The Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants is once again stalled in the Senate and currently unable to achieve the Unanimous Consent required to fast-track the legislative process. Writing a letter to your Senator is one of the most effective ways to gain support. While it may be easier to simply retweet posts on twitter, click here to sign a petition, or call to tell them to vote yes, a letter sharing your personal story will have greater impact and the pressure needs to be kept up. Below you will find a template for a letter you can personalize and send.

For Writing a Letter to Your Senator:

You can find the name and address of your Senator by going to http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm. When addressing your letter, you can use the following format, but be sure to share the details of your story to really personalize it:

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The Honorable (full name)

(Room Number) (Name) Senate Office Building

United States Senate

Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator (last name):

My name is __________, and I am writing this letter to urge you to pass the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act. This bill may not solve every immigration issue the United States is currently facing, but it ensures that high-skilled immigrants contributing to the country are treated equally, embodying a fundamental truth on which this country was built.

I am a _____job title_____ and have been living and working in the United States pursuant to a temporary work visa since ____date____. I began my journey towards lawful permanent residence in ___year of priority date____. I remain hopeful that I might finally achieve my goal of permanent residence in this country, but the per country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants keeps me stuck in limbo simply because of where I was born.

I want to contribute to this country. My work in the field of ___________helps _______describe the importance of your work to the US economy or society _______. I have done my best to comply with all the immigration rules of this country. I have been through ____ # of H-1B (or F-1, OPT, L-1, H-4, etc) ______ visa renewals over the years. Every time I want to travel to my home country, I have gone through a visa interview at a U.S. Consulate. The Department of Labor has already confirmed that my presence in the United States does not harm U.S. workers. I have a __master’s, bachelor’s____ degree in ___field of study___. Based on the statistics available, it is expected that I will have to wait 150 years for a green card to become available because I was born in ____. In contrast, an individual with the exact same education and job offer from almost any other country does not have any wait at all.

President Trump has recommended a merit-based immigration system where the highest-skilled are a priority. Our current employment-based immigration system already has a merit-based component based on the five preference categories. But, the per-country limit has turned it into a discriminatory process where preference is given based on country of birth.

The House of Representatives has passed similar legislation to eliminate the per-country cap. The bill has also been endorsed by Immigration Voice, Compete America Coalition, the Information Technology Industry Council, Google, Walmart, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, The Heritage Foundation, La Raza, and many others. This bill may not fix the entire immigration system, but it would accomplish its purpose: making the system fairer.

I urge you to join with thousands of other concerned individuals who are legally in this country and have waited patiently for so long to become lawful permanent residents. Please pass the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act. Treating people fairly and equally is part of America’s founding creed. Let my merit be the deciding factor, not my country of birth. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter.

Sincerely,

____Name_______

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