New US Bill Offers Green Card Path for H-1B Holders After 7 Years
A proposed US law could transform the lives of millions of long-term immigrants, including many Indian professionals on H-1B visas. Senator Alex Padilla has reintroduced a bill that would update the Immigration and Nationality Act's Registry provision, replacing a 52-year-old cutoff date with a simple seven-year residency requirement.
Currently, the Registry provision allows only those who have lived in the US since before January 1, 1972, to apply for a Green Card. This date has not been changed since 1972, making the provision nearly unusable for most immigrants. Padilla's bill, titled the "Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929," would replace the fixed date with a rolling seven-year rule. Under this proposal, immigrants who have lived continuously in the US for at least seven years before applying would be eligible for permanent residency, provided they have no criminal record and meet other standard requirements.
If passed, the bill could benefit over 8 million people, according to a press release from Padilla's office. These include Dreamers, those with Temporary Protected Status (TPS), children of long-term visa holders, essential workers, and skilled professionals such as H-1B visa holders who have been stuck in the Green Card backlog for years. More than 30 organisations have endorsed the bill.
For Indian H-1B professionals, this would mean a potential path to a Green Card without the decades-long wait that currently plagues many. However, the bill must still pass both chambers of Congress and be signed into law. Until then, the 1972 cutoff remains in effect, and simply living in the US for seven years does not grant any immigration benefits.
The reintroduction of this bill comes amid broader debates on US immigration reform. Padilla has expressed optimism, but the legislation faces an uncertain future in a divided Congress. For now, Indian professionals and other long-term residents can only watch and wait.
