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1 Christine Davidson, Immigration Issues: A Comparison of Alien Admissions before and after IRCA 1 (1991)

handle is hein.immigration/immissca0001 and id is 1 raw text is: U.S. Department of Justice Immigration and Naturalization Service IMMI>ATION AlS TS A COMPARISON OF ALIEN ADMISSIONS BEFORE AND AFTER JRCA By Christine Davidson Statistics DiWsion/ Office of Plans and Analysis January 1991 INTRODUCTION ata collected by the Immigration and Naturalization Service on immigrant admissions, refugee arrivals, asylee approvals, and nonimmigrant admissions for the 1984 through 1989 period indicate (hat the number of aliens admitted to the United States for several categories has changed since the passage of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA). This legislation made minor revisions in existing immigration procedures, allowed undocumented aliens to legalize their sratus, and created several new categories of migrants, bot long- and short-term. Although post-IRCA categories of immigrant admissions generally have remained similar to the pre-IRCA period or have declined, IRCA created several new categories of immigrints in addition to providing the benefit of legal status-and ultimately permanent residence-for an estimated 2.8 million people. Inmmigrants benefiting from IRCA provisions will, over the next several years, become eligible to petition for immigrant status for relatives-some of whom will not he subject 1.0 numerical limitations. Even before the increased visa numbers authorized by 1990 immigration refonn legislation, the United States had firmly established mechanisms that would strengthen its role as a nation of immigrants. Current trends in international migration have also been alected by factors beyond the provisions included in IRCA. Both refugee and asylce applications have increased, although for different reasons. Refugee applications and arrivals have increased due lo the generous policies the United States has adopted toward refugees, espccially those from the Soviet Union. Asylum applications have increaLsed due to various events which occurred in 1987, only one of which relates to IRCA. Notimmigrant admissions also have increased during the period. The following analysis reviews the main categories of aliens admitted to the United States during the 1984 through 1989 period, and examines differences in admissions during the pre- and post-IRCA periods, 1984-96 and 1987-89. Digitized from Best Copy Available ..