Thousands of permanent residents whose green cards have no expiration dates would have to pay up to $370 to replace them under a proposal announced Wednesday by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
It's an effort to issue more secure green cards, update the photo and other information on the cards, and conduct background checks, according to agency spokeswoman Maria Elena Garcia-Upson.
"Our world has changed since 9/11," Garcia-Upson said. "We need to keep up. People are out there duplicating cards. People are walking around with old pictures that need to be renewed."
Since August 1989, green card holders have been required to renew them every 10 years, according to CIS. The new proposal would eliminate an estimated 750,000 cards with no expiration dates issued from 1977 to 1989, the agency said. Cards issued before 1977 already have been recalled.
The fee to renew or replace a green card increased by more than 40 percent recently as part of an agency-wide fee hike. It is now $290 plus an $80 fingerprinting fee, which applies to all applicants between ages 14 and 79, Garcia-Upson said.
Public comments will be accepted until Sept. 21 on the proposal, which has been published on the Federal Register, www.gpoaccess.gov/fr.
If approved as written, holders of green cards with no expiration date would have 120 days to either apply for a green card renewal or apply for citizenship. Failing to do so wouldn't revoke permanent residency status, but the old green cards would be invalid for uses such as traveling abroad, replacing Social Security cards or applying for a job, Garcia-Upson said.
Federal law requires permanent residents to carry their green cards, or potentially face up to a $100 fine and 30 days in jail, though Garcia-Upson said those penalties are rarely, if ever, enforced.
Immigration attorney Timothy Wheelwright said the move is likely part of an effort by all agencies under the Department of Homeland Security to "root out the criminal element."
He pointed to recent regulations announced by the Bush administration that give employers 90 days to clear up mismatches between names and Social Security numbers or fire employees.
"There seems to be a pretty concerted effort right now by the (Homeland Security) agencies to be more aggressive with immigration violators," he said.
Juan Flores of Ogden, a green card holder since 1989, recently applied for citizenship before fees increased. He questioned the proposal's fairness to those like him who were issued permanent green cards.
If national security is the reason for the proposal, he said, "what they need to do is ... allow these (undocumented) people working over here to have a work permit and be allowed to work in this country. That way they don't have to steal anyone else's identity."
E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com