INDIANS RUSH FOR US CITIZENSHIP; TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S IMMIGRATION POLICIES TO BE BLAMED?

More and more immigrants have opted for US citizenship in a bid to vote in the upcoming presidential elections as well as the fear of the uncertainty over Trump administration’s immigration policies, says a report in the Times of India.

As many as 8.34 lakh immigrants were conferred American citizenship in 2019, an 11-year-high and a rise of 9.5 per cent over the previous year, as per the data available.

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), said that 5.77 lakh individuals were granted lawful permanent residence in the form of green cards.

According to another report released by the US Department of Homeland, at 52,194, India-born individuals were the second largest group to be granted US citizenship in 2018. This came up to be 6.9 per cent of the total number of new citizens and indicated a rise of 2.7 per cent over the previous year.