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Biden immigration bill offers millions of illegal immigrants pathway to US citizenship

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – US President Joe Biden is sending a new immigration bill to Congress that, among other key measures, would offer some 11 million to 22 million illegal immigrants in the country an opportunity to earn American citizenship.

The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 provides a “path to citizenship” for “hardworking people who enrich our communities every day and who have lived here for years, in some cases for decades,” the White House said in a press release. In particular, the bill would provide a “pathway to citizenship” for “Dreamers” and for “the essential workers who have risked their lives to serve and protect American communities.”

The bill specifies that it provides for “undocumented individuals to apply for temporary legal status, with the ability to apply for green cards after five years if they pass criminal and national security background checks and pay their taxes.” Moreover, the White House said:

“Dreamers, TPS holders, and immigrant farmworkers who meet specific requirements are eligible for green cards immediately under the legislation. After three years, all green card holders who pass additional background checks and demonstrate knowledge of English and U.S. civics can apply to become citizens.”

The bill also aims to address the root causes of illegal immigration by implementing a $4 billion four-year inter-agency plan that includes increasing aid to El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, in exchange for their efforts to reduce the “endemic corruption, violence, and poverty that causes people to flee their home countries.”

Recognizing that America is a nation of immigrants, the bill would also change the word “alien” to “noncitizen” in US immigration laws.

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