Illegal Immigrants

[FlyingNarwhal]

So the reason that illegal immigrants don't file tax returns is because they are breaking the law...again.  It is illegal to work "off the books."  Even I, as an American citizen, am not allowed to work off the books.  Besides the point that is not an excuse to not pay taxes.  Illegal immigrants pay taxes by filing for an Individual Tax Identification Number, which requires basic info to receive.  They can then use that number in lieu of a Social Security number.  From there, if an illegal immigrant wishes to do so there are numerous ways they can pay their taxes, probably the best way being to fill out Form 4852 instead of having a W2 and send it with their form 1040.  There is also no risk for illegal immigrants to file tax returns, there are strict federal privacy laws that revolve around an individuals tax info.  The IRS and the SSA cannot share that info with law enforcement agencies.

I've said it twice now as well and have provided sources for them, so if you choose to dispute please provide your own sources:

1. I am well aware that illegal immigrants DO NOT have access to Social Security or Medicare, I have never disputed that.
   
2. Illegal Immigrants DO receive the Child Tax Credit as well as emergency Medicaid (for emergency services).
   

I will leave you with this source from from the Treasury Department that is literally titled, Individuals Who Are Not Authorized to Work in the United States Were Paid $4.2 Billion in Refundable Credits."

Okay, wait.  So, if only those undocumented immigrants who are using an ITIN to file taxes with the IRS are eligible for the Child Tax Credit, then what’s the gripe?  If they’re paying their taxes why shouldn’t they receive that credit as any other working, tax-paying individual?  Simply because they’re here illegally?  That’s not really much of an argument. Perhaps I’m misunderstanding something here.

Yes, they should not be receiving the tax credit because they are not a US citizen.  I know that sounds cruel, but there's a couple of things that need to be understood as to why we do this.  First of all, even upon gaining citizenship, legal immigrants do not get access to benefits for years.  The principle behind this is the same that you see with state colleges providing different in-state and out-of-state tuition costs.  They provide a heavy discount to citizens of the state, because the thought process is that someone that lives in the state, receives a higher education in the state, will likely continue to reside in the state.  Having a higher educated citizen provides various benefits to the state.  Usually it's required that someone live in the state for a period of 1-2 years beforehand.  This is so someone can't move into the state for a month, pay their first rent check, and demand in state tuition; only to leave the state to return home.  It's also the same reason I can't become an illegal citizen of Canada, start paying taxes, and then demand free healthcare.

Second, is that there is a reason you are required to become a citizen before receiving these benefits and that is because we can't overload our social safety nets.  Imagine if we declared that illegal immigrants would receive all of the benefits (Social Security, Welfare, SNAP, etc) as long as they paid taxes.  We know that illegal immigrants make considerably less than the average American household.  It is not entirely without reason that we may begin to see a tax deficit.  Hence why they shouldn't be receiving the Child Tax Credit.  It was originally an oversight that they intended to fix in 2010, but screwed it up again.  And haven't been able to get rid of it since.