President Donald Trump promised to fix America’s broken immigration system in his election campaign. He said that a wall will be built between the U.S. and Mexico and reduce the flow of immigrants to the U.S. Though a wall has not yet been built, the administration issued several executive orders related to cutting down on the number of immigrants coming to the U.S. including the one banning citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from coming to the U.S.
Here is a closer look at what happened in 2017.
Travel Ban
President Donald Trump initially issued an executive order banning nationals of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya from entering into the U.S. for 90 days. The executive order also banned refugees from gaining entry into the country for 90 days. The final version of the travel ban that the Supreme Court allowed to go into full effect bans the entry of nationals of Chad, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen into the U.S.
End of DACA
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was formed through former President Barack Obama’s executive order in 2012. This program protects certain people who came to the U.S. as minors from immediate deportation. DACA status is valid for a period of two years. It was also subject to renewal. The Trump administration announced its plan to end the program in September 2017.
As a part of President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 13780, “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States,” certain green card holders are required to undergo in-person interviews. This move aims at strengthening screening of visitors and immigrants coming to the U.S. This will also help the country detect and combat fraud.
President Donald Trump also signed an executive order that strengthened the rules for H-1B visas. According to his order, only the “most-skilled and highest-paid” will be granted H-1B visas. U.S. employers can no longer use these visas to replace American workers.
The Trump administration is also planning to eliminate the Diversity Visa Lottery program and implement a merit-based system.