U.S. immigration law is something that many Miami residents are interested in. There are many people in Miami and Florida who are from another country. There are also many businesses that rely on foreign workers. With the recent shutdown of the federal government, immigration issues are becoming more of a problem and the backlog of cases has grown.
Shortly before Christmas this past year, the federal government shut down due to funding issues. Around 800,000 federal workers are affected by the shutdown, which includes immigration judges. The backlog of immigration cases before the shutdown was long, but it is now estimated that over 800,000 immigration cases will need to be rescheduled. One immigration attorney estimates that one of his client’s procedural hearings will not be able to be rescheduled until 2020 because of the backlog. The shutdown has pretty much put immigration cases at a standstill.
In addition to immigration courts feeling the effects of the government shutdown, businesses are also having problems. The federal employment system called “E-Verify,” which is used to check and see if a potential employee is able to work in the U.S., has been taken offline due to funding issues. Many businesses have stopped hiring because they are not able to verify a potential employee’s employment status.
There are thousands of Americans who are affected by the federal government shutdown, including many who have immigration issues with the court system or employment needs. With no end in sight, the legal backlog will only increase and employers may feel the strain of not being able to hire necessary workers.
