United States immigration authorities say a new law granting lawful permanent resident status to certain orphaned children from Haiti has gone into effect.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said the Help Haitian Adoptees Immediately to Integrate Act of 2010 (Help HAITI Act of 2010) authorizes it to grant Green Cards to Haitian orphans who were evacuated to the United States under the Parole Program for Haitian Orphans after last year's earthquake.
President Barack Obama signed the bill into law last month.
Nebraska Republican Congressman Jeff Fortenberry, the primary sponsor of the bill, said the legislation provides "legal certainty to the more than 1,000 Haitian orphans who were evacuated to the United States after the earthquake.
"It would enable adoptive American families to obtain permanent residency for these children more quickly and efficiently.
"This legislation is the product of dialogue and outreach to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service," he added.
Fortenberry, a member of the House of Representatives' Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said he was pleased that the U.S. Congress acted to give "much-needed security" to the Haitian orphans who were in the process of being adopted by American families before the tragic earthquake.
"These vulnerable children have endured heartbreaking tragedy to come to this country, and are now united with their adopted families in Nebraska and throughout the United States," he said.
Following the massive earthquake, Fortenberry said the Haitian orphans were evacuated to American soil by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, with the Haitian Government's permission, before their adoptions could be finalized in Haitian courts.
Due to a technicality in the law, however, Fortenberry said these Haitian children, on establishing a legal relationship with their adoptive U.S. parents, would have had to wait two years before they may become legal permanent residents.
Fortenberry said the Help HAITI Act of 2010 would help to normalize the immigration procedures by allowing adoptive American families to apply immediately to obtain legal permanent residency for their children and enable to them eventually qualify for U.S. citizenship.
