The Feds Wasted 66,000 Green Cards in the Middle of a Worker Shortage
The immigration bureaucracy is worsening one of the tightest labor markets in recent American history.
Federal immigration officials issued about 66,000 fewer employment-based green cards than allowed by law last year—despite one of the tightest labor markets in recent American history and apparently without regard for the millions of would-be immigrants waiting in line for a green card.
It's becoming increasingly obvious that a sharp downturn in legal immigration—due to policies implemented by the Trump administration and the shuttering of many immigration offices during the COVID-19 pandemic—is one of the driving factors behind the country's labor force imbalance. There are more than 11 million job openings in America but only about 6 million unemployed workers. That means the unemployment rate has fallen to a near-record low—but it could fall all the way to zero and there would still be leftover demand for more workers.
The good news is that there are more than 1.4 million would-be immigrants waiting for an employment-based green card to be issued by the federal government. The bad news is that only 195,507 of the 262,288 available green cards were issued during fiscal year 2021, according to recently released State Department data.
That means more than 66,000 green cards expired without being issued last year, according to David J. Bier, a research fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute.
While part of the problem is simply run-of-the-mill bureaucratic incompetence, some of this was by design. As Bier explained in The Washington Post last year, this mess began with the Trump administration's decision in April 2020 to block immigrants sponsored by their family members from obtaining green cards. That meant there were about 120,000 family-sponsored green cards that went unused during the 2020 fiscal year. By law, those unused visas roll over to become employment-based green cards in the following year.
As a result, the number of employment-based green cards available in 2021 was significantly higher than usual: It included the usual annual allotment of 140,000 employment-based visas and the leftover 120,000 family-sponsored green cards from the previous year. But that rollover is good for only one additional year of eligibility—any unused employment-based green cards expired at the end of the fiscal year if they were still unawarded (including any that came over from the family-sponsored system). The number of green cards issued by the end of the fiscal year 2021 nearly rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, but the recovery didn't happen fast enough to make up for all the extra visas in the system last year.
Facing that avalanche of extra green cards that could have been awarded last year to would-be workers, the Biden administration dropped the ball. "The U.S. government simply failed to make the necessary changes fast enough to ensure that every green card was issued, so those green cards were wasted," writes Bier.
That is likely exactly what the immigration restrictionists in the Trump administration wanted to see happen. The American immigration system was already hopelessly complex, but the changes implemented by the Trump administration have turned the immigration bureaucracy against the very people who are doing the thing conservatives usually say they want immigrants to do—wait in line and enter the country legally.
After more than a year in office, Biden must also share the blame for these bureaucratic failures, even if the system was deliberated sabotaged in some ways by his predecessor. As Reason's Fiona Harrigan summarized in January: "Two years into the pandemic, 60 percent of U.S. embassies and consulates are still partially or completely closed for visa processing. Nearly 440,000 immigrant visa applicants whose cases are 'documentarily complete' are still waiting for visa appointments (the State Department scheduled just 26,605 appointments for this month). The nation's refugee intake hit a record low in fiscal year 2021 and our numbers aren't on pace to be any better in 2022. Legal immigration collapsed under Trump; it hasn't rebounded under Biden."
We are finally seeing some small indicators of progress. As part of what it says is an "effort to increase efficiency and reduce burdens," the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in March announced plans to deal with an "agency-wide backlog" in cases.
But the announced changes hardly inspire much confidence. For example, USCIS says that its new goal is to ensure that the processing of the I-485 form, which is required before someone can qualify for a green card, will now take only six months.
Of course, America needs more workers of all varieties and not just those seeking green cards and permanent residency. But the 66,000 green cards that went to waste last year, and the long line of people waiting to receive one, are a good illustration of what's wrong with an immigration system that prioritizes bureaucratic processes over the needs of people and the economy.
America has jobs to fill. There are immigrants waiting in line to work here. Biden should get the bureaucrats out of the way.
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“Why Biden isn’t opening up Immigration fast enough and how it’s Trump’s Fault.”
It takes a long time to clean up all the messes Trump made. It is much easier to destroy then to build or fix. Biden is good but not a miracle worker.
You say this like there’s some sort of progression or line to immigration and that it’s fundamentally immutable, with only minor tweaks to the length to be had… by anyone.
Biden is good but not a miracle worker.
Even if we agreed that Trump was more awful than Hitler, this statement by itself is gut-busting in its hilarity.
You’ll make a good slave.
You continue to post the most stupid things, I see. If this were a pressing issue, biden would have signed one of his many executive actions or orders directing the appropriate agency to make changes. The fact that you believe biden is good really says all one needs to know about your ability to assess politician’s performance. What metric are we using? Jobs, overall economy, crime? Biden’s performance on all is less than stellar, dim bulb. Biden’s executive actions/orders that undid some of what trump did have had time to take hold, so the typical bs argument that the weak economy now is doe to trump is a lie. Nor is it due to putin or the ukraine, but if the Ukraine is an issue, stopping the proxy war will stop that portion immediately. You really should stick to huffpo or whatever social media clique you get your opinions from.
You really are a crackhead, Molly.
That’s disrespectful to crackheads.
You got what you wanted (labor shortages) and you’re still complaining?
We don’t have a labor shortage because of border controls. Whatever one thinks of immigration, Alaska isn’t canceling airline flights by the hundreds because we’re holding back some migrant workers at the southern border.
It’s not the reason but I’m sure it’s a factor. The difference between immigrants and Americans is that immigrants actually want a job.
I’m not sure I disagree here. Which is why I’m reluctant to fling open the saloon doors to the country when my street is literally (not figuratively, but LITERALLY) lined with tents full of meth addicts.
Do you think immigrants would make it worse?
They could make it worse within the economic band in which the jobs reside where they’d be most likely competing.
If citizens are struggling to keep up with inflation in the jobs where most refugees and immigrants will land, then the increase in the supply of labor causes the prices to drop. So opening the borders for a few hundred thousand immigrants a month could have a very negative impact on border states, and probably other states as they relocate elsewhere.
If citizens are struggling to keep up with inflation in the jobs where most refugees and immigrants will land, then the increase in the supply of labor causes the prices to drop.
I doubt it. If anything the immigrants would fill the low paying jobs that Americans are too proud to do, with no effect on the price of labor since they’re already shit jobs.
Around here there are help wanted signs everywhere. Places are cutting their hours of business because they can’t get help. If some willing workers showed up in town then we’d all benefit.
…Never-mind 80% of welfare goes to immigrants…..
Citation please!
here https://cis.org/Report/Welfare-Use-Immigrant-and-Native-Households
That’s a problem with social programs, not immigration.
lmao….
“It’s not our fault the Nazi-Regime left your bank account vault door open”
“And just never-mind [WE] immigrants vote about 80% for a Nazi-Regime take over of the USA.”
cite?
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/study-finds-more-immigrants-equals-more-democrats-and-more-losses-for-gop
Something about teaching an old dog new tricks….
Not all. But most immigrants are fleeing their “democratic” socialism nation they voted to CREATE… It’s the same old conquer and consume ideology that has destroyed and killed more nations and people than any other.
And it’s EXACTLY what the Democrats are doing to the USA as we speak….
I mean we never see things like this ever…
https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/ice-raids-mississippi-hopefuls-flock-job-fair-64934480
What a stale talking point.
Great post Thinking Mind!
I saw the subtitle “The immigration bureaucracy is worsening one of the tightest labor markets in recent American history” and thought how is letting anyone who wants to cross the border tightening the labor market?
My conclusion: the Democrats only want people to migrate to the US, if they plan to live on welfare and not work.
Then reading the article, I also noted how Boehm apparently had to throw in some disparagement of Trump, and blame him, before actually putting some blame at Biden’s feet due to the facts of what Biden and his political allies have done, stating “Biden should get the bureaucrats out of the way.” But even that is contrary to my libertarian thinking that what should happen is Congress should overhaul the immigration laws to do two things: bring in law abiding people who support themselves via work and bring in more of them. But that’s not what the Democrats want: Trump was willing to negotiate but the Dems walked out. It’s easier for them to not enforce the laws they don’t want to enforce.
“I also noted how Boehm apparently had to throw in some disparagement of Trump”
It’s actually in his contract.
God damn Biden! They didn’t took our jobs!!!
Wait, I want MY pay to go up. A shortage of workers does that. Quit working for the Ukrainian immigrant. Geez.
Oh yeah, I’m a white, male professional, why should I get what I want? Just because I add to the economy, raise my children responsibly and help my fellow man, my wishes are counteracted by the method addicts and other globo-homo rejects who get what they want.
Criminals (Democrats) don’t have any room for Justice (Principles)..
“[WE] actions are void of repercussions cause [WE] pack Gov-Guns.”, is the DNC flagship.
Why do we need Green Cards? Thousands of migrants cross the border every month. Isn’t that enough for you already?
Stop the flood of illegals and then I’ll listen to you cry the blues about Green Cards.
Do we have a worker shortage or is there another problem going on?
According to left-leaning ‘economists,’ we are to be celebrating the lowest unemployment rate ever, not talking about the high inflation rate. So, this article misses the fucking point, again. The trump administration policy likely had little impact on the fact that covid had every agency shut down to minimal staffing, but why cover that when there’s an anti-trump narrative to push? And why mention the fact that there were plenty of people here already to take any jobs, when that same narrative is so shiny and appealing to the outrage crowd?
So we are to be shocked that a federal government bureaucracy can’t deal with an almost doubled workload?
(140,000 normal processing, 120,000 extra)
Of course it’s Trump’s fault, Eric, surely you can’t expect anyone to think bad thoughts about any democrat?
Lately I have to keep checking the URL to see if I am on Reason or not.
“Lately”?
Sounds like they wasted a lot of money on social programming to keep people at home.
Ahem, mandatory racial/sexual identity and privilege training to be completed before any applications processed, one would guess.
Those damn immigrants, stealing jobs that Americans don’t want.
There was never a worker shortage. There were working age adults choosing not to work sense government benefits were high enough.
Stop with the terrible narrative phrasing.
Just more ENDLESS immigration propaganda pushing the corp wage-suppression agenda not to mention the other negatives such as clogged roads, overburdened schools and healthcare and unaffordable housing and taxes….
While the periods of any tight labor market that has raised wages any meaningful amount during the last forty years have been VERY FEW, corps are unrelenting in their desire for endless worker visas despite having 40 million prime-aged adults not in the laborforce.
AT LEAST wait until the USA much lower workforce participation matches many EU participation rates before crying for more visas.
Gee, if unemployed rust belt hillbillies and coal miners learn to code, why not illiterate third-world peasants? “Por Espanol, imprimir el numero dos” seems easy enough.
Every Year a NEW Immigrant City of 200,000 legal and 200,000 (at least) illegal Cities are created….
That’s the ENTIRE population of the State of WY or VE moving in EVERY YEAR!
The United States has more immigrants than any other country in the world. Today, more than 40 million people living in the U.S. were born in another country.
What a B.S. of an article. National Socialism (Nazi) dictators pushing LAZINESS and Gov-Gun ARMED ROBBERY that punishes producers while subsidizing laziness is EXACTLY what makes a labor shortage…
“Working in the USA is optional” — Said people with a brain 30-years ago…. Today; that disgusting statement is en-grained into society by a whole army of Nazi-Fans. And don’t kid yourselves most of nose Nazi-Fans have no pride in the USA because they weren’t born here.
They are here to DRAIN the ever living h*ll out of the USA’s wealth just like all Nazi-Fans do.
Endless Conquer and Consume mentality. Exactly why Russia wanted to invade Ukraine to Conquer and Consume the wealth.
thanks for great article
There will continue to be a worker shortage as long as the balance between the workers’ share of their productivity, and the owners’ share of the workers’ productivity, continues to remain sharply in favor of owners, ever since the massive shift during the presidency of Reagan. This has ruined the chances of most young people to join the middle class, buy a home, live on one wage, etc. It has allowed big business to swallow small business, reducing competition, raising prices, and lowering wages.
Immigration is a good thing, but not when exploited by corporations as leverage to hold down wages across the board. When we have fair wages, and lower profit-taking, we will have massive increases in consumer demand and more need for immigrants to fill the explosion of new jobs.
What you think there is a LAW against owning???
So what’s the hold up… Why haven’t you become an “owner”…
Stupid, lazy, I’m-Entitled decisions in life is why poor people are poor. That’s it… An no thanks to leftard propaganda more and more think they’re entitled to things they never took the work or time to *EARN*…
..And just to add more.
The “everyone gets a free house” FHA free-loans, the FLPMA (all the land is ours “feds”), the Tree-Huggers etc, etc, etc, is what killed buying a house…
Massive Regulation killed the small business the same way. Piles upon piles of paper-work, collecting taxes, employee minimum wage, employee safety “showers”, employee retirement, employee medicare ( ALL SELF-ENTITLEMENT LAW ) has literally entitled the poor worker right out of 1/2 the could-be market.
There is literally tons of work available; just not work that fits into such a self-entitled employee and those self-entitled employees has used Gov-Guns to monopolize the labor force. I.E. U.S. Dept of Labor??? More like Nazi-Regime selling slaves.
A place I used to work got fined by OSHA for using 2-1/2″ floor tape instead of 2″ tape.