• The United States Congress creates and passes federal legislation, including immigration laws.the united states on the world globe image by Gary from Fotolia.com
  
  The United States Constitution gives Congress the authority to establish uniform laws and regulations regarding immigration. To that end, Congress has continuously amended laws and created new legislation to accommodate different segments of the immigration population. Congress has the authority to create legislation that establishes circumstances under which a person may be granted entrance into the United States, and the acts and events a person may participate in, such as working, while in the United States.
  
  

Immigration and Nationality Act

• In 1952, the United States Congress passed the Immigration and Nationality Act, which sought to provide clear instructions on how legal immigration was to be handled. This legislation also took out the mention of excluding immigrants based on race, gender or country of origin. Rather than excluding immigrants based on nationality, this legislation sought to emphasize labor skills and assimilation of American culture. The Immigration and Nationality Act also revised the quota system to give preference to skilled workers and relatives of citizens or permanent residents of the United States.
  
  

Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act of 1986

• President Bill Clinton signed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA). A major feature of this legislation is the response to individuals "unlawfully present" in the United States for a specific period of time. Any immigrant who has previously been deported from the United States and seeks re-entry within five years is considered inadmissible, as is any illegal immigrant convicted of any aggravated felony seeking re-entry within 20 years of deportation. Any person who has entered the United States illegally and has been in the country for more than six months (180 days) but less than a year and leaves voluntarily before deportation proceedings commence may not re-enter the United States for three years. Any immigrant who has illegally entered the United States and stayed for a year or more who applies for legal entry within 10 years of leaving or being deported, will be denied.
  
  

Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986

• The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 amended the Immigration and Nationality Act. Specifically Congress passed this legislation to make it illegal for any individual or organization to hire or pay for work completed by any person not authorized to be legally present in the United States. To comply with the legislation, employers must verify they have checked the immigration status of employees and determined all employees are authorized to be, and work in, the United States. The most sweeping change of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 was that it provided a path to legalization for certain immigrants and non-immigrants present illegally in the United States prior to January, 1982.