(C) that the transmission of fees between 
the adoption agency, the country of origin, and 
the prospective adoptive parents is carried out 
in a transparent and efficient manner. 
(7) The Secretary of State, acting through the 
Ambassador at Large, shall take all measures nec-
essary to ensure that all documents provided to a 
country of origin on behalf of a prospective adoptive 
parent are truthful and accurate. 
SEC. 303. NONIMMIGRANT VISAS FOR CHILDREN TRAV-
ELING TO THE UNITED STATES TO BE ADOPT-
ED BY A UNITED STATES CITIZEN. 
(a) NONIMMIGRANT CLASSIFICATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 101(a)(15) of the 
Immigration 
and 
Nationality 
Act 
(8 
U.S.C. 
1101(a)(15)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(W) an adoptable child who is coming into the 
United States for adoption by a United States cit-
izen and a spouse jointly or by an unmarried United 
States citizen at least 25 years of age, who has been 
approved to adopt by the Office of International 
Adoption of the Department of State.’’. 
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(2) TECHNICAL
AND
CONFORMING
AMEND-
MENTS.—Such section 101(a)(15) is further amend-
ed— 
(A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subpara-
graph (U); and 
(B) by striking the period at the end of 
subparagraph (V) and inserting ‘‘; or’’. 
(b) TERMINATION OF PERIOD OF AUTHORIZED AD-
MISSION.—Section 214 of the Immigration and Nation-
ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
‘‘(s) In the case of a nonimmigrant described in sec-
tion 101(a)(15)(W), the period of authorized admission 
shall terminate on the earlier of— 
‘‘(1) the date on which the adoption of the non-
immigrant is completed by the courts of the State 
where the parents reside; or 
‘‘(2) the date that is 4 years after the date of 
admission of the nonimmigrant into the United 
States, unless a petitioner is able to show cause as 
to why the adoption could not be completed prior to 
such date and the Secretary of State extends such 
period for the period necessary to complete the adop-
tion.’’. 
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(c) TEMPORARY TREATMENT AS LEGAL PERMANENT 
RESIDENT.—Notwithstanding any other law, all benefits 
and protections that apply to a legal permanent resident 
shall apply to a nonimmigrant described in section 
101(a)(15)(W) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 
as added by subsection (a), pending a full and final adop-
tion. 
(d) EXCEPTION FROM IMMUNIZATION REQUIREMENT 
FOR
CERTAIN
ADOPTED
CHILDREN.—Section 
212(a)(1)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1182(a)(1)(C)) is amended— 
(1) in the heading by striking ‘‘10 YEARS’’ and 
inserting ‘‘18 YEARS’’; and 
(2) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘10 years’’ and in-
serting ‘‘18 years’’. 
(e) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 
prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry 
out this section. 
SEC. 304. DEFINITION OF ADOPTABLE CHILD. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 101(c) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(c)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) The term ‘adoptable child’ means an unmarried 
person under the age of 18— 
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‘‘(A)(i) whose biological parents (or parent, in 
the case of a child who has one sole or surviving 
parent) or other persons or institutions that retain 
legal custody of the child— 
‘‘(I) have freely given their written irrev-
ocable consent to the termination of their legal 
relationship with the child, and to the child’s 
emigration and adoption and that such consent 
has not been induced by payment or compensa-
tion of any kind and has not been given prior 
to the birth of the child; 
‘‘(II) are unable to provide proper care for 
the child, as determined by the competent au-
thority of the child’s residence; or 
‘‘(III) have voluntarily relinquished the 
child to the competent authorities pursuant to 
the law of the child’s residence; or 
‘‘(ii) who, as determined by the competent au-
thority of the child’s residence— 
‘‘(I) has been abandoned or deserted by 
their biological parent, parents, or legal guard-
ians; or 
‘‘(II) has been orphaned due to the death 
or disappearance of their biological parent, par-
ents, or legal guardians; 
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‘‘(B) with respect to whom the Secretary of 
State is satisfied that the proper care will be fur-
nished the child if admitted to the United States; 
‘‘(C) with respect to whom the Secretary of 
State is satisfied that the purpose of the adoption is 
to form a bona fide parent-child relationship and 
that the parent-child relationship of the child and 
the biological parents has been terminated (and in 
carrying out both obligations under this subpara-
graph, the Secretary of State, in consultation with 
the Secretary of Homeland Security, may consider 
whether there is a petition pending to confer immi-
grant status on one or both of the biological par-
ents); 
‘‘(D) with respect to whom the Secretary of 
State, is satisfied that there has been no induce-
ment, financial or otherwise, offered to obtain the 
consent nor was it given before the birth of the 
child; 
‘‘(E) with respect to whom the Secretary of 
State, in consultation with the Secretary of Home-
land Security, is satisfied that the person is not a 
security risk; and 
‘‘(F) whose eligibility for adoption and emigra-
tion to the United States has been certified by the 
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competent authority of the country of the child’s 
place of birth or residence.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 204(d) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(d)) 
is amended by inserting ‘‘and an adoptable child as de-
fined in section 101(c)(3)’’ before ‘‘unless a valid home- 
study’’. 
SEC. 305. APPROVAL TO ADOPT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Prior to the issuance of a visa 
under section 101(a)(15)(W) of the Immigration and Na-
tionality Act, as added by section 303(a) of this Act, or 
the issuance of a full and final adoption decree, the United 
States citizen adoptive parent shall have approved by the 
Office a petition to adopt. Such petition shall be subject 
to the same terms and conditions as are applicable to peti-
tions for classification under section 204.3 of title 8 of 
the Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the day 
before the date of enactment of this Act. 
(b) EXPIRATION OF APPROVAL.—Approval to adopt 
under this Act is valid for 24 months from the date of 
approval. Nothing in this section may prevent the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security from periodically updating 
the fingerprints of an individual who has filed a petition 
for adoption. 
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(c) EXPEDITED REAPPROVAL PROCESS OF FAMILIES 
PREVIOUSLY APPROVED TO ADOPT.—The Secretary of 
State shall prescribe such regulations as may be necessary 
to provide for an expedited and streamlined process for 
families who have been previously approved to adopt and 
whose approval has expired, so long as not more than 4 
years have lapsed since the original application. 
(d) DENIAL OF PETITION.— 
(1) NOTICE OF INTENT.—If the officer adjudi-
cating the petition to adopt finds that it is not read-
ily approvable, the officer shall notify the petitioner, 
in writing, of the officer’s intent to deny the peti-
tion. Such notice shall include the specific reasons 
why the petition is not readily approvable. 
(2) PETITIONER’S RIGHT TO RESPOND.—Upon 
receiving a notice of intent to deny, the petitioner 
has 30 days to respond to such notice. 
(3) DECISION.—Within 30 days of receipt of 
the petitioner’s response the Office must reach a 
final decision regarding the eligibility of the peti-
tioner to adopt. Notice of a formal decision must be 
delivered in writing. 
(4) RIGHT TO AN APPEAL.—Unfavorable deci-
sions may be appealed to the Department of State 
and, after the exhaustion of the appropriate appeals 
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process of the Department, to a United States dis-
trict court. 
(5) REGULATIONS REGARDING APPEALS.—Not 
later than 6 months after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary of State shall promulgate for-
mal regulations regarding the process for appealing 
the denial of a petition. 
SEC. 306. ADJUDICATION OF CHILD STATUS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Prior to the issuance of a full and 
final 
adoption 
decree 
or 
a 
visa 
under 
section 
101(a)(15)(W) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 
as added by section 303(a) of this Act— 
(1) the Ambassador at Large shall obtain from 
the competent authority of the country of the child’s 
residence a certification, together with documentary 
support, that the child sought to be adopted meets 
the definition of an adoptable child; and 
(2) not later than 15 days after the date of the 
receipt of the certification referred to in paragraph 
(1), the Secretary of State shall make a final deter-
mination on whether the certification and the docu-
mentary support are sufficient to meet the require-
ments of this section or whether additional investiga-
tion or information is required. 
(b) PROCESS FOR DETERMINATION.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The Ambassador at Large 
shall work with the competent authorities of the 
child’s country of residence to establish a uniform, 
transparent, and efficient process for the exchange 
and approval of the certification and documentary 
support required under subsection (a). 
(2) NOTICE OF INTENT.—If the Secretary of 
State determines that a certification submitted by 
the competent authority of the child’s country of ori-
gin is not readily approvable, the Ambassador at 
Large shall— 
(A) notify the competent authority and the 
prospective adoptive parents, in writing, of the 
specific reasons why the certification is not suf-
ficient; and 
(B) provide the competent authority and 
the prospective adoptive parents the oppor-
tunity to address the stated insufficiencies. 
(3) PETITIONERS RIGHT TO RESPOND.—Upon 
receiving a notice of intent to find that a certifi-
cation is not readily approvable, the prospective 
adoptive parents shall have 30 days to respond to 
such notice. 
(4) DECISION.—Not later than 30 days after 
the date of receipt of a response submitted under 
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