calls as chain immigration and wants to abolish this. The opposition Democratic Party is vehemently opposed to abolishing a family-sponsored immigration system.
In addition to four million family-sponsored Green Card applicants, another 8,27,000, a sizeable number of whom are from India, are waiting in line for permanent legal residency. The waiting line for employment-based green card applicants is painstakingly running into more than a decade for Indian IT professionals.
According to DHS, a majority of Indians waiting in line for family-based Green Cards are siblings of US citizens. They number over 1,81,000. This is followed by 42,000 married children of US citizens and over 2,500 spouses and minor children of permanent residents.