Farm workers harvest yellow peppers near Gilroy, California. (Nehring/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration announced up-to-date restrictions on immigrants on Thursday, cutting work permit timelines from five years to 18 months – the latest crackdown on legal immigration.
The up-to-date policy follows the shooting of two West Virginia National Guard members by an Afghan national who was granted asylum earlier this year.
Not only will the postponement affect hundreds of thousands of immigrants, but the shortened work authorization deadline could also lead to massive backlogs at the agency responsible for processing legal immigration applications, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
“Reducing the maximum period of validity of a work permit ensures that those seeking to work in the United States do not endanger public safety or promote harmful anti-American ideologies,” USCIS Director Joseph Edlow said in a statement.
“Following the attack on National Guard members in our nation’s capital by an alien admitted to this country by the previous administration, it is even clearer that USCIS must conduct frequent screenings of aliens,” he continued.
Immigrants affected by the up-to-date changes include refugees; those who were granted asylum; those with a retention of removal; those with pending asylum applications or withheld deportation; those who adjust their status, for example by obtaining a green card; and those covered by the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act of 1997.
This law applies to certain Nicaraguans, Cubans, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, nationals of former Soviet bloc countries and their dependents who applied for asylum in the 1990s and were systematically rejected.
In addition, there are USCIS fees for applying for permits and other documentation increased as a result of the massive tax and spending bill that Republicans passed over the summer and that President Donald Trump signed. Fees are now $550 for the initial permit and $275 for renewal.
After the shooting U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died. A second guard, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains seriously injured but remains hospitalized in stable condition.
In response, the Trump administration has stepped up its crackdown on legal immigration and highlighted the need for a mass deportation campaign. The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, pleaded not guilty in court on multiple charges Tuesday.
This week it listed all immigration applications from 19 countries that Trump listed as (*18*) or travel bans from earlier this year. (*5*)were paused – a move that freezes the processing of green card holders and citizenship applications.
