Immigration and Naturalization Services Act of 1965
The Immigration and Naturalization Services Act of 1965 (also known as the INS Act of 1965 and Hart-Celler Act ) was a US federal law that replaced the previously valid quota system for immigration in 1965 and replaced it with more liberal provisions.
Background, history and provisions
The INS Act of 1965 replaced the provisions of the Immigration Act of 1924 in American immigration law. The 1924 law had restricted immigration through quotas so low that very small numbers of immigrants were allowed to enter the United States from many countries. From China z. B. only 105 people were allowed into the country annually. Under pressure from the American civil rights movement , the American legislature finally decided to revise immigration law. The INS Act of 1965 was proposed by MP Emanuel Celler ( Democrat ) and strongly supported by Senator Edward Kennedy . In the House of Representatives the law was passed with 326 votes to 69, in the Senate with 76 to 18 votes. In both houses of Congress , members of the Democratic Party represented a majority of MPs, but did not have such large majorities - many Republicans also voted for the bill. The law became final on October 3, 1965, with the signature of President Lyndon B. Johnson .
The INS Act of 1965 provided for different regulations for countries of origin in the western and eastern hemisphere. The number of visas for applicants from countries in the Western Hemisphere (North, Central and South America) has been limited to 120,000 per year. The consideration of the candidates took place in order of application ( served basis , first-come, first-served ).
Applicants from countries in the Eastern Hemisphere (Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia) were issued a maximum of 170,000 visas per year, with no country in the Eastern Hemisphere receiving more than 20,000 visas. When selecting applicants from the eastern hemisphere, family reunification was the first priority in 1965 . In addition, however, the law also provided for the preferential consideration of highly qualified specialists, but also of refugees .
Legislative amendments followed in 1976 and 1978. With the 1976 Amendments to Immigration and Nationality Act , the principle of first-come, first-served was replaced by a system of categories for applicants from countries in the western hemisphere ; the number of visas was set at a maximum of 20,000 per country per year. The 1978 Amendments to Immigration and Nationality Act limited the number of visas to 290,000 worldwide.
meaning
Although the law made immigration easier for applicants from all countries in the Eastern Hemisphere - for the first time it created a formal hurdle for applicants from other American countries - it represented a special milestone for migrants from China . Immigration from China was radically regulated in 1882 with the Chinese Exclusion Act . In 1943, the Magnuson Act was revised, but the number of Chinese who were allowed to enter the USA was limited to 105 per year until 1965 due to the quota regulation of the Immigration Act of 1924 . A real opening of the United States to Chinese migrants did not take place until the INS Act of 1965.