(NewsNation) — Leaders in New York and Chicago are seeking ways to speed up the approval process for work visas as they deal with a flood of migrants in need of services.
Both cities have grappled with an influx of migrants as states along the southern border have sent buses of migrants to sanctuary cities. The New York Post found only 2% of migrants in New York City had applied for work permits, however, city officials were unable to say if any of those visas had been granted.
New York Mayor Eric Adams has repeatedly called on the federal government to provide more assistance as the city struggles to house and care for newly arrived migrants, including requests for financial aid as well as expedited visa processing to allow migrants to begin working and supporting themselves.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has also been putting pressure on President Joe Biden to ease the burden of sheltering migrants through expedited processing.
Part of the issue is a backlog of cases facing U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which issues work permits. However, immigration policies themselves also limit how quickly migrants can begin to work.
Migrants who are seeking asylum in the U.S. must first apply for asylum and then wait 150 days before applying for a work visa. Migrants may not declare asylum right away and any errors or issues with the application process can also delay the process to get a work visa.
Once a visa is applied for, a backlog can take around six months, during which migrants are prohibited from any kind of work.
For migrants who are ineligible for asylum and who enter the country under recently expanded parole programs, work visas are not guaranteed. Parole programs allow migrants who would not otherwise qualify to enter the U.S. to do so for a temporary period.
The federal government may be reluctant to issue permits to those in the U.S. temporarily, and many of those cases are also backlogged.
Migrants who work under the table for cash risk being cited or arrested, as was the case with a group of migrant barbers who began cutting hair in a Chicago park. The barbers were arrested and fined for operating without a license.
New York City has begun exploring the process of issuing its own visas that would allow migrants to work within the city. The state is also considering issuing its own work permits but New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has not committed to convening the legislature to discuss the issue.
New York City has seen an influx of more than 110,000 migrants over the past year while Chicago has received around 13,000 in that same time.