University of California Riverside student Mitzie Perez is suing bank giant Wells Fargo because it denied her a student loan last summer.
The bank’s online application asked for citizenship status, and Perez had checked off the box which indicated “she was neither a U.S. citizen nor a permanent resident.”
As reported by Buzzfeed, Perez was then directed to a page which stated “Thank you for your interest in a Wells Fargo student loan. However, based on information you provided, we do not have a student loan option that meets your needs. This could be due to the school you selected, your field of study, and/or your citizenship status.”
After she went back and changed her status to “permanent resident alien,” Perez was then offered different loan options.
Thomas Saenz, the president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, told BuzzFeed News that California state law forbids businesses from discriminating based on immigration status, and federal law prohibits discrimination between citizens and aliens when making contracts.
“It would be fair to deny someone if the applicant were a credit risk,” he said. “In this case they just flat out disqualify you if you aren’t a citizen or permanent resident.” …
Young immigrants enrolled in [the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals — DACA] are assigned a Social Security number, which allows them to work, study, travel and pay taxes. But Wells Fargo did not consider this identifying information, nor the fact that Perez’ had a US citizen willing to co-sign a loan with her. It simply flashed a red light once it saw her immigration status, Saenz said.
“There are no questions about income or assets or how long they’ve been employed or any of the questions a bank would ask a loan recipient,” he said. “They’re just out.”
However, DACA “does not lay out a directive for private student loans and undocumented students are not eligible for federal student loans,” says loan expert Mark Kantrowitz.
Perez’s lawsuit seeks monetary damages, and an order to force the bank to loan to DACA students.
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