Who doesn't like Switzerland? In the aftermath of former President Joe Biden’s open borders, many illegals achieved “qualified alien” status in the U.S. due to political maneuvering, resulting in millions of illegal immigrants draining citizen resources.
As Americans have learned more about how much of their tax dollars go to welfare programs utilized by immigrants, both legal and illegal, some in D.C. may be asking if Switzerland has mastered the method of contouring immigration to its nation and disincentivizing illegal entry.
The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) means that, officially, illegal immigrants are ineligible for social welfare programs through the United States government.
However, open border policies under the Biden-Harris Administration encouraged illegal immigration by providing access to billions in taxpayer-funded welfare benefits through various loopholes.
Wide range of spending in loopholes
While the 1996 welfare reform law restricts benefits to "qualified aliens," the Biden administration granted statuses like parole, asylum, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), and others to millions of illegal aliens, making them eligible for programs despite their initial inadmissibility. These benefits, including direct cash payments via the tax code, are described as a major pull factor for illegal immigration.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), in a recent report, estimated $177 billion in outlays by fiscal year 2034 for benefits to the immigration surge population and their children, broken down across categories like Obamacare ($59 billion), tax credits ($43 billion), and Medicaid/CHIP ($40 billion). Additional sources, such as FAIR ($66.5 billion in 2023 federal expenditures) and the Manhattan Institute (lifetime costs up to $1.15 trillion for the border crisis), underscore the scale of these fiscal burdens.
Specific programs highlighted as accessible include SNAP (Food Stamps), TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), SSI (Supplemental Security Income), Medicaid, CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program), Obamacare subsidies, EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit), Child Tax Credit, Pell Grants, public housing, and child nutrition programs, among others.
Swiss approach welcoming but stringent
By contrast, Switzerland, which is not part of the European Union, has tight controls over who is eligible for Swiss citizenship and the burden they have proven to pose in the years leading up to their citizenship application.
Switzerland's naturalization process prioritizes successful integration into Swiss society, including financial self-sufficiency as a key indicator. Applicants for citizenship are generally required to demonstrate that they have not received social welfare benefits (known as social assistance) in the three years preceding their application, unless they have fully repaid any amounts received.
In addition, the Swiss immigration laws require proof of acceptance and integration into the Swiss culture, and even includes a language requirement (usually French or German). Motown music legend Tina Turner applied to become a Swiss citizen in 2013, and spent the last decades of her life there, having met all the requirements of citizenship.
The Swiss policy, embedded in the 2018 Swiss Citizenship Act, ensures that new citizens are economically independent and not reliant on public funds. While some cantons (similar to states in a federal system) impose stricter rules, such as extending the lookback period to 10 years instead of three, the federal standard allows repayment as an exception to maintain eligibility.
https://justthenews.com/government/white-house/swiss-citizenship-model-would-supercharge-trumps-immigration-agenda
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