I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4890 

To provide benefits for noncitizen members of the Armed Forces, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 28, 2019 

Mr. TAKANO (for himself, Mr. VARGAS, and Mr. GRIJALVA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and 

in addition to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs, and Armed Services, 

for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 

for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 

committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide benefits for noncitizen members of the Armed 

Forces, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veteran Deportation 

5 Prevention and Reform Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 It is the sense of Congress that— 


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1 (1) military service to the United States is a 

2 sacrifice that demonstrates loyalty to the Nation; 

3 (2) a noncitizen who takes an oath of enlist4 ment or an oath of office to join the United States 

5 Armed Forces—promising to support and defend the 

6 Constitution of the United States against all en7 emies, foreign and domestic—deserves facilitated ac8 cess to naturalization; 

9 (3) such noncitizen and his or her family mem10 bers deserve consideration for the exercise of pros11 ecutorial discretion in immigration removal pro12 ceedings; and 

13 (4) a noncitizen veteran who is deported after 

14 consideration under this Act should be provided the 

15 same veterans’ benefits to which a similarly situated 

16 United States citizen veteran would be entitled. 

17 SEC. 3. IDENTIFICATION OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

18 FORCES, VETERANS, AND COVERED FAMILY 

19 MEMBERS IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the time of the 

21 Master Calendar Hearing for any individual in removal 

22 proceedings, the Director of U.S. Immigration and Cus23 toms Enforcement shall identify whether the individual 

24 is— 


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1 (1) a member of the Armed Forces serving on 

2 active duty or in a reserve component; 

3 (2) a veteran; or 

4 (3) a covered family member. 

5 (b) TRANSFER OF CASE FILES.—The Director of 

6 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shall trans7 fer a copy of the complete case file of any individual identi8 fied under subsection (a), immediately after such identi9 fication, to the Advisory Committee. 

10 (c) LIMITATION ON REMOVAL.—Notwithstanding any 

11 other provision of law, an individual described in sub12 section (a) may not be removed until the Military Family 

13 Immigration Advisory Committee established under sec14 tion 7 has provided recommendations with respect to that 

15 individual to the Secretary of Homeland Security and the 

16 Attorney General under section 7. 

17 SEC. 4. STUDY AND REPORT ON NONCITIZEN VETERANS 

18 REMOVED FROM THE UNITED STATES. 

19 (a) STUDY REQUIRED.—Not later than 1 year after 

20 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

21 Defense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the 

22 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall jointly carry out a 

23 study on noncitizen veterans of the Armed Forces who 

24 were removed from the United States during the period 


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1 beginning on January 1, 1990, and ending on the date 

2 of the enactment of this Act, which shall include— 

3 (1) the number of noncitizens removed by U.S. 

4 Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Im5 migration and Naturalization Service during the pe6 riod covered by the report who served on active duty 

7 in the Armed Forces or in a reserve component of 

8 the Armed Forces for a period of more than 180 

9 days; 

10 (2) for each noncitizen described in paragraph 

11 (1)— 

12 (A) the country of origin of the noncitizen; 

13 (B) the length of time the noncitizen 

14 served as a member of the Armed Forces; 

15 (C) the grounds for removal under section 

16 237(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

17 (8 U.S.C. 1227) or section 212(a) of the Immi18 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182), as 

19 applicable; and 

20 (D) whether the noncitizen appealed the 

21 removal order; 

22 (3) the number of noncitizens described in 

23 paragraph (1) who— 

24 (A) were discharged or released from serv25 ice under honorable conditions; 


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1 (B) were deployed overseas; 

2 (C) served on active duty in the Armed 

3 Forces in an overseas contingency operation; 

4 (D) were awarded military decorations, 

5 campaign medals, or service medals; 

6 (E) applied for benefits under laws admin7 istered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or 

8 (F) are receiving benefits described in sub9 paragraph (E); and 

10 (4) a description of the reasons preventing any 

11 of the noncitizens who applied for benefits described 

12 in paragraph (3)(E) from receiving such benefits. 

13 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

14 of the completion of the study required under subsection 

15 (a), the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Homeland 

16 Security, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall joint17 ly submit a report containing the results of such study 

18 to the appropriate congressional committees. 

19 SEC. 5. INFORMATION REGARDING VETERANS SUBJECT TO 

20 REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Home23 land Security shall create a system to maintain informa24 tion, that is shared across the Department of Homeland 

25 Security (including Enforcement and Removal Operations, 


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1 the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, and Homeland 

2 Security Investigations), on potentially removable noncit3 izen veterans (including the names and last known ad4 dresses of such individuals) and removal proceedings with 

5 respect to any such individual, for the purpose of ensuring 

6 that service in the Armed Forces of any such individual 

7 is taken into consideration during any adjudication under 

8 the immigration laws with respect to such individual, 

9 which information shall include— 

10 (1) information collected pursuant to the pro11 tocol established under section 6(a); and 

12 (2) information provided by the Secretary of 

13 Defense under subsection (b). 

14 (b) PROVISION OF INFORMATION BY DEPARTMENT

15 OF DEFENSE.—Not later than 30 days after a noncitizen 

16 veteran is honorably discharged from the Armed Forces, 

17 the Secretary of Defense shall provide to the Secretary 

18 of Homeland Security a copy of the Certificate of Release 

19 of Discharge from Active Duty form, for inclusion in the 

20 system established under subsection (a). 

21 SEC. 6. PROTOCOL FOR IDENTIFYING NONCITIZEN VET22 ERANS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the last of the first 

24 fiscal year that begins after the date of the enactment of 


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1 this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall estab2 lish— 

3 (1) a protocol (to be known as the ‘‘Immigrant 

4 Veterans Eligibility Tracking System’’ or ‘‘I– 

5 VETS’’) for identifying noncitizens who are or may 

6 be veterans, and for collecting and maintaining data 

7 with respect to such who are in removal proceedings, 

8 or who have been removed, for use by personnel of 

9 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; 

10 (2) best practices with respect to addressing 

11 issues related to the removal of any such noncitizen; 

12 and 

13 (3) an annual training program for personnel of 

14 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with 

15 respect to the protocol and best practices established 

16 under paragraphs (1) and (2). 

17 (b) TRAINING.—Beginning in the first fiscal year 

18 that begins after the Secretary of Homeland Security com19 pletes the requirements under subsection (a), personnel of 

20 U.S. Immigration and Customs enforcement shall partici21 pate, on an annual basis, in a training on the protocol 

22 and best practices developed under subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 7. MILITARY FAMILY IMMIGRATION ADVISORY COM2 MITTEE. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Homeland 

4 Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense 

5 and in cooperation with the Secretary of the Army, the 

6 Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of the Air Force, and 

7 the Commandant of the Coast Guard, shall establish an 

8 advisory committee, to be known as the ‘‘Military Family 

9 Immigration Advisory Committee’’, to provide rec10 ommendations to the Secretary of Homeland Security and 

11 the Attorney General on the exercise of prosecutorial dis12 cretion in cases involving removal proceedings of individ13 uals described in section 3(a). 

14 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Committee shall be 

15 composed of— 

16 (1) the Deputy Commanding General of Army 

17 Human Resources Command, or designee; 

18 (2) the Judge Advocate of the Army, or des19 ignee; 

20 (3) the Deputy Commander of Navy Personnel 

21 Command, or designee; 

22 (4) the Judge Advocate of the Navy, or des23 ignee; 

24 (5) the Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force; 

25 (6) the Judge Advocate of the Air Force, or 

26 designee; 


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1 (7) the Deputy Commandant for Mission Sup2 port of the Coast Guard; 

3 (8) the Judge Advocate of the Coast Guard, or 

4 designee; and 

5 (9) the Deputy Commandant of Manpower and 

6 Reserve Affairs of the Marine Corps, or designee. 

7 (c) CASE REVIEWS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

9 the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs En10 forcement notifies the Advisory Committee of the 

11 case of an individual described in section 3(a), the 

12 Advisory Committee shall meet to review the case 

13 and to provide a written recommendation to the Sec14 retary of Homeland Security on whether the indi15 vidual— 

16 (A) notwithstanding the grounds for re17 moval asserted by U.S. Immigration and Cus18 toms Enforcement, should be granted— 

19 (i) a stay of removal and allowed to 

20 apply for asylum; 

21 (ii) deferred action; or 

22 (iii) parole; or 

23 (B) should be removed from the United 

24 States. 


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1 (2) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—An indi2 vidual who is the subject of a case review under 

3 paragraph (1) may submit information to the Advi4 sory Committee, and the Advisory Committee shall 

5 consider such information. 

6 (3) PROCEDURES.—In conducting each case re7 view under paragraph (1), the Advisory Committee 

8 shall consider, as factors weighing in favor of a rec9 ommendation under paragraph (1)(A)— 

10 (A) with respect to a member of the 

11 Armed Forces serving on active duty or in a re12 serve component, whether the individual— 

13 (i) took an oath of enlistment or an 

14 oath of office; 

15 (ii) received military decorations, cam16 paign medals, or service medals, was de17 ployed, or was otherwise evaluated for 

18 merit in service during his or her service in 

19 the Armed Forces; 

20 (iii) is a national of a country that 

21 prohibits repatriation of an individual after 

22 any service in the Armed Forces; or 

23 (iv) contributed to his or her local 

24 community during his or her service in the 

25 Armed Forces; 


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1 (B) with respect to a veteran, whether the 

2 individual— 

3 (i) took an oath of enlistment or an 

4 oath of office; 

5 (ii) completed a term of service in the 

6 Armed Forces and was discharged under 

7 conditions other than dishonorable; 

8 (iii) received military decorations, 

9 campaign medals, or service medals, was 

10 deployed, or was otherwise evaluated for 

11 merit in service during his or her service in 

12 the Armed Forces; 

13 (iv) is a national of a country that 

14 prohibits repatriation of an individual after 

15 any service in the Armed Forces; or 

16 (v) contributed to his or her local 

17 community during or after his or her serv18 ice in the Armed Forces; and 

19 (C) with respect to a covered family mem20 ber, whether the individual— 

21 (i) supported a member of the Armed 

22 Forces serving on active duty or a veteran, 

23 including through financial support, emo24 tional support, or caregiving; or 


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1 (ii) contributed to his or her local 

2 community during or after the military 

3 service of the member or of the veteran. 

4 (d) CONSULTATION WITH U.S. IMMIGRATION AND

5 CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT PRINCIPAL LEGAL ADVISOR.— 

6 The Principal Legal Advisor of U.S. Immigration and 

7 Customs Enforcement, or designee, shall consult with the 

8 Advisory Committee at the request of members of the Ad9 visory Committee. 

10 (e) BRIEFINGS ON UNSUITABILITY OF NONCITIZEN

11 MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.—The Under Sec12 retary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness shall pro13 vide detailed briefings to the Advisory Committee regard14 ing the reasons for determining the unsuitability of noncit15 izen members of the Armed Forces whose cases are being 

16 considered by the Advisory Committee. 

17 (f) BRIEFINGS ON ACTIONS IN RESPONSE TO REC18 OMMENDATIONS.—Not less frequently than quarterly, the 

19 Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide detailed 

20 briefings to the Advisory Committee regarding actions 

21 taken in response to the recommendations of the Advisory 

22 Committee, including detailed explanations for any cases 

23 in which a recommendation of the Advisory Committee 

24 was not followed. 


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1 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

2 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec3 essary to carry out this section. 

4 SEC. 8. LIST OF COUNTRIES UNWILLING TO REPATRIATE 

5 UNITED STATES VETERANS. 

6 The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation 

7 with the Secretary of State, shall compile and annually 

8 update a list of countries that refuse to repatriate nation9 als of such country who have enlisted or been appointed 

10 in the United States Armed Forces. 

11 SEC. 9. PROGRAM OF CITIZENSHIP THROUGH MILITARY 

12 SERVICE. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu14 rity, acting through the Director of U.S. Citizenship and 

15 Immigration Services, and the Secretary of Defense shall 

16 jointly carry out a program under which any individual 

17 noncitizen who serves on active duty in the Armed Forces, 

18 and the noncitizen spouse and any noncitizen minor child 

19 of such individual, shall be naturalized as a United States 

20 citizen if such individual, and such spouse or child, sub21 mits an application for naturalization and is not otherwise 

22 ineligible for citizenship under the immigration laws (as 

23 that term is defined in section 101(a)(17) of the Immigra24 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(17)). 


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1 (b) JAG TRAINING.—The Secretary of Defense shall 

2 ensure that appropriate members of the Judge Advocate 

3 General Corps of the Armed Forces shall receive training 

4 to function as liaisons with U.S. Citizenship and Immigra5 tion Services with respect to applications for citizenship 

6 of noncitizen members of the Armed Forces assigned to 

7 units in such areas. 

8 (c) TRAINING FOR RECRUITERS.—The Secretary of 

9 Defense shall ensure that all recruiters in the Armed 

10 Forces receive training regarding— 

11 (1) the steps required for a noncitizen member 

12 of the Armed Forces to receive citizenship; 

13 (2) limitations on the path to citizenship for 

14 family members of such individuals; and 

15 (3) points of contact at the Department of 

16 Homeland Security to resolve emergency immigra17 tion-related situations with respect to such individ18 uals and their family members. 

19 (d) APPLICATION FOR NATURALIZATION.— 

20 (1) BIOMETRICS.— 

21 (A) SUBMISSION OF BIOMETRIC INFORMA22 TION.—The Secretary of Defense shall ensure 

23 that, at the time of accession into the Armed 

24 Forces, biometric information of an individual 

25 who has applied, or who plans to apply, for natVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:01 Nov 01, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4890.IH H4890

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1 uralization is submitted to U.S. Citizenship and 

2 Immigration Services for the purposes of such 

3 application. 

4 (B) ACCEPTANCE OF BIOMETRIC INFORMA5 TION.—The Director of U.S. Citizenship and 

6 Immigration Services shall accept any biometric 

7 information submitted pursuant to subpara8 graph (A). 

9 (2) FILING OF APPLICATION.—The Secretary of 

10 Homeland Security, in coordination with the Sec11 retary of Defense, shall ensure that each noncitizen 

12 individual who accesses into the Armed Forces is 

13 permitted to file an application for naturalization as 

14 part of the accessions process. 

15 (3) ADJUDICATION OF APPLICATION.—The Sec16 retary of Homeland Security, in coordination with 

17 the Secretary of Defense, shall ensure that the appli18 cation for naturalization of any individual who ap19 plies for naturalization during the accessions process 

20 into the Armed Forces is adjudicated not later than 

21 the last day of active service of the individual in the 

22 Armed Forces. 

23 (e) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The Secretary of each mili24 tary department shall annually submit to the appropriate 

25 congressional committees a report on the number of all 


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1 noncitizens who enlisted or were appointed in their depart2 ment, all members of the Armed Forces in their depart3 ment who naturalized, and all members of the Armed 

4 Forces in their department who were discharged or re5 leased without United States citizenship under the juris6 diction of such Secretary during the preceding year. 

7 SEC. 10. INFORMATION FOR MILITARY RECRUITS REGARD8 ING NATURALIZATION THROUGH SERVICE IN 

9 THE ARMED FORCES. 

10 The Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the 

11 Secretary of Homeland Security, shall ensure that there 

12 is stationed or employed at each Military Entrance Proc13 essing Station— 

14 (1) an employee of U.S. Citizenship and Immi15 gration Services; or 

16 (2) in the case that the Secretary determines 

17 that it is impracticable station or employ a person 

18 described in paragraph (1) at a Military Entrance 

19 Processing Station, a member of the Armed Forces 

20 or employee of the Department of Defense— 

21 (A) whom the Secretary determines is 

22 trained in the immigration laws; and 

23 (B) who shall inform each military recruit 

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1 tion regarding naturalization through service in 

2 the Armed Forces under sections 328 and 329 

3 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

4 U.S.C. 1439–1440). 

5 SEC. 11. RETURN OF ELIGIBLE VETERANS REMOVED FROM 

6 THE UNITED STATES; ADJUSTMENT OF STA7 TUS. 

8 (a) PROGRAM FOR ADMISSION AND ADJUSTMENT OF

9 STATUS.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the 

10 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security 

11 shall establish a program and an application procedure 

12 that allows— 

13 (1) eligible veterans outside the United States 

14 to be admitted to the United States as noncitizens 

15 lawfully admitted for permanent residence (as de16 fined in section 101(a) of the Immigration and Na17 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)); and 

18 (2) eligible veterans in the United States to ad19 just status to that of noncitizens lawfully admitted 

20 for permanent residence. 

21 (b) VETERANS ORDERED REMOVED.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

23 after the date of the enactment of this Act, in the 

24 case of noncitizen veterans who are the subjects of 

25 final orders of removal, including noncitizen veterans 


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1 who are outside the United States, the Attorney 

2 General shall— 

3 (A) reopen the removal proceedings of each 

4 such noncitizen veteran; and 

5 (B) make a determination with respect to 

6 whether each such noncitizen veteran is an eli7 gible veteran. 

8 (2) RESCISSION OF REMOVAL ORDER.—In the 

9 case of a determination under paragraph (1)(B) that 

10 a noncitizen veteran is an eligible veteran, the Attor11 ney General shall— 

12 (A) rescind the order of removal; 

13 (B) adjust the status of the eligible veteran 

14 to that of a noncitizen lawfully admitted for 

15 permanent residence; and 

16 (C) terminate removal proceedings. 

17 (c) VETERANS IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

19 after the date of the enactment of this Act, in the 

20 case of noncitizen veterans, the removal proceedings 

21 of whom are pending as of the date of the enactment 

22 of this Act, the Attorney General shall make a deter23 mination with respect to whether each such noncit24 izen veteran is an eligible veteran. 


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1 (2) TERMINATION OF PROCEEDINGS.—In the 

2 case of a determination under paragraph (1) that a 

3 noncitizen veteran is an eligible veteran, the Attor4 ney General shall— 

5 (A) adjust the status of the eligible veteran 

6 to that of a noncitizen lawfully admitted for 

7 permanent residence; and 

8 (B) terminate removal proceedings. 

9 (d) NO NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS.—Nothing in this 

10 section or in any other law may be construed to apply a 

11 numerical limitation on the number of veterans who may 

12 be eligible to receive a benefit under this section. 

13 (e) ELIGIBILITY.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sections 

15 212 and 237 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

16 (8 U.S.C. 1182 and 1227) or any other provision of 

17 law, a noncitizen veteran shall be eligible to partici18 pate in the program established under subsection (a) 

19 or for adjustment of status under subsections (b) or 

20 (c), as applicable, if the Secretary or the Attorney 

21 General, as applicable, determines that the noncit22 izen veteran— 

23 (A) was not removed or ordered removed 

24 from the United States based on a conviction 

25 for— 


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1 (i) a crime of violence; or 

2 (ii) a crime that endangers the na3 tional security of the United States for 

4 which the noncitizen veteran has served a 

5 term of imprisonment of at least 5 years; 

6 and 

7 (B) is not inadmissible to, or deportable 

8 from, the United States based on a conviction 

9 for a crime described in subparagraph (A). 

10 (2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the ap11 plication of paragraph (1)— 

12 (A) for humanitarian purposes; 

13 (B) to ensure family unity; 

14 (C) based on exceptional service in the 

15 Armed Forces; or 

16 (D) if a waiver otherwise is in the public 

17 interest. 

18 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

19 (1) CRIME OF VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘crime of 

20 violence’’ means an offense defined in section 16(a) 

21 of title 18, United States Code— 

22 (A) that is not a purely political offense; 

23 and 

24 (B) for which a noncitizen has served a 

25 term of imprisonment of at least 5 years. 


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1 (2) ELIGIBLE VETERAN.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible vet3 eran’’ means a veteran who— 

4 (i) is a noncitizen; and 

5 (ii) meets the criteria described in 

6 subsection (e). 

7 (B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘eligible vet8 eran’’ includes a veteran who— 

9 (i) was removed from the United 

10 States; or 

11 (ii) is abroad and is inadmissible 

12 under section 212(a) of the Immigration 

13 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)). 

14 SEC. 12. ESTABLISHING GOOD MORAL CHARACTER OF AP15 PLICANTS FOR CITIZENSHIP WHO SERVED 

16 HONORABLY IN THE ARMED FORCES OF THE 

17 UNITED STATES. 

18 Section 328(e) of the Immigration and Nationality 

19 Act is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Not20 withstanding section 101(f), a finding that an applicant 

21 under this section is described in any of paragraphs (1) 

22 through (9) of section 101(f) (except in the case of an 

23 applicant who is described in any such paragraph because 

24 of having been convicted of an aggravated felony described 

25 in subparagraph (A), (I), (K), or (L) of section 


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1 101(a)(43)) shall not preclude a finding that the applicant 

2 is of good moral character.’’. 

3 SEC. 13. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Advi6 sory Committee’’ means the Military Family Immi7 gration Advisory Committee established pursuant to 

8 section 7. 

9 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT10 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com11 mittees’’ means— 

12 (A) the Committee on Armed Services of 

13 the Senate; 

14 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 

15 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 

16 (C) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

17 Senate; 

18 (D) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

19 the Senate; 

20 (E) the Committee on Armed Services of 

21 the House of Representatives; 

22 (F) the Committee on Homeland Security 

23 of the House of Representatives; 

24 (G) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

25 House of Representatives; and 


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1 (H) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

2 the House of Representatives. 

3 (3) ARMED FORCES.—The term ‘‘Armed 

4 Forces’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘armed 

5 forces’’ in section 101(a)(4) of title 10, United 

6 States Code, and includes the reserve components of 

7 the Armed Forces. 

8 (4) VETERAN.—The term ‘‘veteran’’ means a 

9 person who served as a member of the Armed 

10 Forces on active duty or in a reserve component and 

11 who was discharged or released therefrom under 

12 conditions other than dishonorable. 

13 (5) COVERED FAMILY MEMBER.—The term 

14 ‘‘covered family member’’ means the noncitizen 

15 spouse or noncitizen minor child of— 

16 (A) a member of the Armed Forces serving 

17 on active duty or in a reserve component; or 

18 (B) a veteran, as defined in paragraph (4). 

19 (6) IMMIGRATION LAWS.—The term ‘‘immigra20 tion laws’’ has the meaning given that term in sec21 tion 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

22 U.S.C. 1101). 

23 (7) NONCITIZEN.—The term ‘‘noncitizen’’ 

24 means an individual who is not a citizen or national 

25 of the United States (as defined in section 101(a) of 


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1 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

2 1101(a))). 

Æ 


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