Could This Amnesty Bill ACTUALLY Pass?

You've probably seen the headlines about a new bill that could give millions of immigrants a pathway to a green card. No sponsor necessary, just some updates to an already existing law. But is it real? Does it actually have a shot? I'm going to break down exactly what this bill is, who it could help and then I will tell you the truth about whether or not this is going to go anywhere.

What The Bill Would Actually Do

The bill, titled Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929, was just introduced in July, and it is trying to fix something that has been broken for decades: The Registry. The Registry is a section of immigration law that is already on the books. It was created in 1929 and it has been updated several times since. The last time was back in 1986 under President Ronald Reagan.

The basic idea is this: If you have lived in the US for a very long time, have not committed any serious crimes and meet certain requirements, you can apply for a green card without needing a sponsor. That's huge. Most people who are undocumented or even stuck in a temporary immigration status get completely blocked because they do not have anyone to file for them, or they are scared to start a process that they cannot finish.

But here is the problem with the current registry law: It says that you must have been in the United States since January 1st 1972, a cutoff date that has not moved in 40 years. So unless you have been here for nearly five decades, this law is not going to help you. To give you an idea of how many people have actually qualified underneath this current law, between 2015 and 2019 only 305 people were able to apply through this registry.

So here is what this new bill introduced by Senator Alex Padilla proposes to do: It says that instead of using a frozen cutoff date from 1972, you'd be able to apply for a green card if you've lived in the US continuously for the past seven years. And this is not just a one time update. The bill would make the cutoff date a rolling cutoff, which means that this would automatically move forward every single year. So in the future as more people start to qualify, or have been here for seven years, they would also qualify for this rule.

This is probably the most powerful part of this bill. This is not just a temporary or one time amnesty program, but rather a rolling program that is almost a permanent change. This would allow people to get a green card based upon how long they have lived here already, not who they married or how they got lucky with a visa. And it wouldn't just apply to people who are undocumented. This bill could also help:

• DACA recipients who are stuck in a limbo
• TPS holders whose status keeps getting extended but never made permanent
• H-1b Visa holders who have been stuck in a backlog for decades sometimes
• Children of long term visa holders
• Anyone who has been living in the United States for at least seven years

This is more than 8 million people who could qualify not just in theory but in practice. But this is the important part: It is not a free pass. You'd still have to go through the green card process. You would still need to show proof of seven years continuous residence, no serious criminal history, no fraud, no national security issues and you'd still have to be approved by USCIS just like any green card holder. So yes, this bill would open a powerful new pathway, but you'd still have to qualify.

What This Bill Really Means

Now, what are the chances that this bill is actually going to pass? If we are going to be honest with ourselves, the chances are not very good. Republicans control both chambers of Congress and they are not going to be touching anything that creates any pathway to legalization. Even when Democrats had the majority these sorts of bills did not make its way through. So why introduce it now? Because this bill is finally a sign that Democrats are stepping back into the ring for a fight after years of taking the same side as Republicans on immigration. They're finally ready to start supporting the people who have made lives here and whose work contributes to the country without asking anything in return.

But don't wait for this bill to save you because it is honestly not going to go anywhere right now. But it still shows the chance and the hope that things might still change in the future. So don't lose hope. Keep moving forward and look for the options that you have right now while they exist.

My name is Moumita Rahman and I have been practicing the immigration law for the past 15 years. If you would like my help on your case, or to find out what your legal options are, give us a call at (212) 248-7907 to schedule a case evaluation. We are based in New York but we serve clients all over the U.S.

Now, if you do end up finding another pathway to legalization, here's something else that you need to know: USCIS has changed. They do not see themselves as a benefits agency any longer. So now more than ever you need to understand how USCIS works. In my next video, I'll explain exactly how the USCIS works behind the scenes and how you can protect yourself from getting flagged or denied. I'll include a link to that video here. Click now and I'll see you there.