For an immigration aspirant to the United States of America getting a Green Card and becoming an American citizen, with rights, freedom as well as many benefits is like a dream come true! Those who are in a position to become a naturalized U S citizen can avail of the same rights and privileges that a natural born American citizen has, excepting one – a naturalized U S citizen is not eligible for the Office of the President of the United States!
WHAT IS NATURALIZATION AND WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR GENERAL NATURALIZATION?
Naturalization is the process that a foreign citizen has to go through in order to become a citizen of the United States. There are certain requirements that need to be met before one becomes a U S citizen.
AGE: The immigrant for naturalization should be 18 years of age.
RESIDENCY: The immigrant should be a permanent resident (a green card should have been obtained) in order to be approved for citizenship.
PHYSICAL PRESENCE: The immigrant should have had 5 years as a lawful permanent resident in the United States prior to filing, with not a single absence from the United States of more than 1 year. Of the previous 5 years spent in the United States the immigrant should have been physically present for at least 30 months.
GOOD CHARACTER: The immigrant should have been able to prove that he or she has been a person of sound moral character.
ENGLISH LANGUAGE: The immigrant should be able to read, write and speak the English language.
As part of its budget the Senate approved for the law to be changed that speeds up deportations of illegal immigrant children who came in from Central America. Unfortunately the Senate fell short of 60 votes that would be needed to force a bill into law later.
Republican Senator John McCain from Arizona who promoted the change stated that it was necessary to send a signal to the unaccompanied minors who were preparing for another run at the US Mexico border this year that they would be sent back rather than allowed to stay in the US, as were all of the children from other countries – Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador last year. He said that this had got to stop.
The law would allow the government to send illegal children from Mexico and Canada quickly back home, as it requires children from other countries to be processed and released to social workers or sponsors in the U.S.
Experts stated that the difference for partly responsible for the sudden surge last summer of illegal immigrants, which saw more than 10000 unaccompanied minors cross per month. A total of 68000 children crossed during the entire fiscal year.
Are immigrants under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programs eligible to apply for the health care program?
No, those who are under the DACA program do not find eligibility to apply for the health care program. All those immigrants who are waiting for passage to the DREAM Act will have to wait for health care permission too.
Is there anything like a five-year residency requirement for immigrants to be able to receive Medicaid?
All those immigrants with low incomes and who are eligible to receive the Medicaid provision should have lived in the country for 5 years to apply for Medicaid. Those immigrants who are eligible for refugee status can qualify for the provision of Medicaid without waiting for the five year interval. Under the Obamacare program Medicaid eligibility is extended in all states to people earning up to 138% of the federal poverty level, about $15,800 for an individual and $33,000 for a family of four. Around 57% of uninsured non-citizens meet this income requirement.
What about the penalties for legal immigrants who are not members of the new system and have no health insurance benefits?
Yes, those who not participate in the new system and moreover, decide to remain uninsured are subject to paying penalties in the Internal Revenue Service.
More than one third of the Hispanics in the United States of America say that they personally know someone who has been through the deportation proceedings there, highlighting the personal flavor that the immigration debate has taken for one of the fastest-growing demographic segments in the world today.
According to the latest survey taken on around 1000 Hispanics who gave in their opinions about health care, immigration and discrimination it was found that most Latinos knew someone who was in the country illegally – 36 per cent of Latinos stated that they knew of someone who faced deportation. Nearly half of the surveyed said they constantly worry about a friend or family member being deported, and they also said that President Obama’s recent immigration actions have done little to bring down that fear. In fact more than 2 percent stated that they worried even more now than before, after President Barack Obama’s announcement in the month of November 2014 that was designed to rejig deportation policies.
The surveyed also included around 13 percent of Hispanics who said that they avoided talking to the police because they did not want to be hassled around their status, and around 10 per cent who stated that they were reluctant to get a driver’s license or go to an airport. Another 9 per cent stated that they avoided doctors’ visits and 7 per cent stated that they avoided meeting up with school authorities.
