TAMPA, Fla. — Local attorneys say the number of people seeking information about Green Card and citizenship applications is increasing across the state, as Florida’s new immigration law goes into effect on July 1.

The legislation, Senate Bill 1718, requires employers with more than 25 employees to use the E-Verify system when hiring new employees, or risk getting fined.

What You Need To Know

  • Senate Bill 1718 will require employers with more than 25 employees to use the E-Verify system when hiring new employees, or face penalties

  • Attorney Ananis Makar says she’s had an influx of calls and appointments being made due to the immigration law

  • Cruz Aguilar is one of Makar’s clients and said he had a long journey to residency

  • To learn more about requirements for residency and citizenship, visit the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website

After waiting for more than 20 years, Cruz Aguilar said hearing the words, "You are a permanent resident" was like letting out a sigh of relief.

“You’re always thinking every day when I go to work, 'Am I going to come back to my kids, I don’t know I have to ask God for help,'” he said.

He says that’s the reality many undocumented individuals face while waiting for their paperwork to be processed.

However, that fear didn’t stop him — he says it motivated him to start his own business.

“Construction is one of the places where you can do things for people and also make a living," he said.

But his journey to residency wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t without the help of his attorney, Ananis Makar.

Makar says there are several requirements a person must meet to become a permanent resident, and even more steps to become a U.S. citizen.

For both, she says the process could take years.

“I would say that there is no clear path, or there is always a period of time where you have to wait," she said.

Since the signing of Florida’s new immigration law, Makar says the biggest question she has received from clients is whether or not they’ll have to leave Florida.

According to Makar, the law does not change anything about the pathway an individual must take to get a Green Card or citizenship. The only thing that has changed is the number of restrictions, she said.

Cruz says his family was his biggest motivation to finalize the process.

"We’ve been through rough situations with my life and they’re just my engine," he said.

As he works to construct a better life for his family, Cruz said he is also studying to become a U.S. citizen in hopes of one day getting to vote.