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Unusual immigration bill passed by Congress
Congress has decided to waive the immigration restrictions for two Japanese citizens who are currently fighting to live in the U.S., the Associated Press reports.
The private immigration bills, which were passed by the House and Senate recently, are the first of their kind to be approved in more than five years, according to the news provider. Now, they will go to President Barack Obama to be signed.
One of the bills would potentially grant legal status to the widow of a Marine who gave birth to the couple's son after the man was killed in Iraq in 2008. The other would give legal status to a Japanese man who was never legally adopted after his mother was killed in a car crash when he was just a teenager, according to the news provider.
"I have always seen myself as part of this whole American society, and I am American, just like my friends but without the status or papers," said the man, Shigeru Yamada, who is now 28. "For me to finally become, or have the potential to become a permanent resident, it means a great deal to me, it really does. I can't really express how happy I am."
Foreigners without legal status can obtain U.S. green card eligibility through the federal EB-5 visa program by making an investment of $1 million (or $500,000 in some areas) in an American project or company that either creates or maintains at least 10 full-time jobs.