All together it would cost hundreds and hundreds of dollars, which a poor Mexican would have no hope in ever raising in half of their lives. I know people from Mexico, I have gone there, a lot of areas are in such destitute that they can hardly even eat everyday. The fact that the US knows this, and still makes it that expensive for a poor immigrant to enter the US is why its so unreasonable.
Im not for handing shit out for free, but i can shed some light into the fee question:
Visa
The process for getting a visa in Mexico is not as easy/cheap/accessible as it is here. For one you need to prove ownershp of a dueling, which while it is easier to own a home in mexico then it is here it is still just as expensive. then come fees, state and government fees. while not a lot for the above average income family, most of these illegal immigrants are well below what any other country would call poor.
The process needed to become a legal citizen in the US:
Lets start with residency aka green card which you cant have unless you can prove being in the US for a period longer than 5 yrs. So , you need to prove being in the US for 5+ yrs. Problem is: You cannot get a permit to stay here for more than 6 months at a time even through airports unless youre in a student visa and even then it isnt for 5 years.
So in essence the govt says: ok you want residency? prove to me that youve been here longer than 5 yrs, entered the country legally and never left (making you an illegal immigrant) for any reason at all. Of course things like death inthe family, etc are ignored but still highly questioned.
Then there is the waiting periods which can be up to and more than 2 years. all of which are riddled with lawyer fees, and such. The govt will not accept paperwork filled out by a normal person it has to be filled and certified by a lawyer, so it can get anywhere form 1k to 8k which youre supposed to come up with while not working illegally in the us, but youre supposed to be here for longer than 5 yrs, out of which 6 mos is the most you can be in here legally. You cannot leave the country until the near end of the process, at which time it is part of the process to go back to your country of origin for a designated amount of time (days i think)
Classes are expensive for certified instructors that are basically teaching you the basics of American history usually taught in high school lol.
Then youre sent to a border town to get tested for god knows what, you get fingerprinted and your picture taken at a "special" place that charges a wad of money for passport pictures.
These are only the few things i can recall out of the whole process.
Ever since 9/11 the prices and fees have gone up consistently.. the fee associated with your citizensip application processing went from 249 to 500 and it has been said to go higher in the following years.
No, its not impossible for the average person to get this done, and to most Americans that earn an average wage it can be rather easy on the wallet. however most of the people that need it cannot afford it.
Sure there are "bleeding heart" association that will help with fees, filling out the forms etc... sadly most of the people that need the help dont know whereto get it. the illegal community's own fault.
no, it is not impossible to go through the process some people just dont know where to go to get the proper direction.
My family did it several years ago so the prices may have changed since then.
I opted not to get a citizenship at the time for my own reasons.
and yes I am here as a legal resident.
