I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2684 
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish a Cuban family 
reunification parole program, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 20, 2021 
Mr. DIAZ-BALART (for himself, Mrs. MURPHY of Florida, Ms. SALAZAR, and 
Mr. GIMENEZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish 
a Cuban family reunification parole program, and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Cuban Family Reunifi-
cation Modernization Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘CFRM Act of 
2021’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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(1) The Cuban Family Reunification Parole 
(CFRP) program, initiated by President George W. 
Bush in 2007, allows United States citizens or law-
ful permanent residents to apply for their family 
members in Cuba to join them in the United States. 
(2) The CFRP program has been stalled since 
September 2017, when the State Department re-
duced the staff in Havana in response to severe 
brain injuries suffered by several members of the 
U.S. diplomatic community and their families. 
(3) The United States embassy website cur-
rently states that, ‘‘Due to staff reductions at the 
U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, USCIS has sus-
pended operations at its field office in Havana.’’ 
Most Cuban nationals who apply for U.S. entry 
must travel to a third country, with all Cuban appli-
cations and interviews for immigrant visas handled 
by the U.S. Embassy in Georgetown, Guyana, re-
quiring applicants to incur additional costs such as 
airfare and lodging. 
(4) Cuban diplomats and other high-level Com-
munist Party operatives applying for diplomatic or 
official visas may remain in Cuba throughout the 
visa application process. 
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(5) According to press reports, the United 
States Navy housed approximately 50,000 migrants 
at one time on the naval station in Guantanamo 
Bay, Cuba in 1994. 
(6) The United States State Department hires 
local Cuban nationals at the United States embassy 
in Havana, Cuba some of whom have, according to 
accounts, intimidated those attempting to meet with 
personnel of the United States. The use of such re-
gime-provided Cuban nationals at the United States 
embassy in Havana, Cuba should be minimized to 
the greatest extent possible. 
(7) The regime in Cuba holds an egregious 
human rights record marred by repression of speech, 
religious belief, labor rights, as well as arbitrary de-
tentions, inhumane prison conditions, beatings, and 
other acts of repudiation. 
(8) The regime in Cuba places severe restric-
tions on basic human rights and liberties resulting 
in an oppressive environment with widespread fear 
of reprisal for expressing opposition to the regime. 
(9) According to U.S. State Department Report 
004246 of March 2021, ‘‘nearly all Cubans wishing 
to travel to the United States must apply for their 
visas outside of Cuba,’’ and further that ‘‘the De-
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partment recognizes the necessity to leave Cuba to 
apply for a U.S. visa is a barrier many Cubans are 
unable or unwilling to surmount.’’. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that no applicant should be discriminated against 
on the basis of race, age, disability, religion, sexual ori-
entation, gender identity, or sex characteristics, and that 
discrimination based on race, political opinion, religious 
belief, or association with a targeted group and hate 
crimes and other forms of discrimination against vulner-
able communities, including LGBTQ people, are human 
rights abuses. 
SEC. 3. CUBAN FAMILY REUNIFICATION PAROLE PROGRAM. 
Chapter 2 of title II of the Immigration and Nation-
ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1181 et. seq.) is amended by inserting 
after section 214 the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 214A. CUBAN FAMILY REUNIFICATION PAROLE PRO-
GRAM. 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Pursuant to the authority 
established under section 212(d)(5), the Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall establish a Cuban family reunifi-
cation program under which the Secretary may grant pa-
role to a qualified beneficiary on whose behalf a petition 
has been approved. 
‘‘(b) PETITION PROCESS.— 
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‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A petitioner may submit an 
application to the Secretary of Homeland Security 
for a qualified beneficiary to be paroled into the 
United States prior to the date on which an immi-
grant visa is available for such beneficiary. 
‘‘(2) INTERVIEW.—The Secretary of Homeland 
Security, in consultation with the Department of 
State, shall conduct an interview of a qualified bene-
ficiary to ensure that such beneficiary— 
‘‘(A) is eligible for the Cuban family reuni-
fication program; 
‘‘(B) is admissible to the United States; 
‘‘(C) has passed a medical examination; 
and 
‘‘(D) has passed criminal and national se-
curity background checks required by the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security for admission into 
the United States. 
‘‘(3) IDENTITY VERIFICATION.—To be eligible 
for the Cuban family reunification program, a quali-
fied beneficiary shall provide— 
‘‘(A) a passport issued by the government 
of Cuba, as applicable; and 
‘‘(B) other documents required by the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security to demonstrate 
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that the qualified beneficiary is eligible for pa-
role under the Cuban family reunification pro-
gram. 
‘‘(4) EXCEPTION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLA-
TORS.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a qualified 
beneficiary who has committed a gross violation of 
internationally recognized human rights, as de-
scribed under section 502B(d)(1) of the Foreign As-
sistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304(d)(1)). 
‘‘(c) TRAVEL DOCUMENTS.—The Secretary of State 
shall issue necessary travel documents for the qualified 
beneficiary to travel to the United States and seek parole 
from the Department of Homeland Security at a port of 
entry of the United States. 
‘‘(d) DURATION OF PAROLE.—Parole granted under 
this section shall be for a 2-year period for a qualified 
beneficiary who is a Cuban national. 
‘‘(e) WORK
AUTHORIZATION.—A qualified bene-
ficiary is eligible to apply to the Secretary of Homeland 
Security for work authorization. 
‘‘(f) FEES.—The Secretary of State may require pay-
ment of a reasonable fee as a condition of participation 
in the Cuban family reunification program. 
‘‘(g) PRIORITY PROCESSING.— 
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‘‘(1) TERMINAL
ILLNESS.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security, in coordination with the Sec-
retary of State, shall take all reasonable measures to 
prioritize a petition for a qualified beneficiary to be 
paroled into the United States if the petitioner— 
‘‘(A) has a terminal illness; and 
‘‘(B) the petitioner can provide documenta-
tion of such illness to the Secretary of Home-
land Security. 
‘‘(2) MINOR
CHILDREN.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security, in coordination with the Sec-
retary of State, shall take all reasonable measures to 
prioritize a petition for a qualified beneficiary to be 
paroled into the United States if such qualified ben-
eficiary— 
‘‘(A) is a minor child; and 
‘‘(B) has a custodial parent who is the 
beneficiary of an immigrant visa and such visa 
will expire prior to the date of the interview 
under subsection (b)(2) for the minor child. 
‘‘(h) PROCESSING IMMIGRATION PETITIONS AND AP-
PLICATIONS AT UNITED STATES NAVAL STATION, GUAN-
TANAMO BAY, CUBA.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, beginning not later than 120 days 
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after the date of the enactment of the Cuban Family 
Reunification Modernization Act of 2021 and ending 
on the date specified in paragraph (7), the Secretary 
of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Sec-
retary of State and the Secretary of Defense, may 
operate a facility to process immigration petitions 
and applications for Cuban nationals, including con-
ducting in-person interviews as necessary for such 
petitions and applications, at the United States 
Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (hereinafter 
referred to as the ‘U.S. Naval Station’). Provided, 
That the Secretary of Defense certifies that oper-
ating consular services at the U.S. Naval Station 
would not hinder ordinary operations or pose a 
threat to national security. 
‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT.—A Cuban national shall 
be permitted to enter the U.S. Naval Station only 
with an appointment notice from the Department of 
Homeland Security or the Department of State. 
‘‘(3) EMPLOYMENT OF CUBAN NATIONALS.—In 
carrying out the requirement under paragraph (1), 
the United States Government shall not employ a 
Cuban national recommended by the Communist re-
gime in Cuba. 
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‘‘(4) PORT OF ENTRY.—The U.S. Naval Station 
shall not be considered to be a port of entry into the 
United States. 
‘‘(5) FUNDING.—Beginning on the date that is 
60 days after the enactment of this Act, funds au-
thorized for the processing of immigration petitions 
or applications at the United States Embassy in Ha-
vana, Cuba are authorized to fund the processing of 
immigration petitions or applications at the U.S. 
Naval Station. 
‘‘(6) OPERATION
AND
SECURITY
OF
UNITED 
STATES
NAVAL
STATION, 
GUANTANAMO
BAY, 
CUBA.—If the Commander of the U.S. Naval Station 
finds that the operation and security of the U.S. 
Naval Station is impaired by a high number of 
Cuban nationals attempting to access consular serv-
ices described in paragraph (1), without an appoint-
ment, the Commander of the U.S. Naval Station 
may cease operating a facility to provide consular 
services until such facility and services may be pro-
vided without impairing the operation and security 
of the U.S. Naval Station. 
‘‘(7) DATE SPECIFIED.—The date specified in 
this paragraph is the date that is 60 days after the 
date which the Secretary of State determines that 
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other accommodations have been made to allow for 
the regular and timely processing of immigration pe-
titions or applications on the island of Cuba. 
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) 
PETITIONER.—The 
term 
‘petitioner’ 
means an individual who is a citizen or lawful per-
manent resident of the United States and who has 
an approved Form I–130, Petition for Alien Relative 
(or any successor form), for a qualified beneficiary. 
‘‘(2) 
QUALIFIED
BENEFICIARY.—The 
term 
‘qualified beneficiary’ means an individual— 
‘‘(A) who is a Cuban national living in 
Cuba, or a minor child, who may or may not be 
living in Cuba, of a Cuban national parent; and 
‘‘(B) who is the beneficiary of a petition, 
filed by the petitioner, for status as a lawful 
permanent resident by reason of a relationship 
described in section 203(a). 
‘‘(3) MINOR
CHILD.—The term ‘minor child’ 
means an individual under the age of 21 years old.’’. 
Æ 
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