II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4631 

To temporarily suspend the diversity visa program, to designate residents 

of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as Priority 2 refugees 

of special humanitarian concern, to provide special visas to highly-qualified residents of Hong Kong, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 

Mr. COTTON introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To temporarily suspend the diversity visa program, to designate residents of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as Priority 2 refugees of special humanitarian concern, to provide special visas to highly-qualified 

residents of Hong Kong, 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 ‘‘Hong Kong Refugee 

5 Protection Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF DIVERSITY VISA PRO2 GRAM. 

3 Notwithstanding sections 201(e) and 203(c) of the 

4 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151(e) and 

5 1153(c)), the worldwide level of diversity immigrants for 

6 each of the fiscal years 2021 through 2025 shall be zero. 

7 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION OF CERTAIN RESIDENTS OF HONG 

8 KONG AS PRIORITY 2 REFUGEES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State, in con10 sultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall 

11 designate, as Priority 2 refugees of special humanitarian 

12 concern, the following categories of aliens: 

13 (1) Individuals who are residents of the Hong 

14 Kong Special Administrative Region who suffered 

15 persecution, or have a well-founded fear of persecu16 tion, on account of their peaceful expression of polit17 ical opinions or peaceful participation in political ac18 tivities or associations. 

19 (2) Individuals who have been formally charged, 

20 detained, or convicted on account of their peaceful 

21 actions as described in section 206(b)(2) of the 

22 United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 (22 

23 U.S.C. 5726). 

24 (3) The spouses, children, and parents (as such 

25 terms are defined in subsections (a) and (b) of sec26 tion 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 


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1 U.S.C. 1101)) of individuals described in paragraph 

2 (1) or (2), except such parents who are citizens of 

3 a country other than the People’s Republic of China. 

4 (b) PROCESSING OF HONG KONG REFUGEES.—The 

5 processing of individuals described in subsection (a) for 

6 classification as refugees may occur in Hong Kong or in 

7 a third country. 

8 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR ADMISSION AS REFUGEES.—An 

9 alien may not be denied the opportunity to apply for ad10 mission as a refugee under this section primarily because 

11 such alien— 

12 (1) qualifies as an immediate relative of a cit13 izen of the United States; or 

14 (2) is eligible for admission to the United 

15 States under any other immigrant classification. 

16 (d) FACILITATION OF ADMISSIONS.—An applicant 

17 for admission to the United States from the Hong Kong 

18 Special Administrative Region may not be denied pri19 marily on the basis of a politically motivated arrest, deten20 tion, or other adverse government action taken against 

21 such applicant as a result of the participation by such ap22 plicant in protest activities. 

23 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF ADDITIONAL REFUGEE AD24 MISSIONS.—If the number of refugees admitted under sec25 tion 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 


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1 1157) in a fiscal year is equal to the number of refugees 

2 authorized to be admitted under such section, as amended 

3 by section 6, 25,000 additional aliens described in sub4 section (a) may be provided refugee status under this sec5 tion. 

6 (f) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 

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

8 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 

9 every 90 days thereafter, the Secretary of State and 

10 the Secretary of Homeland Security shall submit a 

11 report on the matters described in paragraph (2) 

12 to— 

13 (A) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

14 Senate; 

15 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

16 the Senate; 

17 (C) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

18 House of Representatives; and 

19 (D) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

20 the House of Representatives. 

21 (2) MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED.—Each report 

22 required under paragraph (1) shall include— 

23 (A) the total number of applications that 

24 are pending at the end of the reporting period; 


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1 (B) the average wait-times for all appli2 cants who are currently pending— 

3 (i) employment verification; 

4 (ii) a prescreening interview with a re5 settlement support center; 

6 (iii) an interview with U.S. Citizen7 ship and Immigration Services; and 

8 (iv) the completion of security checks; 

9 and 

10 (C) the number of denials of applications 

11 for refugee status, disaggregated by the reason 

12 for each such denial. 

13 (3) FORM.—Each report required under para14 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, 

15 but may include a classified annex. 

16 (4) PUBLIC REPORTS.—The Secretary of State 

17 shall make each report submitted under this sub18 section available to the public on the internet website 

19 of the Department of State. 

20 (g) SATISFACTION OF OTHER REQUIREMENTS.— 

21 Aliens granted status under this section as Priority 2 refu22 gees of special humanitarian concern under the refugee 

23 resettlement priority system shall be considered to satisfy 

24 the requirements under section 207 of the Immigration 


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1 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157) for admission to the 

2 United States. 

3 SEC. 4. WAIVER OF IMMIGRANT STATUS PRESUMPTION. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The presumption under the first 

5 sentence of section 214(b) (8 U.S.C. 1184(b)) that every 

6 alien is an immigrant until the alien establishes that the 

7 alien is entitled to nonimmigrant status shall not apply 

8 to an alien described in subsection (b). 

9 (b) ALIEN DESCRIBED.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—An alien described in this 

11 paragraph is an alien who— 

12 (A) on June 30, 2020, is a resident of the 

13 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; 

14 (B) is seeking entry to the United States 

15 to apply for asylum under section 208 of the 

16 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

17 1158); and 

18 (C)(i) had a leadership role in civil society 

19 organizations supportive of the protests in 2019 

20 and 2020 relating to the Hong Kong extra21 dition bill and the encroachment on the auton22 omy of Hong Kong by the People’s Republic of 

23 China; 

24 (ii) had an organizing role for such pro25 tests; 


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1 (iii) acted as a first aid responder for such 

2 protests; 

3 (iv) suffered harm while covering such pro4 tests as a journalist; 

5 (v) provided paid or pro-bono legal services 

6 to 1 or more individuals arrested for partici7 pating in such protests; or 

8 (vi) during the period beginning on June 

9 9, 2019, and ending on June 30, 2020, was for10 mally charged, detained, or convicted for his or 

11 her participation in such protests. 

12 (2) EXCLUSION.—An alien described in this 

13 paragraph does not include any alien who is a citizen 

14 of a country other than the People’s Republic of 

15 China. 

16 SEC. 5. REFUGEE AND ASYLUM DETERMINATIONS UNDER 

17 THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT. 

18 (a) PERSECUTION ON ACCOUNT OF POLITICAL OPIN19 ION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of refugee de21 terminations under this Act in accordance with sec22 tion 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

23 U.S.C. 1157), an individual whose citizenship, na24 tionality, or residency is revoked for having sub25 mitted to any United States Government agency a 


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1 nonfrivolous application for refugee status, asylum, 

2 or any other immigration benefit under the immigra3 tion laws (as defined in section 101(a) of that Act 

4 (8 U.S.C. 1101(a))) shall be considered to have suf5 fered persecution on account of political opinion. 

6 (2) NATIONALS OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF

7 CHINA.—For purposes of refugee determinations 

8 under this Act in accordance with section 207 of the 

9 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157), a 

10 national of the People’s Republic of China whose 

11 residency in the Hong Kong Special Administrative 

12 region, or any other area within the jurisdiction of 

13 the People’s Republic of China, as determined by the 

14 Secretary of State, is revoked for having submitted 

15 to any United States Government agency a nonfrivo16 lous application for refugee status, asylum, or any 

17 other immigration benefit under the immigration 

18 laws shall be considered to have suffered persecution 

19 on account of political opinion. 

20 (b) CHANGED CIRCUMSTANCES.—For purposes of 

21 asylum determinations under this Act in accordance with 

22 section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

23 U.S.C. 1158), the revocation of the citizenship, nation24 ality, or residency of an individual for having submitted 

25 to any United States Government agency a nonfrivolous 


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1 application for refugee status, asylum, or any other immi2 gration benefit under the immigration laws shall be con3 sidered to be a changed circumstance under subsection 

4 (a)(2)(D) of that section. 

5 SEC. 6. ANNUAL ADMISSION OF REFUGEES. 

6 Section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

7 (8 U.S.C. 1157) is amended— 

8 (1) by striking subsections (a), (b), and (e); 

9 (2) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and 

10 (f) as subsections (b), (c), and (d), respectively; 

11 (3) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ each place 

12 such term appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of 

13 Homeland Security’’; 

14 (4) in subsection (b), as redesignated, by strik15 ing ‘‘subsections (a) and (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub16 section (a)’’; 

17 (5) in subsection (c), as redesignated— 

18 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking the para19 graph enumerator; and 

20 (B) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3); 

21 and 

22 (6) by inserting before subsection (b), as redes23 ignated, the following: 

24 ‘‘(a) MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ADMISSIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The number of refugees 

2 who may be admitted under this section in any fiscal 

3 year may not exceed 50,000. 

4 ‘‘(2) ASYLEES.—The President shall annually 

5 enumerate the number of aliens who were granted 

6 asylum in the previous fiscal year.’’. 

7 SEC. 7. SPECIAL VISAS FOR HIGHLY-QUALIFIED RESIDENTS 

8 OF HONG KONG. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi10 sion of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in col11 laboration with the Secretary of State, shall establish a 

12 pilot program through which up to 30,000 points-based 

13 immigration visas shall be made available each fiscal year 

14 during fiscal years 2021 through 2025 for eligible Hong 

15 Kong residents based on the points system set forth in 

16 subsection (b). 

17 (b) IMMIGRATION POINTS SYSTEM FOR HONG KONG

18 RESIDENTS.— 

19 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 (A) ELIGIBLE HONG KONG RESIDENT.— 

21 The term ‘‘eligible Hong Kong resident’’ means 

22 an individual who— 

23 (i)(I) was a resident of the Hong 

24 Kong Special Administrative Region on 

25 June 30, 2018; or 


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1 (II) has been a resident of the Hong 

2 Kong Special Administrative Region dur3 ing the entire 60-day period ending on the 

4 date on which he or she applies for a visa 

5 under this section; 

6 (ii) is a citizen of the People’s Repub7 lic of China; and 

8 (iii) is not a citizen of any other coun9 try. 

10 (B) ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY

11 TEST.—The term ‘‘English language proficiency 

12 test’’ means— 

13 (i) the International English Lan14 guage Testing System (IELTS), as admin15 istered by a partnership between the Brit16 ish Council, IDP Education, and Cam17 bridge English Language Assessment; 

18 (ii) the Test of English as a Foreign 

19 Language (TOEFL), as administered by 

20 the Educational Testing Service; or 

21 (iii) any other test to measure English 

22 proficiency that has been approved by the 

23 Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigra24 tion Services for purposes of paragraph (5) 

25 that meets the standards of English lanVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:55 Oct 08, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4631.IS S4631

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1 guage ability measurement and anti-fraud 

2 integrity set by the IELTS or the TOEFL. 

3 (C) ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY

4 TEST RANKING.— 

5 (i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

6 (ii), the term ‘‘English language pro7 ficiency test ranking’’ means the decile 

8 rank of the applicant’s English language 

9 proficiency test score, when compared with 

10 all of the other people who took the same 

11 test during the same period. 

12 (ii) ADJUSTMENT.—The Commis13 sioner of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 

14 Services, in consultation with the Secretary 

15 of Education, may adjust the decile rank 

16 of an applicant’s English language pro17 ficiency test score if the number of people 

18 taking such test is too small or unusually 

19 skewed to make such decile rank incon20 sistent with the decile rank the applicant 

21 would have received if he or she had taken 

22 the IELTS or TOEFL. 

23 (D) HIGH SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘high 

24 school’’ has the meaning given such term in 


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1 section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

2 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

3 (E) IELTS.—The term ‘‘IELTS’’ means 

4 the International English Language Testing 

5 System. 

6 (F) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDU7 CATION.—The term ‘‘institution of higher edu8 cation’’ has the meaning given such term in 

9 section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 

10 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

11 (G) PROFESSIONAL DEGREE.—The term 

12 ‘‘professional degree’’ includes— 

13 (i) Master’s of Business Administra14 tion; 

15 (ii) Doctor of Jurisprudence; and 

16 (iii) Doctor of Medicine. 

17 (H) STEM.—The term ‘‘STEM’’ means 

18 the academic discipline of science, technology, 

19 engineering, or mathematics. 

20 (I) TOEFL.—The term ‘‘TOEFL’’ means 

21 the Test of English as a Foreign Language. 

22 (2) IN GENERAL.—An eligible Hong Kong resi23 dent may submit an application for placement in the 

24 eligible applicant pool under subsection (c) if the apVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:55 Oct 08, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4631.IS S4631

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1 plicant has accrued a total of 30 points under this 

2 subsection. 

3 (3) AGE.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—An applicant may ac5 crue points for age under this paragraph based 

6 on the age of the applicant on the date on 

7 which the applicant submits an application 

8 under subsection (c). 

9 (B) AGES 0 THROUGH 17.—An alien who 

10 has not reached 18 years of age may not sub11 mit an application under subsection (c). 

12 (C) AGES 18 THROUGH 21.—An applicant 

13 who is at least 18 years of age and younger 

14 than 22 years of age shall accrue 6 points. 

15 (D) AGES 22 THROUGH 25.—An applicant 

16 who is at least 22 years of age and younger 

17 than 26 years of age shall accrue 8 points. 

18 (E) AGES 26 THROUGH 30.—An applicant 

19 who is at least 26 years of age and younger 

20 than 31 years of age shall accrue 10 points. 

21 (F) AGES 31 THROUGH 35.—An applicant 

22 who is at least 31 years of age and younger 

23 than 36 years of age shall accrue 8 points. 


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1 (G) AGES 36 THROUGH 40.—An applicant 

2 who is at least 36 years of age and younger 

3 than 41 years of age shall accrue 6 points. 

4 (H) AGES 41 THROUGH 45.—An applicant 

5 who is at least 41 years of age and younger 

6 than 46 years of age shall accrue 4 points. 

7 (I) AGES 46 THROUGH 50.—An applicant 

8 who is at least 46 years of age and younger 

9 than 51 years of age shall accrue 2 points. 

10 (J) AGE 51 AND OLDER.—An applicant 

11 who is at least 51 years of age may submit an 

12 application under subsection (c), but shall not 

13 accrue any points on account of age. 

14 (4) EDUCATION.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—An applicant may only 

16 accrue points for educational attainment under 

17 this subsection based on the highest degree ob18 tained by the applicant as of the date on which 

19 the applicant submits an application under sub20 section (c). 

21 (B) UNITED STATES OR FOREIGN HIGH

22 SCHOOL DEGREE.—An applicant whose highest 

23 degree is a diploma from a high school in the 

24 United States, or the foreign equivalent of such 


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1 a degree, as determined by the Secretary of 

2 Education, shall accrue 1 point. 

3 (C) FOREIGN BACHELOR’S DEGREE.—An 

4 applicant who has received the foreign equiva5 lent of a bachelor’s degree from an institution 

6 of higher education, as determined by the Sec7 retary of Education, but has not received a de8 gree described in subparagraphs (E) through 

9 (H), shall accrue 5 points. 

10 (D) UNITED STATES BACHELOR’S DE11 GREE.—An applicant who has received a bach12 elor’s degree from an institution of higher edu13 cation, but has not received a degree described 

14 in subparagraphs (E) through (H), shall accrue 

15 6 points. 

16 (E) FOREIGN MASTER’S DEGREE IN

17 STEM.—An applicant whose highest degree is a 

18 master’s degree in STEM from a foreign college 

19 or university, approved by the Secretary of 

20 Education, shall accrue 7 points. 

21 (F) UNITED STATES MASTER’S DEGREE IN

22 STEM.—An applicant whose highest degree is a 

23 master’s degree in STEM from an institution of 

24 higher education shall accrue 8 points. 


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1 (G) FOREIGN PROFESSIONAL DEGREE OR

2 DOCTORATE DEGREE IN STEM.—An applicant 

3 whose highest degree is a foreign professional 

4 degree or a doctorate degree in STEM, ap5 proved by the Secretary of Education, shall ac6 crue 10 points. 

7 (H) UNITED STATES PROFESSIONAL DE8 GREE OR DOCTORATE DEGREE IN STEM.—An 

9 applicant whose highest degree is a United 

10 States professional degree or a doctorate degree 

11 in STEM from an institution of higher edu12 cation shall accrue 13 points. 

13 (I) APPROVED FOREIGN EDUCATIONAL IN14 STITUTIONS AND DEGREES.—The Director of 

15 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, in 

16 cooperation with the Secretary of Education, 

17 shall maintain and regularly update a list of 

18 foreign educational institutions and degrees 

19 that meet accreditation standards equivalent to 

20 those recognized by major United States ac21 crediting agencies and are approved for the 

22 purpose of accruing points under this para23 graph. 

24 (5) ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—An applicant may ac2 crue points for English language proficiency in 

3 accordance with this subsection based on the 

4 highest English language assessment test rank5 ing of the applicant as of the date on which the 

6 applicant submits an application under sub7 section (c). 

8 (B) 1ST THROUGH 5TH DECILES.—An ap9 plicant whose English language proficiency test 

10 score is lower than the 6th decile rank shall not 

11 accrue any points under this paragraph. 

12 (C) 6TH AND 7TH DECILES.—An applicant 

13 whose English language proficiency test score is 

14 in the 6th or 7th decile ranks shall accrue 6 

15 points. 

16 (D) 8TH DECILE.—An applicant whose 

17 English language proficiency test score is in the 

18 8th decile rank shall accrue 10 points. 

19 (E) 9TH DECILE.—An applicant whose 

20 English language proficiency test score is in the 

21 9th decile rank shall accrue 11 points. 

22 (F) 10TH DECILE.—An applicant whose 

23 English language proficiency test score is in the 

24 10th decile rank shall accrue 12 points. 


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1 (6) EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENT.—An ap2 plicant may accrue, for extraordinary achievement 

3 under this paragraph— 

4 (A) 25 points if the applicant is a Nobel 

5 Laureate or has received comparable recogni6 tion in a field of scientific or social scientific 

7 study, as determined by the Director of U.S. 

8 Citizenship and Immigration Services; and 

9 (B) 15 points if the applicant, during the 

10 8-year period immediately preceding the sub11 mission of an application under subsection (c), 

12 earned an individual Olympic medal or placed 

13 first in an international sporting event in which 

14 the majority of the best athletes in an Olympic 

15 sport were represented, as determined by the 

16 Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 

17 Services. 

18 (7) JOB OFFER.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—An applicant may ac20 crue, for highly compensated employment under 

21 this paragraph— 

22 (i) 5 points if the annual salary being 

23 offered by the applicant’s prospective em24 ployer is— 


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1 (I) at least 150 percent of the 

2 median household income in the State 

3 in which the applicant will be em4 ployed, as determined by the Sec5 retary of Labor; and 

6 (II) less than 200 percent of 

7 such median household income; 

8 (ii) 8 points if the annual salary being 

9 offered by the applicant’s prospective em10 ployer is— 

11 (I) at least 200 percent of the 

12 median household income in the State 

13 in which the applicant will be em14 ployed, as determined by the Sec15 retary of Labor; and 

16 (II) less than 300 percent of 

17 such median household income; and 

18 (iii) 13 points if the annual salary 

19 being offered by the applicant’s prospective 

20 employer is at least 300 percent of the me21 dian household income in the State in 

22 which the applicant will be employed, as 

23 determined by the Secretary of Labor. 


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1 (B) REQUIREMENT.—An applicant may 

2 not be placed in the eligible applicant pool 

3 under subsection (c) if— 

4 (i) the applicant has not received a 

5 degree higher than a bachelor’s degree; 

6 and 

7 (ii) the applicant does not accrue any 

8 points under subparagraph (A). 

9 (8) INVESTMENT IN, AND ACTIVE MANAGEMENT

10 OF, NEW COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISE.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—An applicant may ac12 crue, for foreign investment under this sub13 section— 

14 (i) 6 points if the applicant agrees— 

15 (I) to invest the equivalent of 

16 $1,350,000 in foreign currency in a 

17 new commercial enterprise in the 

18 United States; 

19 (II) to maintain such investment 

20 for at least 3 years; and 

21 (III) to play an active role in the 

22 management of such commercial en23 terprise as the applicant’s primary oc24 cupation; and 

25 (ii) 12 points if the applicant agrees— 


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1 (I) to invest the equivalent of 

2 $1,800,000 in foreign currency in a 

3 new commercial enterprise in the 

4 United States; 

5 (II) to maintain such investment 

6 for at least 3 years; and 

7 (III) to play an active role in the 

8 management of such commercial en9 terprise as the applicant’s primary oc10 cupation. 

11 (B) FAILURE TO MAINTAIN INVEST12 MENT.—A points-based immigrant visa issued 

13 under this section to an applicant who accrued 

14 points under this paragraph shall be rescinded 

15 if the applicant fails to comply with the require16 ments under paragraph (1) for a period in ex17 cess of 1 year. 

18 (9) VALID OFFER OF ADMISSION UNDER FAM19 ILY PREFERENCE CATEGORY.—Any alien who was 

20 granted admission to the United States under sec21 tion 203(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 

22 as in effect on the day before the date of enactment 

23 of this Act, shall be entitled to 2 points if— 


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1 (A) the applicant was scheduled to receive 

2 an immigrant visa under that preference cat3 egory; and 

4 (B) the applicant did not receive an immi5 grant visa during the 1-year period beginning 

6 on the date of the enactment of this Act. 

7 (10) EFFECT OF SPOUSE ON ACCRUAL OF

8 POINTS.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—If an applicant has a 

10 spouse who will be accompanying or following 

11 to join the applicant in the United States, the 

12 applicant will identify the points that the 

13 spouse would accrue under each of paragraphs 

14 (3) through (5) if he or she were applying for 

15 a points-based immigrant visa. 

16 (B) POINTS ADJUSTMENT.—For each of 

17 the categories set forth in subsections (3) 

18 through (5)— 

19 (i) if the number of points that would 

20 be accrued by the spouse is the same or 

21 higher as the points accrued by the appli22 cant, the number of points shall not be ad23 justed; 

24 (ii) if the number of points that would 

25 be accrued by the spouse is lower than the 


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1 number of points accrued by the applicant, 

2 the number of points accrued by the appli3 cant shall be adjusted so that it is equal to 

4 the sum of— 

5 (I) the number of points accrued 

6 by the applicant under such category 

7 multiplied by 70 percent; and 

8 (II) the number of points accrued 

9 by the spouse under such category 

10 multiplied by 30 percent. 

11 (c) APPLICATION PROCESS FOR HONG KONG RESI12 DENTS.— 

13 (1) ELIGIBILITY SCREENING.— 

14 (A) APPLICATION SUBMISSION.—Any eligi15 ble Hong Kong resident who believes that he or 

16 she meets the points requirement set forth in 

17 subsection (c) may submit an online application 

18 to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 

19 for placement in the eligible applicant pool. 

20 (B) APPLICATION ELEMENTS.—Each ap21 plication submitted under subparagraph (A) 

22 shall include— 

23 (i) the identification of the points for 

24 which the applicant is eligible under sub25 section (b); 


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1 (ii) an attestation by the applicant, 

2 under penalty of disqualification, that the 

3 applicant has sufficient documentation to 

4 verify the points claimed under clause (i); 

5 (iii) the electronic submission of an 

6 application fee in the amount of $160; and 

7 (iv) any other information required by 

8 the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immi9 gration Services, by regulation. 

10 (C) ELIGIBLE APPLICANT POOL.— 

11 (i) IN GENERAL.—Each application 

12 that meets the points requirement set forth 

13 in subsection (b) shall be placed in an eli14 gible applicant pool, which shall be sorted 

15 by total points. 

16 (ii) TIE-BREAKING FACTORS.—Appli17 cations with equal points will be sorted 

18 based on the following tie-breaking factors: 

19 (I) Applicants whose highest edu20 cational degree is a doctorate degree 

21 (or equivalent foreign degree) shall be 

22 ranked higher than applicants whose 

23 highest educational degree is a profes24 sional degree or equivalent foreign de25 gree, who shall be ranked higher than 


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1 applicants whose highest educational 

2 degree is a master’s degree (or equiv3 alent foreign degree), who shall be 

4 ranked higher than applicants whose 

5 highest educational degree is a bach6 elor’s degree (or equivalent foreign de7 gree), who shall be ranked higher 

8 than applicants whose highest edu9 cational degree is a high school di10 ploma or equivalent foreign diploma, 

11 who shall be ranked higher than appli12 cants without a high school diploma, 

13 with United States degrees ranked 

14 higher than their foreign counter15 parts. 

16 (II) Applicants with equal points 

17 and equal educational attainment 

18 shall be ranked according to their re19 spective English language proficiency 

20 test rankings. 

21 (III) Applicants with equal 

22 points, equal educational attainment, 

23 and equal English language pro24 ficiency test rankings shall be ranked 

25 according to their age, with applicants 


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•S 4631 IS

1 who are nearest their 25th birthdays 

2 being ranked higher. 

3 (D) DURATION.—Applications shall remain 

4 in the eligible applicant pool for 12 months. An 

5 applicant who is not invited to apply for a 

6 point-based immigrant visa during the 12- 

7 month period in which the application remains 

8 in the eligible applicant pool may reapply for 

9 placement in the eligible applicant pool. 

10 (2) VISA PETITION.— 

11 (A) INVITATION.—Every 6 months, the Di12 rector of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 

13 Services shall invite the highest ranked appli14 cants in the eligible applicant pool, in a number 

15 that is expected to yield 50 percent of the 

16 point-based immigrant visas authorized under 

17 this section for the fiscal year, including 

18 spouses and dependent children accompanying 

19 or following to join the principle alien, to file a 

20 petition for a points-based immigrant visa. 

21 (B) PETITION ELEMENTS.—Subject to 

22 subparagraph (C), the Director of U.S. Citizen23 ship and Immigration Services shall award a 

24 points-based immigrant visa to any applicant 

25 invited to file a petition under subparagraph 


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•S 4631 IS

1 (A) who, not later than 90 days after receiving 

2 such invitation, files a petition with the Direc3 tor that includes— 

4 (i) valid documentation proving that 

5 the applicant is entitled to all of the points 

6 claimed in the application submitted pur7 suant to paragraph (1); 

8 (ii) an attestation from the prospec9 tive employer, if applicable— 

10 (I) of the annual salary being of11 fered to the applicant; and 

12 (II) that the job being offered to 

13 the applicant is a new or vacant posi14 tion that does not displace a United 

15 States worker; 

16 (iii)(I) proof that the applicant’s 

17 United States employer has secured health 

18 insurance that meet all applicable regula19 tions; or 

20 (II) evidence that the applicant has 

21 posted a bond to be used to purchase the 

22 health insurance described in subclause (I); 

23 and 

24 (iv) a fee in the amount of $345. 


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•S 4631 IS

1 (C) DISPOSITION OF PETITIONS EXCEED2 ING THE ANNUAL NUMERICAL LIMITATION.—If 

3 the Director receives a petition that complies 

4 with the requirements under subparagraph (B) 

5 after the numerical limitation set forth in sub6 section has been reached for the applicable fis7 cal year, the Director shall— 

8 (i) issue a points-based immigrant 

9 visa to the petitioner; 

10 (ii) delay the admission into the 

11 United States of the petitioner and his or 

12 her spouse and children, if applicable, until 

13 the first day of the following fiscal year; 

14 and 

15 (iii) reduce the number of points16 based immigrant visas that may be issued 

17 during the following fiscal year accord18 ingly. 

19 (3) VISAS FOR SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.— 

20 (A) SPOUSE.—The legal spouse of an ap21 plicant under this subsection who is accom22 panying or following to join the applicant in the 

23 United States shall be issued a points-based im24 migrant visa under this section upon the apVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:55 Oct 08, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4631.IS S4631

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•S 4631 IS

1 proval of the spouse’s petition under paragraph 

2 (2). 

3 (B) MINOR CHILDREN.—Any children of 

4 an applicant under this subsection who have not 

5 reached 18 years of age as of the date on which 

6 a petition is filed under paragraph (2) and are 

7 accompanying or following to join the applicant 

8 in the United States shall be issued a points9 based immigrant visa under this section upon 

10 the approval of the parent’s petition under 

11 paragraph (2). 

12 (C) DEPENDENT ADULT CHILDREN.—Any 

13 adult child of an applicant under this sub14 section who is unable to care for himself or her15 self may be admitted into the United States, on 

16 a temporary basis, until he or she is capable to 

17 care for himself or herself, but may not be au18 thorized to work in the United States or to re19 ceive any other benefits of permanent residence. 

20 (4) INFLATION ADJUSTMENTS.—The Director 

21 shall adjust the amount of the fees required under 

22 paragraphs (1)(B)(iii) and (2)(B)(iv) every 2 years 

23 based on the percentage change in the Consumer 

24 Price Index during the most recent 2-year period for 

25 which data is available. 


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1 (5) INELIGIBILITY FOR PUBLIC BENEFITS.—An 

2 alien who has been issued a points-based immigrant 

3 visa under this section, and every member of the 

4 household of such alien, shall not be eligible for any 

5 Federal means-tested public benefit (as defined and 

6 implemented in section 403 of the Personal Respon7 sibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 

8 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1613)) during the 5-year period be9 ginning on the date on which such visa was issued. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS