Report finds many undocumented have overstayed their visas

Many people who immigrate to Corona, California enter the country legally, through a student visa, temporary work visa or other type of document that allows them to live, work or study in the United States. However, most of these types of documents have expiration dates and people who do not take action to either leave the country when required or renew their ability to stay become undocumented.

A new report from the Department of Homeland Security indicates that the number of people last year who remained in the country after their visa expired was more than 700,000, according to ABC News. While some of those people do ultimately leave, or seek out other legal ways of remaining, many stay with no plan of returning to their native country.

This presents a large security problem, some point out. It is currently difficult for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to track those who overstay their visas. The system is currently backlogged with over one million cases and is mired by complicated information technology sharing systems.

Undocumented individuals living in the U.S. has been a hot button topic in recent months. Much of the focus has been pointed at securing the nation’s borders and building a wall between the U.S. and Mexico. However, as NBC News points out, the majority of those who do not currently possess the proper paperwork actually entered the U.S. legally through the visa system. It is estimated that two-thirds of the undocumented population comprises those who have overstayed their visas.