The last major legislation to change America’s green card system was in 1990. For individuals and families, particularly those among the approximately 4 million people waiting in green card backlogs, the administration’s proposal raises other concerns. More than 3.6 million people are waiting in family-based immigration preference backlogs as of November 1, 2018, according to the U.S. Department of State. State Department data indicate there are additional tens of thousands of individual waiting for employment-based green cards outside of the United States. The half million or more individuals waiting in employment-based immigrant backlogs must hope to achieve enough points or will eventually need to leave the country.

Source: Forbes May 16, 2019 21:33 UTC