Illegal Immigration in the United States

Illegal immigration means the act of entering the country illegally without valid documents or overstaying beyond the permissible time period. Illegal immigration in the United States violates the immigration policies and the laws of the country. It is estimated, in 2008, that there are more than 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States which is slightly lower compared to the past years. It is believed that more than half of the illegal migrants come from Mexico and the rest from Central and Latin American countries, besides some Asian countries. Though there are several pros and cons of illegal immigration, there are more cons than pros, so you should never attempt to illegally immigrate to the country.

Illegal Immigration Facts

Illegal immigration has reached an alarming proportions in the country and the government has realized the importance of dealing with the problem. Here are some facts which as a citizen of the country everyone ought to know:

• According to 2009 figures, more than 6 million illegal immigrants were from Mexico and more than a million from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
• In Arizona, it is estimated that there are more than 6 million illegal immigrants alone.
• In the border state of Arizona, more than 600 illegal immigrants are arrested every day.
• The government is in the process of reforming the federal immigration laws.
• There is a proposal to allow illegal immigrants who do not have a criminal record to become a citizen after paying a fine and learning English. However, this does not mean illegal immigration would be allowed unabated, there would be stricter laws to deal with illegal immigrants.
• In the past attempts were made to reform the immigration laws, but they could not be passed due to opposition from the lawmakers.
• Under the laws framed by Arizona, the police have powers to arrest anyone who can't produce documents to prove that they have entered the country legally. Moreover, it has been made a crime to hire day laborers.

Facts About Illegal Immigrants

Basically a person is declared illegal immigrant if he or she enters the country without valid documents or inspection, stays beyond the authorized time frame or if the terms of legal entry are violated. In case a person enters legally, i.e. with valid documents, but the documents are not inspected, then it would come under the category of 'Non-Immigrant Visa Over stayer'. In case a person enters illegally without any documents, then this kind of illegal immigration would be called evasion from immigration inspectors.

Another type of illegal immigration is overstaying the time limit prescribed. In such a case, a person enters the country with valid documents. However, when the time comes to leave the country, they don't leave. The admission time greatly varies from person to person and it depends on the kind of visa with which they entered. People who overstay visa are tracked down by the US-VISIT, a program, which collects biometric information of all people who enter the country.

Illegal Immigration Problems in the United States

The problem of illegal immigration in the United States has been aggravated mainly because of economic reasons. Even though the recent past has seen a slight slump in the economy of the country, yet there are several avenues where people can find a large number of jobs. There are several employers in the United States who hire illegal immigrants as they have to pay these people much less as compared to legal immigrants or even citizens of the country. In addition to that the country offers a better standard of living compared to their home countries, and this is a major reason for people immigrating. The worst part is that some neighboring countries encourage such unauthorized practices as these migrants can send a lot of money back home. Moreover, processing visa applications take a lot of time, and this has been a major reason for people coming to the country illegally.

Thus, Illegal Immigration in the United States is a major problem faced by the country. There are several pros and cons of immigration, but it should be done legally. Though it can't be completely stopped, it can be reduced to a great extent by enacting stringent laws against illegal immigrants.