Why is the US Visa/immigration soooo complicated

I can't help but chime in here.....I am going through an AOS right now and based on what I read and hear, the US system is so complicated, outdated and contains some funny rules... For me personally, I thought that having to get an Advance Parole (what a funny names anyways) to be able to travel anc be able to get back into the country was so stupid (especially for a Canadian who typically doesn't need a visa, no stamp on the passport, and doesn't even need a passport even when crossing by land).

And then, there's all this stuff about all kinds of different visa types, and not very clear rules that are subject to anyone's interpretation, and I94s with multiple entries, etc.. etc.....

When I sponsored my wife immigrant visa into Canada, it was the easiest experience I had ever had with any Canadian Government agency. We probably went back and forth (between Canada and US) driving, flying and trips overseas and everytime we crossed or flew Canada, the officer would say...I hope you get your papers soon wit a big smile

Anyways, I don't know what everyone this about that...

cheers

Actually on paper the US and Canadian systems for family-based immigration are quite similar, the US is just much more serious about enforcing all of their regulations.

In some respects the US system is actually better, for example LPR cards are valid for ten years and you can spend six months outside of the country a year on LPR status and still qualify for citizenship whereas Canada has a much tougher physical presence test. Citizenship applications are also processed in a fraction of the time of Canadian citizenship applications (5 months vs. 13 months).

However the most telling statistic I can think of is that the US has a quota of 620,000 immigrant visas every year, plus people who don't need visa numbers (e.g. spouses, dependent children), whereas Canada has a quota of 250,000 plus certain exempt people also (e.g. spouses, dependent children).

So a country with ten times the population of Canada has a quota only two and a half times as large.

The other thing which is utterly crazy and McCain's bill will fundamentally change it if Congress ever gets around to it is that of those 620,000 immigrant visas, 480,000 are allocated to family-based immigration and 140,000 are allocated to employment-based. McCain's bill will split it more evenly and abolish the third and fourth preference categories for family-based immigration.

If you saw are side of it you would understand.

Most of these rules are to discourage fraudulent actions.

Did you know that citizens of a certain country (not US or CAN) often immigrate to Canada for just long enough to get the free benefits, and then immediately head for the USA to get Green cards, to get on our Social Security System? This is BS. They have no respect for either country, they only want all the benefits. I see this all the time.

Having it nearly all family-based encourages that. I used to see it in the UK all the time, arranged marriages from Pakistan, Bangladesh etc. They are trying to crack down on it now with language tests but basically what happens is they immigrate, claim benefits, use a relative's address and then move back to wherever they came from where those benefits are worth a lot more.

The US is unique among developed countries having a system that so strongly favours family-based immigration.

One of my pet peeves about National Insurance in the UK (equivalent of social security) was that the main justification for their crazy ID card scheme is that you have to present the ID card to claim benefits, which supposedly will detect people who have multiple NI numbers. Well, the law already makes it illegal to have more than one NI number, so instead of spending money on enforcement action they're spending billions on a stupid ID scheme.

The US has a similar problem with SSNs, the idea behind E-verify is that it will detect things like that, but the problem is that it only works for SSNs issued after the law changed in 2002 and the ID requirements for getting an SSN became much tougher. Everything prior to that date they just assume is a valid SSN. How they're going to effectively audit that system I have no idea, the only way I can think of is to physically interview every person issued an SSN prior to 2002 and check their ID. Or check it when they claim benefits at least, but it doesn't stop people from working illegally on valid SSNs that they're not supposed to have.

I can't help but chime in here.....I am going through an AOS right now and based on what I read and hear, the US system is so complicated, outdated and contains some funny rules... For me personally, I thought that having to get an Advance Parole (what a funny names anyways) to be able to travel anc be able to get back into the country was so stupid (especially for a Canadian who typically doesn't need a visa, no stamp on the passport, and doesn't even need a passport even when crossing by land).

And then, there's all this stuff about all kinds of different visa types, and not very clear rules that are subject to anyone's interpretation, and I94s with multiple entries, etc.. etc.....

When I sponsored my wife immigrant visa into Canada, it was the easiest experience I had ever had with any Canadian Government agency. We probably went back and forth (between Canada and US) driving, flying and trips overseas and everytime we crossed or flew Canada, the officer would say...I hope you get your papers soon wit a big smile

Anyways, I don't know what everyone this about that...

cheers

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Ya, it is a weird system actually...with funny terms, some of which you mentioned.