Green Card Backlog Costs Economy Trillions in Gains, Report Says

Nov. 8, 2023, 11:30 AM UTC

The US is missing out on trillions in economic gains thanks to worsening green card backlogs, according to projections from the Bipartisan Policy Center.

Roughly 7.6 million people are stuck in queues for lawful permanent residency—the majority of them new potential immigrants to the US who are stuck outside the country. Reducing green card barriers for those new entrants and for workers already in the US on temporary visas would add $3.9 trillion in gains to gross domestic product over 10 years, the BPC estimates in a report released Wednesday.

“We’re leaving trillions in GDP gains on the table by ...

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