The United States (US) can require any immigrant, including those legally permitted to work or study, to produce documents when requested.
US Judge Endorses Trump Action Requiring Immigrants to Sign Up
In a statement issued on Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said, “All noncitizens 18 and older must carry this documentation at all times. This administration has directed DHS to prioritize enforcement, there will be no sanctuary for noncompliance.”
The DHS announcement comes during a US district judge ruling authorizing the Donald Trump administration to proceed with a mandate that all people in the U.S. illegally must register with the federal government and have documentation.
Registered Immigrants Still Required to Carry Documents
A report states that individuals who entered the United States on a valid visa and possess green cards, employment authorisation documents, border crossing cards, or an I-94 admission record are already registered and will not face any impact from the process.
But, even the “already registered” foreign nationals such as Indian workers with H-1B visas or international students, a majority of whom are Indians, will need to carry documents with them round the clock, the report added.
Their children would need to re-register and submit their fingerprints within 30 days of their 14th birthday.
Court Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging the Policy
According to a report, US district judge Trevor McFadden in Washington, appointed by President Donald Trump during his first term in office, found that groups challenging the Department of Homeland Security rule implementing the policy – including the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights and United Farm Workers of America had not shown they had standing to bring the lawsuit.
“As organizations, many of their harms are too speculative, and they have failed to show that the Rule will erode their core missions,” he wrote, according to Reuters.
Nicholas Espiritu, deputy legal director at the National Immigration Law Center, which represents the plaintiffs, called the ruling “disappointing,” and said it would “force people into an impossible choice between registering and risking immediate deportation, or refusing and facing penalties.”