Immigrants Can No Longer Seek Waiver For Application Fee By Citing Use Of Medicaid, Other Public Benefits
Those fees can often reach hundreds or even thousands of dollars. It currently costs $540 to renew a green card, while applying for citizenship costs $725. The move is the latest by the Trump administration to target immigrants' use of government aid, such as food stamps and Medicaid.
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump Administration Makes It Harder For Immigrants To Claim Fee Waivers
Immigrants applying for citizenship or other legal status will no longer be able to use receipt of government benefits as a condition to seek a waiver of an application fee under a policy change announced Friday by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Under the change revealed Friday, which will take effect Dec. 2, reliance on public benefits such as Medicaid, food stamps or housing assistance would no longer qualify immigrants for the fee waiver. (Hackman, 10/25)
Vox:
The Trump Administration Just Imposed Another Roadblock On Low-Income Immigrants
That means that fewer immigrants will be able to afford to pay the hefty fees for citizenship applications and green cards — which are typically $1,225 and $725 respectively — especially if they want to apply on behalf of multiple family members. Legal aid groups say it could affect tens of thousands, or up to two-thirds, of applicants annually who seek fee waivers. The policy change is one of many ways the Trump administration has recently sought to prevent low-income immigrants from entering and remaining in the US. (Narea, 10/25)
PBS NewsHour:
A Guide To Some Major Trump Administration Immigration Policies
Here, we take a closer look at some of the sweeping changes his administration has made — or attempted to make — to the United States’ policies governing refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants, both legal and illegal. (Boghani, 10/22)
In other news on the immigration crisis —
Texas Tribune:
Conditions Deteriorating At Migrant Camp Where Thousands Await U.S. Asylum
Migrants have been piling into the camp at a rate of several dozen a day. With only two wooden shower stalls in the woods, less than 10 portable toilets and no cleaning supplies, the conditions are quickly deteriorating. Lack of running water and limited access to food have led the migrants to the river to bathe, fish and draw water; they use a wooded area nearby as a makeshift bathroom. When it rains, the migrants and all their belongings are quickly soaked. (Coronado, 10/25)
Texas Tribune:
West Texas Detention Facility Enacts Water Conservation Measures
A West Texas detention center is operating under a water shortage that has forced the facility to use port-a-potties and shut down its water supply every night to replenish supply tanks. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson told The Texas Tribune that the West Texas Detention Facility in Sierra Blanca, which houses ICE detainees, has been under “water conservation protocols” since Oct. 21. (Aguilar, 10/27)
