Half-truth in Trump's 'hellhole' remark on how Indians get US citizenship

Green Card approvals for Indians relatively are evenly split between professional merit and family-sponsored routes

India’s government last month denounced a social media post shared by US President Donald Trump that described the country as a “hellhole”, calling the comments inappropriate and “in poor taste”.

 

“A baby here becomes an instant citizen, and then they bring the entire family in from China or India or some other hellhole on the planet,” conservative radio host Michael Savage had said. Trump reposted the remark without comment on his Truth Social account, adding to his criticism of US birthright citizenship.

 

While many naturalised foreign-born US citizens have helped relatives obtain citizenship, this is not a valid reason to attack birthright citizenship. In 2025, the foreign-born share of the US population reached over 15 per cent — the highest in the country’s history.

 

The US issued more than 78,000 Green Cards to Indians in FY23 — the most after Mexicans and Cubans. The card makes an applicant a lawful permanent resident (LPR) — a status that has to be held for at least five years before a person becomes eligible to become a US citizen through naturalisation. (The US financial year runs from October to September.)

 

In the last decade, the share of Green Cards issued to Indians has fluctuated. It was 7.66 per cent in FY14 and slipped to 5.28 per cent in FY19. Thereafter, the share doubled to over 12 per cent in FY21 and FY22, before dropping back to 6.66 per cent in FY23. 

 

The US government issues Green Cards under several categories: Immediate relatives of US citizens, family-sponsored preferences, employment-based preferences, refugees and asylum seekers, and the diversity visa programme. Trump’s ire was apparently directed at the “family” and the “immediate relative” route to a Green Card.

 

Indians were the third-largest nationality — after Mexicans and Dominicans — in getting a Green Card through the “family” or the “immediate relative” route in FY23. Through just the “immediate relatives” route, Indians accounted for the largest share (5.76 per cent), after Mexicans (22.35 per cent), of all such Green Cards issued worldwide. The Chinese had the fourth-largest share (4.01 per cent). Meanwhile, Indians ranked fifth in the family-sponsored category with a 7.4 per cent share, while Dominicans topped that list at nearly 20 per cent. Notably, Indians ranked first in the employment-preference route with a 14.5 per cent share and the Chinese came next.

 

In FY23, nearly all Green Cards issued to Dominicans took place through the “family” or the “immediate relative” route. This share was 89.61 per cent for the Vietnamese and 84.83 per cent for Mexicans. Cubans got over half of their Green Cards in FY23 through the “asylum and refugee” route. Meanwhile, 60.1 per cent of Green Cards issued to Indians came via the “family” or the “immediate relative” route, while 36.59 per cent through the employment route — second only to the Chinese (44.34 per cent), among major Green Card beneficiary countries. 

 

Indians were the second-largest community to obtain citizenship via naturalisation in FY24, accounting for 6.07 per cent of the total and trailing Mexicans. However, Indians’ share in total naturalisations has dropped to a nine-year low since FY15. Furthermore, Indians spent a median of six years as LPRs before naturalising in FY24 — a significantly shorter duration than that of Cubans and Mexicans. 

 

Individuals born in the Dominican Republic, Vietnam and Mexico showed the highest reliance on the “family” and “immediate relative” routes to obtain Green Cards in FY23. Conversely, Green Cards issued to Indians and Chinese remained relatively balanced between the “employment” and “family/immediate relative” categories.