The measure approved Monday in the U.S. Congress provides for undocumented immigrants married to spouses who have permission to be in the country to also receive payments. About 1.2 million undocumented immigrants would benefit from the provisions of the new stimulus law by being eligible to receive the $600 check.
The statute approved Monday in the U.S. Congress provides for undocumented immigrants married to spouses who have permission to be in the country to also receive the funds.
As part of the first round of $1,200 payments under CARES, this group – both documented and undocumented – were excluded from the aid.
But this time, the legislators included provisions for these families to receive the payments.
“Democrats secured a new round of direct payments worth up to $600 per adult and child, also ensuring that families with mixed immigration status receive payments,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.
Specifically, these are Americans who filed a tax return with a spouse who uses an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), rather than a Social Security number.
The exclusion of these individuals from payments in the first round left out much of one of the populations most vulnerable to the coronavirus because of the essential work they often do and without unemployment benefits.
The Telemundo report indicates that about 1.2 million additional individuals would benefit from the payments as a result of the legal provision.
However, the measure does not provide benefits for undocumented immigrants who are not married to citizens or residents eligible for the stimulus check.
CARES retroactive payments of $1,200
The new agreement would also allow mixed-status families to receive retroactively the $1,200 per household and $500 per child checks allocated under the CARES Act passed in March.
After the federal statute was passed, authorities argued that a loophole excluded this group from payments. Some legislators such as Senators Marco Rubio and Thom Tillis introduced the American Citizen Pandemic Relief Act to amend the problem of exclusion of couples with mixed immigration status. However, it was not until the discussion of the new stimulus package that the provision was established.