Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Millions with visas 'overstay' visits to U.S., state

Experts: Border plans must include them

The Associated Press

PHOENIX - Millions of illegal immigrants - many from Canada, Mexico and Europe - have entered Arizona and U.S. states legally with student, work or tourism visas and then remain after their visas expired.

Known as "overstays," they have received scant attention in the national debate over immigration reform and homeland security, even though the government estimates overstays make up at least a third of the nation's total illegal population of about 11 million people.

Though most legal visitors from other countries return home, many decide to remain here illegally primarily because of better economic opportunities or family ties.

Experts say any attempt by Congress to create a large-scale guest worker program or seal the border will have to take overstays into account.

"The more you do focus on the border and the more successful you are at the border without focusing elsewhere, the more you exacerbate the problem of overstayers," said U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., a proponent of immigration reform that includes greater enforcement at the border and the workplace, along with a guest worker program.

Nobody has a good handle on how many overstays there are in the United States or which countries they are from.

The majority of illegal immigrants who cross the U.S.-Mexican border illegally are from Mexico and Central America.

On the other hand, experts say, overstays tend to come from all over the world and are often better educated.

The Department of Homeland Security estimates the overstay population at 2.3 million as of January 2000, according to congressional auditors. In 2000, they accounted for about a third of the total illegal population, auditors said.

The 2.3 million estimate did not include overstays from Canada and other visa-exempt countries who entered legally without visas, or overstays from Mexico who entered legally with border crossing cards.