I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1279 

To authorize the Secretary of State to issue up to 10,500 E–3 visas per 

year to nationals of the Republic of Korea (South). 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 20, 2013 

Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA (for himself and Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of State to issue up to 10,500 

E–3 visas per year to nationals of the Republic of Korea 

(South). 

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 ‘‘United States-Korea 

5 Free Trade Agreement Fairness Act of 2013’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) Although it was not formally a part of the 

9 United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement, the 

10 E–3 visa category was created for up to 10,500 AusVerDate Mar 15 2010 17:32 Mar 26, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1279.IH H1279

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•HR 1279 IH

1 tralian nationals per year in the aftermath of the 

2 ratification of that agreement. 

3 (2) The Republic of Korea has been a critical 

4 treaty ally and trading partner of the United States 

5 for the past 60 years. 

6 (3) Ever since the signing of the 1882 Treaty 

7 of Peace, Amity, Commerce, and Navigation between 

8 the Kingdom of Chosun (Korea) and the United 

9 States, the two countries have stood at the forefront 

10 in the promotion of freedom, democracy, peace, sta11 bility, and human rights. 

12 (4) With the unwavering commitment and sup13 port of the United States, the Republic of Korea has 

14 undergone a remarkable economic and political 

15 transformation, rising from poverty to become the 

16 11th largest economy in the world and a thriving, 

17 multiparty democracy. 

18 (5) The alliance between the United States and 

19 the Republic of Korea has been forged in blood and 

20 further advanced by struggles against common ad21 versaries in the Korean peninsula, Vietnam, Iraq, 

22 and Afghanistan. 

23 (6) The Republic of Korea ranked, as of De24 cember 2012, as the 7th largest trading partner of 

25 the United States. 


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1 (7) The United States and the Republic of 

2 Korea signed the United States-Korea Free Trade 

3 Agreement on June 30, 2007, and that agreement 

4 was entered into force on March 15, 2012. 

5 (8) There are deep cultural and personal ties 

6 between the people of the United States and the peo7 ple of the Republic of Korea, as exemplified by the 

8 large flow of visitors and exchanges each year, en9 hanced by adoption of the Visa Waiver Program 

10 (VWP). 

11 (9) The almost 2,000,000 members of the Ko12 rean-American community have made significant 

13 contributions to the commercial, academic, profes14 sional, medical, scientific, engineering, educational, 

15 military, artistic, musical, and athletic development 

16 of the United States. 

17 (10) Immigration from the Republic of Korea 

18 has been an important part of the history, identity, 

19 and culture of the United States. 

20 (11) The Republic of Korea continues to be a 

21 vital strategic ally, trade partner and friend to the 

22 United States. 

23 SEC. 3. E-VISA REFORM. 

24 (a) DEFINITION.—Section 101(a)(15)(E)(iii) of the 

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


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1 1101(a)(15)(E)(iii)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, or solely 

2 to perform services as an employee who meets the require3 ments under section 203(c)(2) if the alien is a national 

4 of the Republic of Korea’’ after ‘‘Australia’’. 

5 (b) NUMERICAL LIMITATION.—Section 

6 214(g)(11)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

7 U.S.C. 1184(g)(11)(B)) is amended by inserting ‘‘for each 

8 of the nationalities identified under section 

9 101(a)(15)(E)(iii)’’ before the period at the end. 

Æ 


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