Hurricane Katrina-Related Immigration Issues and Legislation

Publication Date: September 2005

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

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Research Area: Population and demographics

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Abstract:

The devastation and displacement caused by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast region of the United States has very specific implications for foreign nationals who lived in the region. Whether the foreign national is a legal permanent resident (LPR), a nonimmigrant (e.g., temporary resident such a foreign student, intracompany transferee, or guest worker) or an unauthorized alien (i.e., illegal immigrant) is a significant additional factor in how federal laws and policies are applied. In this context, the key question is whether Congress should relax any of these laws pertaining to foreign nationals who are victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Many of the victims of Hurricane Katrina lack personal identification documents as a result of being evacuated from their homes, loss or damage to personal items and records, and ongoing displacement in shelters and temporary housing. As a result of the widespread damage and destruction to government facilities in the area affected by the hurricane, moreover, many victims will be unable to have personal documents re-issued in the near future. Lack of adequate personal identification documentation, a problem for all victims, has specific consequences under immigration law, especially when it comes to employment and eligibility for programs and assistance.

Noncitizens -- regardless of their immigration status -- are not barred from short-term, in-kind emergency disaster relief and services, or from assistance that delivers in-kind services at the community level, provides assistance without individual determinations of each recipient's needs, and is necessary for the protection of life and safety. As legislation to ease the eligibility rules of major federal programs for Hurricane Katrina victims generally is under consideration, the question of whether to ease the specific rules for immigrants has arisen (S.1695).

Most avenues for immigration require that aliens have a family member or employer who is eligible, able, and willing to sponsor them. There are very few immigration opportunities based on self petitioning. The loss of life, devastation of businesses, or depletion of personal assets directly affects visa qualifications for otherwise eligible aliens who are victims of Hurricane Katrina or the family of victims. It also affects nonimmigrants whose purposes for the temporary visas are disrupted by the hurricane and its aftermath. Some are advocating legislation comparable to that enacted for surviving family of victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Finally, at various times in the past, the government has given discretionary relief from deportation so that aliens who have not been legally admitted to the United States or whose temporary visas have expired nonetheless may remain in this country temporarily. Following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, for example, family members of victims whose own immigration status was dependent on the victim's immigration status were assured that they should not be concerned about facing immediate removal from the United States. This report will be updated.