1 Lakh Indians In US Likely To Be Denied Green Card Despite Quota - All You Need To Know

A Green Card, known officially as a Permanent Resident Card, is a document issued to immigrants as evidence that the bearer has been granted the privilege of residing permanently in the US.

(Representative Image/Getty)

New Delhi: Approximately one lakh employment-based Green Cards are at threat of being wasted in less than two months, prompting dissatisfaction among Indian IT professionals whose quest for lawful permanent residency has now stretched into decades. 

A Green Card, also known as a Permanent Resident Card is a document given to immigrants as proof that they have been given the right to live permanently in the United States. 

According to what the Indian expert Sandeep Pawar told PTI, this year's quota for employment-based immigrants is 261,500, significantly greater than the typical 140,000. 

"Unfortunately, under the law, if these visas aren't issued by September 30, they are lost forever," he said as reported by NDTV. 

According to him, the present rate of processing by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) indicates that over 100,000 Green Cards will be thrown away, a fact recently confirmed by a Department of State officer in charge of assessing visa utilisation. 

Pawar expressed regret that the additional 100,000 Green Cards available this year will be wasted if the USCIS or the Biden administration does nothing. 

Pawar, who has been fighting for the rights of Indian professionals waiting for several decades for Green Cards said, “if the USCIS does its job efficiently and promptly, these immigrants would finally have the opportunity to become permanent residents, something which would otherwise take decades”, as noted by NDTV. 

He also highlighted how most of these potential beneficiaries come from India, which has the longest queue due to the INA's inherently racist and discriminatory per-country quotas. 

As part of a delegation, IMPACT executive director Neil Makhija encouraged President Joe Biden to reform immigration rules by eliminating Green Card restrictions and quotas and including 200,000 children of long-term visa holders in attempts to safeguard everyone. 

The US government said last week that it is processing Green Card applications at such a slow rate that it will run out of spaces by at least 100,000.