VISITOR VISAS

Visa-fraud prosecutions across U.S. increase

Government Accountability Office auditors found that consulates, which issue visas, do not systematically use methods to prevent fraud.

Immigration overhaul in doubt after Senate vote

The Senate Thursday voted 68-32 to overhaul the nation’s immigration system, an ambitious plan that creates a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants while requiring tough new steps to secure the nation’s borders.

IMMIGRATION DEBATE

Poll: 71 percent of Fla. voters back immigration reform

The poll results could be a big boost to Sen. Marco Rubio, a potential presidential candidate in 2016.

Immigration

Instead of detention, many undocumented immigrants being electronically monitored

The federal government says it is less expensive to monitor undocumented immigrants through phone calls, at-home check ins or electronic monitors than to keep them in jail.

Immigration

Rubio balancing act leads some to doubt commitment to bill

The Florida senator, a leader of the effort to reform U.S. immigration laws, says adjustments must be made to ensure that the measure passes.

Florida Government

Driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants’ kids vetoed by Gov. Rick Scott

Gov. Rick Scott vetoed a measure Tuesday that would have allowed undocumented migrants’ children to get temporary driver’s licenses.

Immigration

Evangelical leaders spend $250,000 to back immigration reform

The Evangelical Immigration Table launched a massive media buy that includes radio ads and billboards in Florida to push for immigration reform.

IMMIGRATION REFORM

Immigration activists protest Sen. Marco Rubio after gay couples left out of reform bill

Gay activists protested Sen. Marco Rubio after same-sex couples were left out immigration reform bill.

immigration

S. Fla. activists take part in a caravan to urge for speedy immigration reform

Immigration activists in Miami on Wednesday marked International Workers Day with a vehicle caravan from Little Havana to Doral to urge Congress to speed immigration reform and President Barack Obama to halt deportations of undocumented immigrants.

IMMIGRATION

Miami-Dade couple separated by deportation cling to hopes of reuniting

Paola Arango and Bruce Eckel are married, but she is still barred from returning to the U.S. from Colombia.

CUBA

Number of Cuban migrants to U.S. believed to be rising

Feds say that figures show an increasing number of Cubans are arriving in the U.S. — but what the number is is not yet known.

IMMIGRATION

Bipartisan bill could help 740,000 undocumented immigrants in Florida

A bipartisan group of senators formally filed an 844-page immigration bill, setting the stage for months of public debate about the proposal.

IMMIGRATION

Immigration Plan Would Create New Visas; Announcement Canceled Due to Boston Bombings

The highly anticipated proposal from an eight-member bipartisan group also aims to stem the flow of undocumented immigrants into the country by creating tens of thousands of new visas for foreign workers in low-skilled jobs, according to a 17-page summary of the bill obtained by The Washington Post.

IMMIGRATION

Undocumented immigrants face major hurdles, more than decade long wait for U.S. citizenship

New details of the massive immigration bill to be introduced in the Senate next week show it contains a list of tough requirements for undocumented immigrants to become citizens.

GAY MARRIAGE

Supreme Court DOMA ruling could allow married gay binational couples to stay together in U.S.

A Supreme Court decision this spring could allow gay men and women to sponsor their foreign-born same-sex husbands and wives for residency in the United States.

Violent Mexican drug gang, Zetas, taking control of migrant smuggling

One of Mexico's most powerful criminal gangs has muscled into the migrant-smuggling racket, changing what had been a relatively benign if risky industry of independent operators into a centralized business that often has deadly consequences for those who try to operate outside it.

S.C. House approves immigration crackdown bill

Those suspected of being in the country illegally soon may have to prove they are U.S. citizens, at least in South Carolina. S.C. House members approved an Arizona-style crackdown on illegal immigrants by a 69-43 vote.

PALM BEACH

Police: Five migrants come ashore in Palm Beach

Palm Beach Police and the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office are attempting to track five migrants who illegally came ashore near the Southern Boulevard Causeway Thursday night.

THE DREAM ACT

Undocumented dreamers won't give up

When the Senate refused to pass the immigration bill known as the Dream Act last week, a bunch of undocumented young people in South Florida found themselves on the wrong side of the nation's contentious political divide.