American Right to Family Act

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1435 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide Temporary Resi- dent Status for certain parents and spouses of citizens or lawful residents of the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 26, 2021 Mr. RUSH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide Temporary Resident Status for certain parents and spouses of citizens or lawful residents of the United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘American Right to 4 Family Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:30 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1435 IH SEC. 2. TEMPORARY RESIDENT STATUS FOR CERTAIN 1 LONG-TERM RESIDENT PARENTS. 2 Section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nation- 3 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)) is amended by adding 4 at the end the following: 5 ‘‘(W) TEMPORARY RESIDENT STATUS FOR 6 CERTAIN LONG-TERM RESIDENT PARENTS.— 7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 8 214(s), an alien who files a petition for 9 status under this subparagraph, if the Sec- 10 retary of Homeland Security determines 11 that— 12 ‘‘(I) the alien— 13 ‘‘(aa) has been physically 14 present in the United States for 15 a continuous period of not less 16 than 10 years immediately pre- 17 ceding the date of the alien’s ap- 18 plication; 19 ‘‘(bb) has been granted de- 20 ferred action pursuant to the De- 21 ferred Action for Childhood Ar- 22 rivals Memorandum announced 23 by the Secretary of Homeland 24 Security on June 15, 2012, or 25 would have otherwise qualified 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:30 Apr 06, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1435 IH for the Deferred Action for 1 Childhood Arrivals announced by 2 the Secretary of Homeland Secu- 3 rity pursuant to the November 4 14, 2014, Memorandum; and 5 ‘‘(cc) is a covered person; 6 ‘‘(II) the alien— 7 ‘‘(aa) was issued an order of 8 removal from the United States 9 under sections 235 or 240 of the 10 Immigration and Nationality Act, 11 and— 12 ‘‘(AA) remained in the 13 United States; 14 ‘‘(BB) was removed, 15 deported, or permitted to de- 16 part voluntarily from the 17 United States; 18 ‘‘(CC) resides outside of 19 the United States; or 20 ‘‘(DD) unlawfully reen- 21 tered the United States 22 after being issued an order 23 of removal under section 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1435 IH 235 or 240 of the Immigra- 1 tion and Nationality Act; 2 ‘‘(bb) was physically present 3 in the United States for a contin- 4 uous presence of not less than 10 5 years immediately preceding the 6 date of the alien’s order of re- 7 moval; and 8 ‘‘(cc) is a covered person. 9 ‘‘(ii) DEFINITION.—For purposes of 10 this subparagraph, a covered person is an 11 alien who is— 12 ‘‘(I) the parent of a child who— 13 ‘‘(aa) is a citizen or national 14 of the United States; or 15 ‘‘(bb) initially entered the 16 United States before the age of 17 16 and has been continuously 18 and physically present in the 19 United States since their last 20 entry; or 21 ‘‘(II) the spouse of a person 22 who— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(aa) is a citizen or lawful 1 permanent resident of the United 2 States; or 3 ‘‘(bb) initially entered the 4 United States before the age of 5 16 and has been continuously 6 and physically present in the 7 United States since their last 8 entry.’’. 9 SEC. 3. REQUIREMENTS FOR TEMPORARY RESIDENT STA- 10 TUS FOR CERTAIN LONG-TERM RESIDENT 11 PARENTS. 12 Section 214 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 13 (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by adding the following sub- 14 section: 15 ‘‘(s) REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO SECTION 16 101(a)(15)(W) VISAS OR NONIMMIGRANT STATUS.— 17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a non- 18 immigrant described in section 101(a)(15)(W), the 19 alien— 20 ‘‘(A) is not inadmissible under section 21 212(a)(1), (a)(6)(E), (a)(8), or (a)(10) of the 22 Immigration and Nationality Act; 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(B) is not inadmissible under section 1 212(a)(2), unless eligible for a waiver pursuant 2 to subsection (6) of this section; and 3 ‘‘(C) has not ordered, incited assisted or 4 otherwise participated in the persecution of any 5 person on account of race, religion, nationality, 6 membership in a particular social group, or po- 7 litical opinion. 8 ‘‘(2) CREDIBLE EVIDENCE CONSIDERED.—In 9 acting on any petition filed under this subsection, 10 the consular officer, Secretary of Homeland Secu- 11 rity, or the Attorney General, as appropriate, shall 12 consider any credible evidence relevant to the peti- 13 tion. 14 ‘‘(3) WORK AUTHORIZATION.—In the case of a 15 nonimmigrant described in section 101(a)(15)(W), 16 the Secretary of Homeland Security shall authorize 17 the alien to engage in employment in the United 18 States during the period of authorized admission 19 and shall provide the alien with an ‘employment au- 20 thorized’ endorsement or other appropriate docu- 21 ment signifying authorization of employment. Work 22 authorization provided under this paragraph shall be 23 effective throughout the period the alien is in tem- 24 porary resident status. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(4) NO NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS.—The num- 1 ber of aliens who may be issued visas or otherwise 2 provided status as nonimmigrants under section 3 101(a)(15)(W) shall have no numerical limitations. 4 ‘‘(5) DURATION OF STATUS.—The authorized 5 period of status of an alien as a nonimmigrant 6 under section 101(a)(15)(W) shall be valid for a pe- 7 riod of 3 years, but the Secretary of Homeland Se- 8 curity shall extend or renew such period, with no 9 limit on the number of such renewals, if— 10 ‘‘(A) the alien files a nonfrivolous applica- 11 tion for renewal before the date of expiration of 12 authorized stay determined by the Secretary; 13 and 14 ‘‘(B) the Secretary determines that the 15 alien continues to meet the conditions as de- 16 fined by section 101(a)(15)(W) and subject to 17 the requirements provided under this sub- 18 section. 19 Further, in the case of an alien who files a nonfrivo- 20 lous application for renewal before the date of expi- 21 ration of the period of authorized stay by the Sec- 22 retary, the alien’s period of temporary resident sta- 23 tus and work authorization shall be deemed auto- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1435 IH matically extended during the pendency of the appli- 1 cation. 2 ‘‘(6) WAIVERS FOR CERTAIN MISDEMEANORS.— 3 Include the same or similar language in section 4 240A(f)(3)(C), and explain that certain crimes re- 5 lated to section 212(a)(2) are also to be expressly 6 excluded (and the applicant remains eligible for re- 7 lief under this section) if described in section 8 240A(f)(D)(i)(ii)(I) (i.e. except simple possession of 9 cannabis/paraphernalia, etc.) and include the lan- 10 guage in treatment of certain crimes. 11 ‘‘(7) NONEXCLUSIVE RELIEF.—Nothing in this 12 subsection limits the ability of aliens who qualify for 13 status under section 101(a)(15)(W) to seek any 14 other immigration benefit or status for which the 15 alien may be eligible.’’. 16 SEC. 4. CANCELLATION OF REMOVAL AND TEMPORARY 17 RESIDENT STATUS FOR CERTAIN LONG-TERM 18 RESIDENT PARENTS. 19 Section 240A of the Immigration and Nationality Act 20 (8 U.S.C. 1229b) is amended by adding at the end the 21 following: 22 ‘‘(f) CANCELLATION OF REMOVAL AND TEMPORARY 23 RESIDENT STATUS FOR CERTAIN LONG-TERM RESIDENT 24 PARENTS.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 1 provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security 2 or the Attorney General shall cancel the removal of, 3 and adjust to the status of an alien having lawful 4 temporary residence, an alien who is inadmissible or 5 deportable from the United States if— 6 ‘‘(A) the alien— 7 ‘‘(i) has been physically present in the 8 United States for a continuous period of 9 not less than 10 years immediately pre- 10 ceding the date of the alien’s application; 11 ‘‘(ii) subject to paragraph (7), was re- 12 moved, deported, or permitted to depart 13 voluntarily from the United States after 14 having been physically present in the 15 United States for a continuous period of 16 not less than 10 years; 17 ‘‘(iii) has been granted deferred action 18 pursuant to the Deferred Action for Child- 19 hood Arrivals Memorandum announced by 20 the Secretary of Homeland Security on 21 June 15, 2012, or would have otherwise 22 qualified for the Deferred Action for Child- 23 hood Arrivals announced by the Secretary 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1435 IH of Homeland Security pursuant to the No- 1 vember 14, 2014, Memorandum; or 2 ‘‘(iv) would have been eligible for a 3 grant of deferred action pursuant to such 4 policy, if the memorandum announcing the 5 policy were fully in effect since the date 6 issued; 7 ‘‘(B) the alien is the parent of a son or 8 daughter who— 9 ‘‘(i) is a citizen or national of the 10 United States; or 11 ‘‘(ii) initially entered the United 12 States while under 16 years of age and has 13 been continuously physically present in the 14 United States since such entry; and 15 ‘‘(C) the alien— 16 ‘‘(i) is not inadmissible under para- 17 graph (1), (6)(E), (6)(G), (8), or (10) of 18 section 212(a); 19 ‘‘(ii) has not ordered, incited, assisted, 20 or otherwise participated in the persecution 21 of any person on account of race, religion, 22 nationality, membership in a particular so- 23 cial group, or political opinion; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(iii) is not barred from adjustment of 1 status under this subsection based on the 2 criminal and national security grounds de- 3 scribed under paragraph (3), subject to the 4 provisions of such paragraph. 5 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF CONTINUOUS PRES- 6 ENCE.— 7 ‘‘(A) EFFECT OF NOTICE TO APPEAR.— 8 Any period of continuous physical presence in 9 the United States of an alien who applies for 10 temporary resident status under this subsection 11 shall not terminate when the alien is served a 12 notice to appear under section 239(a). 13 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN BREAKS IN 14 PRESENCE OR RESIDENCE.— 15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro- 16 vided in clauses (ii) and (iii), an alien shall 17 be considered to have failed to maintain 18 continuous physical presence in the United 19 States under this subsection if the alien 20 has departed from the United States for 21 any period exceeding 90 days or for any 22 periods, in the aggregate, exceeding 180 23 days. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(ii) EXTENSIONS FOR EXTENUATING 1 CIRCUMSTANCES.—The Secretary may ex- 2 tend the time period described in clause (i) 3 for an alien who demonstrates that the 4 failure to timely return to the United 5 States was due to extenuating cir- 6 cumstances beyond the alien’s control, in- 7 cluding the serious illness of the alien, or 8 death or serious illness of a parent, grand- 9 parent, sibling, or child of the alien. 10 ‘‘(iii) TRAVEL AUTHORIZED BY THE 11 SECRETARY.—Any period of travel outside 12 of the United States by an alien that was 13 authorized by the Secretary of Homeland 14 Secretary may not be counted toward any 15 period of departure from the United States 16 under clause (i). 17 ‘‘(3) CRIMINAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY 18 BARS.— 19 ‘‘(A) GROUNDS OF INELIGIBILITY.—Ex- 20 cept as provided in subparagraphs (B) and (C), 21 an alien is ineligible for cancellation of removal 22 and adjustment of status under this subsection 23 if any of the following apply: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(i) The alien is inadmissible under 1 paragraph (2) or (3) of section 212(a) of 2 the Immigration and Nationality Act. 3 ‘‘(ii) Excluding any offense under 4 State law for which an essential element is 5 the alien’s immigration status, and any 6 minor traffic offense, the alien has been 7 convicted of— 8 ‘‘(I) any felony offense; 9 ‘‘(II) three or more misdemeanor 10 offenses (excluding simple possession 11 of cannabis or cannabis-related para- 12 phernalia, any offense involving can- 13 nabis or cannabis-related para- 14 phernalia which is no longer prosecut- 15 able in the State in which the convic- 16 tion was entered, and any offense in- 17 volving civil disobedience without vio- 18 lence) not occurring on the same date, 19 and not arising out of the same act, 20 omission, or scheme of misconduct; or 21 ‘‘(III) a misdemeanor offense of 22 domestic violence, unless the alien 23 demonstrates that such crime is re- 24 lated to the alien having been— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:48 Apr 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1435.IH H1435 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 14 •HR 1435 IH ‘‘(aa) a victim of domestic 1 violence, sexual assault, stalking, 2 child abuse or neglect, abuse or 3 neglect in later life, or human 4 trafficking; 5 ‘‘(bb) battered or subjected 6 to extreme cruelty; or 7 ‘‘(cc) a victim of criminal ac- 8 tivity described in section 9 101(a)(15)(U)(iii). 10 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN OF- 11 FENSES.— 12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 13 section 101(h), a crime described in [Text truncated for display. 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