Biden will propose a bill on his first day in office: 11 million illegal immigrants can be legal for 5 years and naturalized for 8 years

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden plans to unveil an immigration bill on his first day in office that he hopes will provide a pathway to U.S. citizenship for the estimated 11 million people without legal status that will take eight years.

Biden will introduce the immigration bill to Congress on Wednesday (Jan. 20), and the bill is expected to be hundreds of pages long.

Under the bill, those who are still without legal status and living in the United States as of Jan. 1, 2021, could be granted temporary legal status or a green card within five years if they pass a background check and meet other basic requirements, such as paying taxes. If they wish to obtain U.S. citizenship, they can then complete naturalization within three years.

For Dreamers, agricultural workers and others, they can obtain a green card sooner if they are working, attending school or meeting other requirements.

Vice President-elect Harris also spoke about the policy in a recent interview with Spanish-language television station Univision, saying, “This is something that we’re going to do with the immigration bill, and we believe it’s a smarter, more humane way to deal with immigration.”

The Washington Post reported that Biden’s bill would also include several changes to the legal immigration process, including work permits for spouses and children of temporary work visa holders, although the number of H-1B visas for high-skilled foreign workers and H-2B visas for low-skilled non-agricultural workers would not be increased.

The bill is not as comprehensive as the immigration reforms proposed by Biden during his tenure as vice president in the Obama administration. For example, the bill does not include a strong border security element, but instead calls for a strategy.

With four years of restrictive policies implemented by President Trump, this bill helps Biden fulfill campaign promises to Hispanic voters and other immigrant groups.

Republican U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), for his part, criticized Biden on Twitter. He said, “Biden’s bill would provide amnesty and citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants, allowing them to move beyond law-abiding immigration.”

Cotton also said this is exactly what the Open Borders Party is looking for, “full amnesty, no regard for the health and safety of Americans, and zero enforcement.”