Immigration reform is the common term used in political discussions regarding changes to the current immigration policy of a country. In its strict definition "reform " means to change into an improved form or condition, by amending or removing faults or abuses.In the political sense, immigration reform discussions can be general enough to include promoted, expanded, or open immigration as well as the aspect of reducing or eliminating immigration altogether. In that sense, reform typically refers to a wide spectrum of viewpoints which may include anti-illegal immigration, anti-immigration, and immigration reduction.

Immigration reform in the United States

This term is also widely used to describe proposals to increase legal immigration while decreasing illegal immigration, such as the guest worker proposal supported by George W. Bush.

In 1875, Congress barred the immigration of convicts and prostitutes and restricted Chinese immigration. From 1882 to 1943, Chinese laborers were not permitted to immigrate to the United States. In 1904, Japanese immigration was restricted. In 1921, the Emergency Quota Act established immigration quotas by country of origin.

Former Mexican president, Vicente Fox, writes that in 2001, President George W. Bush, and the leadership of both parties of Congress were about to pass significant immigration reform legislation benefiting Mexican emigration to the U.S., but then the terrorist attacks of 9/11 occurred, moving immigration reform to the back burner.

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 made it illegal to hire or recruit illegal immigrants.

In 2005, the U.S House of Representatives passed the Border Protection, Anti-terrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005, and in 2006 the U.S. Senate passed the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006. Neither bill became law because their differences could not be reconciled in conference committee.

In 2009 the immigration reform became a hot topic, since the Barack Obama administration recently signaled interest in beginning a discussion on comprehensive immigration reform before year's end.

Immigration reform in the United Kingdom

On 2007 in the United Kingdom, the Liberal Democrats and the IPPR (a Labour-leaning think-tank) support a selective amnesty for illegal immigrants who have lived in the country for at least ten years and who do not have a criminal record.It is argued that bringing many of these (estimates varying widely from 300,000 to 900,000) individuals into the legal economy would allow police to concentrate resources on tackling people traffickers and criminals - and would raise billions in tax revenue - whereas deporting them would cost £4.7 billion and take 30 years.. This issue is still a matter of political debate today in the United Kingdom.

See also

• Illegal immigration
• Immigration to the United States
  • Illegal immigration to the United States
  • Immigration reduction
  • English-only movement
  • H1B visa
• National Alliance of Latin American and Caribbean Communities
• Open immigration
• Criticism of multiculturalism

Notes and References

1. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reform
2. Fox, Vicente. "Revolution of Hope: The Life, Faith, and Dreams of a Mexican President”, p. 230.
3. Kelly, Charles "UK immigrant amnesty ‘worth £3bn’ say LSE" Immigration Matters, 2009-06-16. Retrieved on 2009-06-25.