Applicants still face a wait of up to 10 years before getting a visa, whose availability is limited by Congress and varies depending on applicants' nationality and background. Congress has set preferences for different categories of immigrants, such as professionals with advanced degrees and the biological children of U.S. citizens. To qualify, immigrants must have been in the country as of Dec. 21, 2000. Also, immigrants must be sponsored by a family member or employer. U.S. citizens can sponsor spouses, children, parents and siblings.
Permanent residents can petition for spouses and unmarried children.
Employers may sponsor a worker if they show there is a shortage of U.S. workers to fill that job. There are no guarantees that applications will be approved. However, immigrants can stay in the United States while their requests are processed. Previously, illegal immigrants had to return to their home countries to wait and were barred from reentering the United States for three or 10 years, depending on how long they had been here illegally. In 1996, the year for which the most recent statistics are available, the INS estimated that 37,000 illegal immigrants lived in Pennsylvania and 135,000 in New Jersey.