Mexico City, February 12.- During the first months of the Joe Biden administration, the United States government prioritized an increase in granting immigrant or permanent resident visas to Mexicans over those granted for tourism or temporary workers, after both categories reported a notable decline in the last two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report prepared by the Migration Policy Unit of the Ministry of the Interior.
In the agency's most recent report on "Routes, Studies on Mobility and International Migration," it is established that in 2020, the number of immigrant visas granted by the neighboring country to Mexicans amounted to 30,145, "which is the lowest number granted to Mexicans in the last 20 fiscal years." Regarding nonimmigrant visas, these totaled 961,742, "which is the lowest number recorded since fiscal year 2009."
Figures from December 2019 to July 2021
Analyzing figures from December 2019 to July of last year, the Migration Policy Unit found that the United States government granted 46,330 immigrant visas to Mexicans. Of these, 78.22 percent were visas for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens and 21.14 percent were visas based on family sponsorships.
The data "reflect the continued importance of these two categories in enabling family reunification, as they represent virtually all (99.36 percent) of the immigrant visas granted to Mexicans during the period analyzed."
