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Comment on Why doesn't the US government just tax illegal immigrants a little bit more than the Average american? Then use those funds to fix infastructure or a new WPA of the 21st century?

dhork@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

People who are in the country illegally do not have authorization to work. You can’t tax them at all, at least officially, without giving them the authorization to work.

Now, of course these folks are working, and either getting paid without their employers declaring them, or paying them and withholding taxes with fraudulent identities, both of which are illegal for the employer as well as the employee. So, unofficially, they may be paying taxes, but if the authorities knew they were illegal they would probably be deported, especially in today’s hyper ICE environment.

A solution like you propose would acknowledge the basic humanity of these people, which is against everything the ruling party here stands for. So it will never happen.

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wildbus8979@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

You can’t tax them at all, at least officially, without giving them the authorization to work.

You should probably know that this isn’t correct at all. Undocumented immigrants do in fact pay income tax in the US. The IRS issues Individual Taxpayer Identification Number to everyone, regardless of status.

Regardless of immigration status, both resident and nonresident immigrants may have federal tax return and payment responsibilities under the Internal Revenue Code.

reuters.com/…/undocumented-immigrants-can-do-pay-…

Undocumented immigrants paid nearly $97 billion in federal, state and local taxes in 2022, according to a July 2024 report , opens new tab by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), which used data on taxpayers with ITINs to estimate tax revenue.

The ITEP report said undocumented immigrants contributed $59.4 billion to the federal government, including payments for federal income tax and federal social insurance such as Social Security, Medicare and Unemployment Insurance.

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- dhork@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Interesting, I didn’t know this at all. Thanks for the links.
  
  But I wonder how much longer this program can be kept up, now that this administration has made it clear they want all these people to leave, and will dispatch masked thugs to do so. Seems like applying for one of these TINs now is basically putting a sign on your back saying “Deport Me!”
  
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  - thelivefive@startrek.website ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    I saw your incorrect comment on top and though “what is this, reddit?”.
    
    Then you owned up to it and thanked him for the info. Nope! Definitely not reddit.
    
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