United States closes immigration door to communists in clear swipe at China

Communist party members will not be granted permanent residence or citizenship, US Citizen and Immigration Services says

Global Times editor-in-chief says move will help China to keep more of its ‘talents’

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The US has amended its immigration policy to make it more difficult for members of communist parties to get permanent residency or citizenship. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 7:00pm, 4 Oct 2020Updated: 12:16am, 5 Oct 2020

The United States has released guidance on its immigration laws that will make it almost impossible for members of a Communist party or similar to be granted permanent residence or citizenship of America.

The announcement was made in a policy alert issued on Friday by the US Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS).

In a sign Washington is dusting off its Cold War-era legislation, the agency said: “In general, unless otherwise exempt, any intending immigrant who is a member or affiliate of the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party … domestic or foreign, is inadmissible to the United States.”

The law effectively blocks members of the Chinese Communist Party from ever obtaining permanent residency or citizenship of the US, and reinforces the widening ideology gap between the world’s two largest economies that has already damaged people-to-people exchanges.

The USCIS said the policy amendment was “part of a broader set of laws passed by Congress to address threats to the safety and security of the United States”.

While the alert did not mention the Chinese Communist Party, which has 90 million members, by name, it adds a new dimension to the ongoing rivalry between Beijing and Washington.