BRAIN Act

Summary: Best Return on America's Investment Now Act or BRAIN Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to make up to 10% of the worldwide employment-based immigration level available to qualified immigrants who: (1) hold a doctorate degree in a field of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM degree) from a U.S. doctoral institution of higher education; and (2) have taken all doctoral courses in a STEM field, including all courses taken by correspondence or by distance education, while physically present in the United States. Reduces the number of immigrant visas available to skilled workers, professionals, and other workers. Revises the computation of the total number of immigrant visas that may be made available to natives of any single foreign state or dependent area in a fiscal year.  States that: (1) the permanent priority date for any employment-based petition shall be the date on which the petition is filed with Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) (or the Secretary of State, if applicable), unless such filing was preceded by the filing of a labor certification with the Secretary of Labor, in which case that date shall constitute the priority date; and (2) an alien who is the beneficiary of an employment-based petition that was approvable when filed shall retain that petition's priority date in the consideration of any subsequently filed employment-based petition.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as--
            (1) the ``Best Return on America's Investment Now Act''; or
            (2) the ``BRAIN Act''.

SEC. 2. IMMIGRANT VISAS FOR CERTAIN ADVANCED STEM GRADUATES.

    (a) Preference Allocation for Employment-Based Immigrants.--Section 
203(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)) is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph (7); and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
            ``(6) Aliens holding doctorate degrees from u.s. doctoral 
        institutions of higher education in science, technology, 
        engineering, or mathematics.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Visas shall be made available, 
                in a number not to exceed 10 percent of such worldwide 
                level, to qualified immigrants who--
                            ``(i) hold a doctorate degree in a field of 
                        science, technology, engineering, or 
                        mathematics from a United States doctoral 
                        institution of higher education; and
                            ``(ii) have taken all doctoral courses in a 
                        field of science, technology, engineering, or 
                        mathematics, including all courses taken by 
                        correspondence (including courses offered by 
                        telecommunications) or by distance education, 
                        while physically present in the United States.
                    ``(B) Definitions.--For purposes of this paragraph:
                            ``(i) The term `distance education' has the 
                        meaning given such term in section 103 of the 
                        Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003).
                            ``(ii) The term `field of science, 
                        technology, engineering, or mathematics' means 
                        a field included in the Department of 
                        Education's Classification of Instructional 
                        Programs taxonomy within the summary groups of 
                        computer and information sciences and support 
                        services, engineering, mathematics and 
                        statistics, and physical sciences.
                            ``(iii) The term `United States doctoral 
                        institution of higher education' means an 
                        institution that--
                                    ``(I) is described in section 
                                101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 
                                1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)) or is a 
                                proprietary institution of higher 
                                education (as defined in section 102(b) 
                                of such Act (20 U.S.C. 1002(b))); and
                                    ``(II) was classified by the 
                                Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement 
                                of Teaching on January 1, 2012, as a 
                                doctorate-granting university with a 
                                very high or high level of research 
                                activity or classified by the National 
                                Science Foundation after the date of 
                                enactment of this paragraph, pursuant 
                                to an application by the institution, 
                                as having equivalent research activity 
                                to those institutions that had been 
                                classified by the Carnegie Foundation 
                                as being doctorate-granting 
                                universities with a very high or high 
                                level of research activity.''.
    (b) Procedure for Granting Immigrant Status.--Section 204(a)(1)(E) 
of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(E)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(E)'' and inserting ``(E)(i)'';
            (2) by striking ``203(b)(1)(A),'' and inserting 
        ``203(b)(1)(A) or 203(b)(6),'';
            (3) by striking ``Attorney General'' and inserting 
        ``Secretary of Homeland Security''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(ii) The following processing standards shall 
                apply with respect to petitions under clause (i) 
                relating to alien beneficiaries qualifying under 
                section 203(b)(6):
                            ``(I) The Secretary of Homeland Security 
                        shall adjudicate such petitions not later than 
                        60 days after the date on which the petition is 
                        filed. In the event that additional information 
                        or documentation is requested by the Secretary 
                        during such 60-day period, the Secretary shall 
                        adjudicate the petition not later than 30 days 
                        after the date on which such information or 
                        documentation is received.
                            ``(II) The petitioner shall be notified in 
                        writing within 30 days of the date of filing if 
                        the petition does not meet the standards for 
                        approval. If the petition does not meet such 
                        standards, the notice shall include the reasons 
                        therefore and the Secretary shall provide an 
                        opportunity for the prompt resubmission of a 
                        modified petition.''.
    (c) Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers.--Section 
203(b)(3)(A) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(3)(A)) is amended by 
striking ``28.6'' and inserting ``25.74''.
    (d) GAO Study.--Not later than June 30, 2018, the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall provide to the Congress the results 
of a study on the use by the National Science Foundation of the 
classification authority provided under section 203(b)(6)(B)(iii)(II) 
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1153(b)(6)(B)(iii)(II)), as added by this section.
    (e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on October 1, 2014, and shall apply with respect to fiscal years 
beginning on or after such date. Nothing in the preceding sentence 
shall be construed to prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security from 
accepting before such date petitions under section 204(a)(1)(E) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(E)) relating to 
alien beneficiaries qualifying under section 203(b)(6) of such Act (8 
U.S.C. 1153(b)(6)) (as added by this section).

SEC. 3. NUMERICAL LIMITATION TO ANY SINGLE FOREIGN STATE.

    (a) In General.--Section 202(a)(2) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(2)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``subsections (a) and (b)'' and inserting 
        ``subsection (a), and paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) of 
        subsection (b),'';
            (2) by striking ``such subsections'' and inserting ``such 
        provisions''.
    (b) Rules for Employment-Based Immigrants.--Section 202(a)(5) of 
such Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(5)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``(1), (2), (3), (4), 
        or (5)'' and inserting ``(3), (4), or (5)''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (B)--
                    (A) by inserting ``paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) 
                of'' before ``section 203(b) exceeds''; and
                    (B) by striking ``section 203(b) consistent'' and 
                inserting ``such paragraphs consistent''.
    (c) Special Rules for Countries at Ceiling.--Section 202(e) of such 
Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(e)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``subsections (a) and (b)'' each place such 
        term appears and inserting ``subsection (a), and paragraphs 
        (3), (4), and (5) of subsection (b),''; and
            (2) by striking ``(1) through (5)'' and inserting ``(3), 
        (4), and (5)''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on October 1, 2014, and shall apply with respect to fiscal years 
beginning on or after such date.

SEC. 4. PERMANENT PRIORITY DATES.

    (a) In General.--Section 203 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1153) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(i) Permanent Priority Dates.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to subsection (h)(3) and 
        paragraph (2), the priority date for any employment-based 
        petition shall be the date of filing of the petition with the 
        Secretary of Homeland Security (or the Secretary of State, if 
        applicable), unless the filing of the petition was preceded by 
        the filing of a labor certification with the Secretary of 
        Labor, in which case that date shall constitute the priority 
        date.
            ``(2) Subsequent employment-based petitions.--Subject to 
        subsection (h)(3), an alien who is the beneficiary of any 
        employment-based petition that was approvable when filed 
        (including self-petitioners) shall retain the priority date 
        assigned with respect to that petition in the consideration of 
        any subsequently filed employment-based petition (including 
        self-petitions).''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on October 1, 2014, and shall apply to aliens who are a 
beneficiary of a classification petition pending on or after such date.