Good News on Visas

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Editorial / Periscope - Niall O'Dowd

Good News on Visas

September 25, 2008

Editorial

THE news that the Irish government is about to secure 20,000 one-year visas every year for young Irish people to come and work in the U.S. should be warmly welcomed. Foreign Minster Micheal Martin will hopefully finalize the deal this week when he is in the U.S. At present it is still unclear what the exact qualifications to apply are, but it will certainly involve a minimum education standard.

The new visa was negotiated between the U.S. and Irish governments and does not need any legislative enactment, which is an important reason why it has been secured. It is simply impossible, in the current fevered political climate, to pass a comprehensive immigration overhaul.

There is understandable disappointment in the undocumented community here that their needs are not met with this new visa, but the new program is a clear step in the right direction in terms of showing that progress is definitely possible.

The news of the new visa underlines once again what Irish America and the Irish government can achieve in tandem. This, hopefully, is just the beginning.

It is the first tangible result of the close collaboration between the government and the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR), the grassroots group that has driven the debate in the Irish American community.

ILIR is, however, primarily focused on the issue of the Irish undocumented, but the group has also stated that taking care to ensure no more undocumented take root in the U.S. is also a priority. Under the one year work visa that will hopefully be the case.

As U.S. Ambassador Thomas Foley has made clear, a job offer will not be needed for the emigrant to take advantage of the visa, which is certainly a major advantage.

The Irish government has also made clear its commitment to secure an E-3 visa program, similar to what Australia has gained, which would allow Irish citizens to come to America to work for an initial two-year period which could be renewed indefinitely.

Then there is the issue of broader immigration reform. This week Senator John McCain promised that his first piece of legislation, if elected president, would be an immigration reform bill, quite a commitment from the Republican senator who has been back and forth on this issue.

The fact that McCain made his comments at the Irish Presidential Forum in Scranton on Monday shows once again the clout of the Irish on this topic. Quite simply, in conjunction with other groups, most notably the Hispanic lobby, this can be made to work and immigration reform finally achieved.

It is also important to note that the new extended J visa will allow 5,000 Americans to go and work in Ireland each year. This exchange of workers is a very healthy thing for both countries.

There is no question that America’s image abroad has suffered greatly in recent times, and having emigrants from whatever country experience the U.S. for themselves is a step in the right direction.

This Irish bill is a pilot program, but expect announcement in the future that many other countries will also be participating in the new J visa program.

While this latest initiative will not solve the issue of the Irish undocumented, it does begin to open up America again to a new generation of emigrants who will not be forced to live illegally if they wish to work in the U.S.

The new visa is a credit to the work of the Irish diplomatic service in securing the visa, and points the way forward to deal with the other major issues, most notably that of the undocumented, in the future.

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