Who Offers Credit To Illegal Aliens?

Introduction

Illegal aliens in any country do not have the best situations at all. Staying illegally in a country means that you are not authorized to be there nor are you allowed to work. People also become illegal aliens because the validity of their visas expired and for reasons, continued to stay. For most, despite their illegal status, they stay to find work without papers and social security in the hope of regularizing their statuses in the host nation. The economic and social situation back in their countries also make it hard to go back as a lot have incurred debts just to pay for air passage to another country. However, an illegal status is not ideal. Without the proper authorizations, you cannot find a decent job nor will you have a social security number. No insurances will protect your back nor are there credit offers to help you pay for purchases.

History

Immigration has long been a pattern of movement among people. Nomads moved to literally greener pastures when the land they were tilling no longer yielded crops and poor vegetation cannot serve as nourishment for their livestock. People relocated from one village to another for different reasons such as uniting families, better job prospects, being near to amenities, or simply a change of scenery. The reasons for migration and relocation have not changed much in the 21st century, although there are other factors that account for the trend. Political prisoners, detainees, and those who face persecution seek asylum in a foreign country. However, without any legal status, there is not much hope that credit offers will pour to help an alien build a future in another country.

Features

Despite their illegal status, aliens still manage to find jobs working in the informal sector such as peddling wares in the streets, providing labor in farms and factories, or cleaning houses. It is also through the informal sector where credit offers are found, whether it is to borrow money quickly and paying an informal interest rate or pawning personal possessions.

Knowing friends and family who are legal residents also helps. A friend or family member offers credit to help out an illegal alien by adding an extension of their own credit cards. Payment for these credit offers depends on the arrangements made between them.

In the formal sector, the Bank of America pioneered in testing a pilot scheme that offers credit to illegal or overstaying foreigners. Under the scheme, undocumented aliens who have no Social Security Numbers are eligible to receive credit offers in the form of credit cards. They can own credit cards even if they have no work or residence permits. The pilot program was first tested in 50 branches of BA to tap into the growing market of illegal residents. However, the major catch is that these individuals who use such credit offers will end up paying a higher interest rate, by as much as 21 percent. In addition, they have to deposit amounts that serve as payments for purchases or charges on their credit cards.

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