The Taoiseach has pledged to press the cause of the undocumented Irish when he meets US president George Bush and the speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, over the next two days.
The issue was raised with Mr Ahern in New York yesterday on the first day of his visit to the US. Groups campaigning on the issue appealed with him to intervene on their behalf.
A young Irish couple and their six-month-old baby were introduced to Mr Ahern as part of the campaign to get working visas for the estimated 50,000 immigrants who are in the US illegally. Brian and Caroline McKenna and their baby son, Luke, met Mr Ahern as part of the campaign to regularise the position of the undocumented in the US.
"We have not been able to go home now for nearly nine years and can't bring Luke home to see his grandparents," said Mr McKenna, who runs a small plumbing business in Manhattan.
"We are doing pretty well financially and are contributing taxes to the US economy. We have invested a lot here, but unless we are able to sort things out, we will have no option but to head back to Ireland," said Mr McKenna.
Niall O'Dowd, chairman of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform (ILIR) said that Mr Ahern's meetings with Mr Bush and Ms Pelosi would be critical for the undocumented Irish.
He said Mexico's president intervened on behalf of illegal Mexican immigrants earlier in the week and the follow-on from Mr Ahern's visit to Washington would be just as important.
Mr O'Dowd said the timing of Mr Ahern's meetings was critical as Senator Ted Kennedy had "gone over the top" on the issue and sense needed to prevail.
Before meeting the immigrants' groups, Mr Ahern told representatives of the financial services industry over breakfast that the globalisation of the sector had been the driver of Ireland's economic success.
"It is our goal to remain focused on building on our success. We believe that we have established a platform for Ireland to continue to develop as a world-class location for international financial services," he said.
"Our commitment to supporting foreign direct investment is absolute and has always been based on a partnership between Ireland and investors," he said.
He reiterated the Government's commitment to continuing the low corporate tax rate of 12.5 per cent, but he said that low taxation was only one of the factors that made Ireland a location of choice for inward investment.
"The corporate tax yield from IFSC companies has grown steadily year on year and amounted to the equivalent of $1.45 billion in 2006," he said.
He added that financial services operated in an environment where innovation and productivity were the drivers of competitive advantage. "We believe that our investment in research, product development, innovation and continued growth of intellectual capital in Ireland will be the fundamentals of how we support a platform for the ongoing development of global financial services."
Mr Ahern also paid tribute yesterday to the 343 men of the New York Fire Department who died in the terrorist attacks on September 11th during a visit to the World Trade Center visitors' centre at Ground Zero.
"Enormous grief and pain was felt in Ireland at the carnage visited here over five years ago," Mr Ahern told New York mayor Michael Bloomberg and other dignitaries after his visit.
Before the ceremony, the Emerald Society Pipe Band played A Nation Once Again, while Paddy Moloney played a lament on the tin whistle.
"New York has always been a place of welcome, of hope and of opportunity for the Irish and for many, many others over the years. In many ways, New York is the capital of the world - the world's favourite city," he said.