Congressmen Krishnamoorthi and Bucshon Lead 56 U.S. Representatives In Bipartisan Letter To The Biden Administration Calling For Relief For High-Skilled Visa Holders

HI INDIA NEWS DESK
WASHINGTON , DC- Congressmen Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) and Larry Bucshon, M.D. (R-IN), along with 56 other bipartisan colleagues, sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, urging the Biden Administration to take executive action to provide relief to high-skilled employment-based visa holders. They requested that all dates for the filing of employment-based visa applications in the Bureau of Consular Affairs’ published Employment-Based Visa Bulletin be marked as “current.” This change would allow employment-based applications to be filed regardless of the applicants’ country-based priority date. The aim is to provide relief to thousands of individuals facing difficulties in navigating the U.S. immigration system legally. It could also make some eligible for Employment Authorization Documents (EADs), enabling them to change jobs, start businesses, and travel abroad without penalty. Currently, without this administrative action, individuals are left in limbo and, in some cases, are restricted to staying with one company due to their green card status.

Congressman Krishnamoorthi expressed his pride in joining his colleagues in addressing bureaucratic delays in the legal immigration system, which are hindering the economy and causing uncertainty for many families. He believes that using the Administration’s authority under existing law can alleviate this burden while bolstering the economy and creating jobs.

Dr. Bucshon emphasized the importance of acting within current law to help hardworking immigrants in Indiana, who are legally working in critical professions but are caught in the visa backlog and lack the flexibility to change jobs or travel freely.

The proposal has garnered support from organizations like Immigration Voice, with its president, Aman Kapoor, stating that the measure would provide basic human rights to nearly 1 million high-skilled immigrants who currently have uncertain immigration status dependent on their employers. Kapoor acknowledges the larger issue of a discriminatory immigration system and calls for legislative action, but for now, he supports the bipartisan effort to bring relief to high-skilled immigrants and hopes the Biden Administration will heed the call.

The letter was signed by several other representatives from both parties, showing the broad support for this proposal to address the challenges faced by high-skilled employment-based visa holders.