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Chinese Exclusion Act
Stopped entry of Chinese immigrants into the U.S. for ten years. This act was the first to establish the federal gov. right to restrict immigration based on nationalities. -
1888 & 1891
More restrictive acts were passed in 1888 and 1891. They allowed the national gov. not only to exclude certain individuals-convicts, prostitues, and insane persons for example- but also to deport aliens who entered the country in violation of these immigration laws. -
Quota Act of 1921
Limited the annual number of immigrants from each nationality to 3 percent of the number of foreign-born persons of that nationality who were living in the U.S. in 1910. -
Immigration Act of 1924 and National Origins Act of 1929
Established a new quota system for each nationality and set a limit on the total number of immigrants to be allowed entry at all. Quota system that resulted from these acts served as the basis for U.S. immigration policy for more than 35 years. -
1965
Eliminated quotas based on national orgin. -
1986 - Immigration Reform and Control Act
Imposed severe penalties on employers who willfully hired illegal aliens. Employers who repeatedly violate this law can be jailed for up to six months. -
1987-88 - Amnesty Program
Illegal aliens who could prove that they had been in this country continuously for at least 5 years could apply to obtain temporary legal residency status. 18 months later, they could apply for permanent residency. Eventually they could apply for citizenship. -
Immigration Act of 1990
Revised several other acts, including an act passed in 1965. -
1994 - Proposition 187
It denied public social services, publicly funded health care, and public education to people who were suspected of being illegal aliens, It required that individuals who were suspected of being illegal aliens to be interviewed, questioned, and forced to produce legal residency documents. But held that the state could not deny children of illegal immigrants a public education. -
Immigration Reform Act of 1996
Act had many provisions aimed at curbing illegal immigration into the U.S. Most recent attempt to stem illegal immigration. -
Welfare Reform Act of 1996
Prohibited immigrants, including legal immigrants who are not yet citizens, from rec most forms of public assistance, including welfare benefits. -
1997
Many refugees automatically became eligible for permanent legal residence. Other illegal immigrants were allowed to remain in the U.S. while the gov. processed their applications for permanent legal residence. Additionally, immigrants were again made eligible for public- assistance benefits.
