Refugees and expectations with the new government

American citizens, who voted on November 3 for Democratic candidate Joe Biden, have great expectations regarding what his administration will do to reverse Trump’s policies in different important sectors of society, such as the immigration sector.

Biden differs from Trump when it comes to the immigration system:

• On the one hand, current President Donald Trump, who was seeking reelection, has always wanted to reduce immigration, both legal and illegal, implement a merit-based immigration system, remove humanitarian programs, and restructure immigration alternatives based on family ties.
  Therefore, in recent years, his administration has implemented hundreds of immigration policies that hinder legal immigration processes and use deportation as the main strategy to curb illegal immigration, including unaccompanied minors who arrive at the borders of the US.
• On the other hand, President-elect Joe Biden has a more welcoming stance when it comes to immigrant communities. He assures that foreign workforce is essential for the economy’s development and growth and that, in general, immigration brings multiple benefits to the country and constantly encourages the creation of new projects, companies or local businesses, which increases employment opportunities for the American population.

The refugee process and the Biden administration

Since the Trump administration does not entirely agree with humanitarian programs offered to immigrants in the US, it has substantially lowered the limit of refugees admitted to the country over the past four years.

It is important to clarify that immigrants can request refuge when they are outside the US and are trying to flee from danger or persecution due to their race, religion, sexual orientation, political ideals, nationality, inter alia.

The federal government must announce what the refugee limit will be for the following fiscal year (October-September).

Let’s look at some details of the recent history of the US:

• During Barack Obama’s term (2009-2017), which was the pre-Trump administration, the annual refugee limit was between 100,000 and 110,000.
• The Trump administration lowered the refugee limit to 18,000 for fiscal year 2020, a reduction of more than 80%.
• For fiscal year 2021, the Trump administration reduced this figure by 16%, to 15,000, a record for the US.

However, the president-elect plans to increase this number to 125,000 refugees annually, setting a record as well.

Refugee resettlement agencies eager for Biden to take office

Several refugee resettlement agencies and humanitarian organizations celebrate Joe Biden’s victory in the November 3 presidential election and hope to host more refugees in their facilities over the next four years.

They argue that the health crisis caused by the global Coronavirus pandemic worsened the situation and the humanitarian crisis around the world. Therefore, the US, as a first world country, has a responsibility to offer international protection to the most vulnerable communities.

Do you need help with an immigration case?

Our team of attorneys has vast experience when it comes to immigration processes. With this, we mean that they have experience not only with humanitarian programs, but also with family-based processes, employment, study, and even deportation or immigration appeal cases.

If you have any questions about an immigration issue or relating to a case you may have currently in progress, then please don’t hesitate to contact us for a FREE Phone Consultation with one of our expert immigration attorneys.

Simply call Motion Law today at: (202) 918-1799.