Biden keeps his promise of immigration law 2:26
(CNN Spanish) -
One of the first immigration policies of the president of the United States, Joe Biden, is to achieve a greater openness towards immigrants and, in general, to welcome foreigners.
One of his goals is to increase the number of refugees the country receives, which was reduced during the Donald Trump administration.
For fiscal year 2021, which runs from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021, an admissions limit of up to 15,000 refugees was imposed, well below the country's historically high figures.
During his presidential campaign, Biden spoke of increasing this amount to 125,000 per year.
The president has already signed some decrees related to immigration and several more are expected, which reflects a greater openness of his government towards foreigners.
The deputy director of the White House National Immigration Policy Council, Esther Olavarría, defined the objective of the decree related to refugees during the national winter conference of mayors, held recently.
The goal is, according to Olavarría, "to restore the refugee admission program and allow the United States to return to its historic role as leader and protector of refugees."
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Biden is also expected to sign several decrees related to immigrants seeking to reach the United States through the asylum system.
Biden's immigration measures so far
Two weeks ago, the Department of Homeland Security put an end to new registrations for the "Remain in Mexico" program, a Trump administration policy that marked two years last Friday.
The regulations required non-Mexican migrants seeking asylum to wait in Mexico until their hearing date in the United States.
This led, among other things, to the establishment of camps in conditions that were not always ideal on the other side of the border.
The White House said the government would offer an efficient and fair asylum program, although it did not release details.
Biden would seek with the next decrees to protect migrants who are close to their homes through an asylum system in neighboring countries.
It would also implement a refugee admission program for migrants from the region and allow some at-risk Central American youth to live in the United States, a policy that had been scrapped by Trump, among others.
According to Olavarría, Biden would also sign an executive action that ends another of the Trump administration's questioned measures, including those that make it difficult for low-income immigrants or those who need federal assistance, such as food stamps or Medicaid, could obtain legal status in the country.
First Lady Jill Biden is expected to actively participate in the implementation of immigration policy, especially in the family reunification of more than 600 immigrant children who are still separated from their parents.
Asylum Decree
