One of two bills that would eliminate the per-country cap on green cards has been blocked in the U.S. Senate, according to a report Thursday.
The annual 7 percent cap on green cards for citizens of any one country has led to waits of many years for foreign nationals working in the U.S. on the H-1B visa and seeking permanent residency, with citizens of India waiting the longest because they dominate the H-1B system.
Under bill S386, sponsored by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and also spearheaded by co-sponsor Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., a maximum 85 percent of green cards could be allocated to Indian or Chinese citizens in 2020. In the second and third years, that proportion would rise to 90 percent.
The bill, called the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act and introduced in February, requires unanimous consent to be brought to the Senate floor, immigration lawyer William Stock noted on Twitter.
