The Biden administration’s immigration reform plan is currently under legislative review. The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 proposes measures such as a new pathway to citizenship for more than 11 million immigrants.
Review the provisions of the pending law and learn how it may affect you and your family members.
Roadmap to citizenship
This provision allows temporary legal status for undocumented individuals who were already in the United States as of January 1, 2021. After five years of paying taxes and passing background checks, they can apply for a three-year green card, then finalize their status as a permanent U.S. citizen.
Family and diversity provisions
The new law strives to keep families together by reducing wait times and backlogs for the family immigration process. Immigrants with family sponsorship can receive temporary status in the U.S. while awaiting green card availability. The administration will also provide new protections for LGBTQ+ families, Filipino veterans of World War II, children, widows and orphans.
Biden also proposes to strengthen protections against religious discrimination and provide 35,000 new diversity visas, increasing the total available number to 80,000.
Integration assistance
Immigrants may receive new education and job opportunities on their road to citizenship under the proposed law. The current text includes incentives for inclusion, integration and English language instruction for community organizations, governments, educational institutions and private organizations.
In April 2021, a group of Democratic legislators formally requested that Biden prioritize the U.S. Citizenship Act as part of the American Families Plan for infrastructure. According to CNN, the administration will likely release the details of that package in May.
