While President-elect Donald Trump made immigration a cornerstone issue of his campaign, much of his program revolved around stemming the flow of illegal immigration. But the United States also has a flawed legal immigration system, which allows some 1 million people to gain lawful status here every year. The bulk of these legal immigrants enter based on family ties. By contrast, many developed nations have shifted to a skills-based approach to immigration, one that seeks to admit residents with talents that the country needs and skills that are likely to make them successful, productive citizens. America should do the same.
About 15 percent of legal immigrants to the United States receive work visas for people with special skills, advanced degrees, or money to invest in job-creating enterprises. The total, about 150,000 people, includes spouses and minor children of these individuals. Another 10 percent of legal immigrants in recent years have been refugees or asylum-seekers. The country also has a so-called diversity visa, which it uses to grant legal status to about 50,000 immigrants annually from countries that haven't sent the U.S. many immigrants lately. What remains, about 65 percent of legal immigration, is based on family ties—spouses, children, parents, and siblings of adult American citizens, as well as spouses and minor children of legal permanent residents.
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