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With the United States elections only a few weeks away, presidential candidates Donald Trump and Joe Biden are campaigning for the chance to lead the U.S. for the next four years. The Trump administration has focused most of its efforts on changing immigration policies. Trump’s term in office has had a tremendous impact on the Immigration Act since its inception. It can thus be assumed that a Trump win would equate to further restrictions to U.S. immigration policies. The Joe Biden campaign has categorically been against the immigration policy changes president Trump has implemented and has promised a reform that will benefit both the U.S. citizens and foreign nationals.

The U.S. recently implemented a temporary immigration ban, restricting access to the U.S. until the end of 2020. President Trump stated that the decision to implement the travel ban was to ensure that jobs in the country are allocated to U.S. citizens, and as such they are protected from the rising unemployment rate caused by the global pandemic Coronavirus (“COVID-19”). This was not the first time the Trump administration implemented strict measures on immigration. Previously, president Trump had introduced restrictions on the H1-B visa as well as issued a visa ban against Muslim-majority countries.

Joe Biden aims to not only reverse the immigration policy changes implemented by the Trump administration, but also improve the immigration policies for foreign nationals. His campaign has promised to provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, reverse the temporary immigration ban, and pause deportation for 100 days after taking office. Joe Biden has loudly called the actions made by president Trump as an abuse of power, he has stated that these restrictions to immigration are “designed to target primarily black and brown immigrants.”

Evidently, the Trump administration has changed and reshaped the U.S. legal immigration system. Through the implementation of several policies in his term, his administration has targeted everything from asylum to deportation policies. Biden’s campaign places immigration at the center of the U.S. economy, stating that it gives the U.S. economy competitive advantage through innovation and entrepreneurship. Biden’s immigration policies create an interesting debate and provide hope for foreign nationals wishing to immigrate to the United States.

Overall, whether Donald Trump or Joe Biden wins the upcoming election, the U.S. is still to witness major transformation in its immigration landscape. It is thus pivotal to understand which of these two candidates will implement changes that will be holistically beneficial to the U.S. economy, U.S. citizens, and foreign nationals.

The EB-5 immigrant investor program has been one of the least affected immigration programs in the U.S. Largely due to the fact that the program was designed to stimulate the U.S. economy and labour market through a $900,000 investment and job creation requirements, the program was excluded from the temporary ban

Although the program was excluded from the temporary immigration ban, in November 2019, the Trump administration increased the required investment capital from $500,000 to $900,000. The increased capital investment decreased the amount of applicants the program has been receiving in 2020 and this is evident with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services October bulletin announcement of increased visa quotas for financial year 2021. The surplus of available visas for the financial year 2021 correlates directly with the amount of applicants received. If the program had received an influx of applications, then there would not have been such a large number of available visas as compared to previous years. The program in its entirety is a great program for foreign nationals aiming to obtain a U.S. green card and eventually a U.S. passport.

Our team of U.S. licensed lawyers have years of experience in helping individuals and families apply for U.S. residency via the EB-5 program. If you are ready to start your migration journey with The American Legal Center of Dubai, contact us today for more information.