I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 440
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to adjust the status of 
certain aliens with longstanding ties to the United States to that of 
an alien lawfully admitted to permanent residence, to promote family 
unity, to improve national security, to modify provisions of such Act 
affecting removal of aliens from the United States, and for other pur-
poses. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 29, 2003
Mr. GUTIERREZ (for himself, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. PASTOR, Mr. SERRANO, 
Ms. SOLIS, Mr. GRIJALVA, and Mr. ACEVEDO-VILA´) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to adjust 
the status of certain aliens with longstanding ties to 
the United States to that of an alien lawfully admitted 
to permanent residence, to promote family unity, to im-
prove national security, to modify provisions of such Act 
affecting removal of aliens from the United States, 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—
(1) the ‘‘Unity, Security, Accountability, and 
Family Act’’; or 
(2) the ‘‘U.S.A. Family Act’’. 
SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 
Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 
of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi-
sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 
section or other provision of the Immigration and Nation-
ality Act. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) immigrants play a vital role in filling voids 
in our workforce and adding strength and stability 
to our economy; 
(2) the Labor Department estimates that the 
total number of jobs requiring only short-term train-
ing will increase from 53,200,000 in 2000 to 
60,900,000 by 2010, a net increase of 7,700,000 
jobs; 
(3) the number of workers currently available 
and able to fill jobs that require short-term training 
continues to fall because of an aging workforce and 
rising education levels;
(4) the National Academy of Sciences reports 
that immigrant households paid $133,000,000,000 
in direct taxes to Federal, State, and local govern-
ments in 1997, and that a typical immigrant and his 
or her descendants pay an estimated $80,000 more 
in taxes than they receive in local, State, and Fed-
eral benefits over their lifetimes; 
(5) separating families can be damaging to a 
household’s financial and emotional well-being and 
efforts should be taken to keep husbands and wives, 
parents, and children together; 
(6) a mechanism that provides workers the op-
portunity for legal permanent residence in the 
United States would save the Federal Government 
billions of dollars each year in enforcement initia-
tives and allow thousands of government personnel 
to concentrate their efforts on safeguarding the 
homeland and fighting terrorism; and 
(7) men and women entering the United States 
to fill vacancies in the workforce and provide for 
their families are being exploited and injured in in-
creasing numbers because the current system and 
market realities have crated a violent and lucrative 
human border smuggling operation.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to create 
a system that recognizes and reflects the enormous con-
tributions immigrants make to our workforce and econ-
omy, helps hardworking families stay together, and pro-
tects our homeland by—
(1) creating an improved system of account-
ability that allows critical resources and manpower 
to be redirected to fight the war on terror; 
(2) providing legal permanent residence to im-
migrants who have been living in the United States 
for 5 years or more; 
(3) granting conditional legal status and work 
authorization to all law-abiding immigrants living in 
the United States for less than 5 years; and 
(4) repealing provisions that bar certain alien 
from admission into the United States for a period 
of 3 to 10 years or that place aliens at risk of re-
moval from the United States for having committed 
minor nonviolent offenses.
TITLE I—LEGALIZATION OF 
STATUS
SEC. 101. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS OF CERTAIN 5-YEAR 
RESIDENTS TO THAT OF PERSON ADMITTED 
FOR LAWFUL PERMANENT RESIDENCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title II (8 U.S.C. 
1255 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 245A 
the following:
‘‘ADJUSTMENT
OF
STATUS
OF
CERTAIN
5-YEAR
RESI-
DENTS TO THAT OF PERSON ADMITTED FOR LAW-
FUL PERMANENT RESIDENCE 
‘‘SEC. 245B. (a) RESIDENT STATUS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall 
adjust the status of an alien to that of an alien law-
fully admitted for permanent residence if the alien 
meets the requirements of this subsection. 
‘‘(2) TIMELY APPLICATION.—
‘‘(A) DURING APPLICATION PERIOD.—The 
alien must apply for such adjustment during 
the 24-month period beginning on the date final 
regulations are issued to carry out this section. 
‘‘(B) INFORMATION INCLUDED IN APPLI-
CATION.—Each application under subparagraph 
(A) shall contain such information as the Attor-
ney General may require, including information
on living relatives of the applicant with respect 
to whom a petition for preference or other sta-
tus may be filed by the applicant at any later 
date under section 204(a). 
‘‘(3) CONTINUOUS 5-YEAR RESIDENCE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(i) 5 YEARS.—The alien must estab-
lish continuous residence in the United 
States during the 5-year period ending on 
January 29, 2003, and through the date 
the application was filed. 
‘‘(ii) TREATMENT
OF
CERTAIN
AB-
SENCES.—An alien shall not be considered 
to have lost continuous residence by reason 
of an absence from the United States per-
mitted under subsection (b)(9). 
‘‘(B) EXCHANGE
VISITORS.—If the alien 
was at any time a nonimmigrant exchange alien 
(as defined in section 101(a)(15)(J)), the alien 
must establish that the alien was not subject to 
the two-year foreign residence requirement of 
section 212(e) or has fulfilled that requirement 
or received a waiver thereof. 
‘‘(4) CONTINUOUS PRESENCE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The alien must estab-
lish that the alien has been continuously phys-
ically present in the United States since Janu-
ary 29, 2003. 
‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF BRIEF, CASUAL, AND 
INNOCENT ABSENCES.—An alien shall not be 
considered to have failed to maintain contin-
uous physical presence in the United States for 
purposes of subparagraph (A) by virtue of brief, 
casual, and innocent absences from the United 
States. 
‘‘(C) ADMISSIONS.—Nothing in this section 
shall be construed as authorizing an alien to 
apply for admission to, or to be admitted to, the 
United States in order to apply for adjustment 
of status under this subsection. 
‘‘(5) ADMISSIBLE
AS
IMMIGRANT.—The alien 
must establish that the alien—
‘‘(A) is admissible to the United States as 
an immigrant, except as otherwise provided 
under subsection (c)(2); 
‘‘(B) has not been convicted of any felony 
or three or more misdemeanors committed in 
the United States;
‘‘(C) has not assisted in the persecution of 
any person or persons on account of race, reli-
gion, nationality, membership in a particular 
group, or political opinion; 
‘‘(D) is registered or registering under the 
Military Selective Service Act, if the alien is re-
quired to be so registered; and 
‘‘(E) has not received public cash assist-
ance. 
‘‘(b) APPLICATIONS FOR ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.—
‘‘(1) CONDITIONS FOR ACCEPTANCE OF APPLI-
CATION.—An application shall be accepted under 
this subsection upon a determination that the appli-
cant is prima facie eligible for adjustment of status 
under subsection (a), which determination shall not 
be made before, at a minimum, the identity of the 
applicant has been checked against all appropriate 
electronic databases maintained by the Attorney 
General and by the Secretary of State and appro-
priate foreign entities or international law enforce-
ment databases to determine any grounds on which 
the alien may be inadmissible to the United States 
that may not be waived under subsection (c)(2). 
‘‘(2) TO WHOM MAY BE MADE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General 
shall provide that applications for adjustment of 
status under subsection (a) may be filed—
‘‘(i) with the Attorney General; or 
‘‘(ii) with a qualified designated enti-
ty, but only if the applicant consents to the 
forwarding of the application to the Attor-
ney General. 
‘‘(B) DEFINITION.—As used in this sec-
tion, the term ‘qualified designated entity’ 
means an organization or person designated 
under paragraph (3). 
‘‘(3) DESIGNATION OF QUALIFIED ENTITIES TO 
RECEIVE APPLICATIONS.—For purposes of assisting 
in the program of legalization provided under this 
section, the Attorney General—
‘‘(A) shall designate qualified voluntary or-
ganizations and other qualified State, local, and 
community organizations; and 
‘‘(B) may designate such other persons as 
the Attorney General determines are qualified 
and have substantial experience, demonstrated 
competence, and traditional long-term involve-
ment in the preparation and submittal of appli-
cations for adjustment of status under section
209 or 245, Public Law 89–732, or Public Law 
95–145. 
‘‘(4) TREATMENT OF APPLICATIONS BY DES-
IGNATED ENTITIES.—Each qualified designated enti-
ty must agree to forward to the Attorney General 
applications filed with it in accordance with para-
graph (2)(A)(ii) but not to forward to the Attorney 
General applications filed with it unless the appli-
cant has consented to such forwarding. No such en-
tity may make a determination required by this sec-
tion to be made by the Attorney General. 
‘‘(5) LIMITATION
ON
ACCESS
TO
INFORMA-
TION.—Files and records of qualified designated en-
tities relating to an alien’s seeking assistance or in-
formation with respect to filing an application under 
this section are confidential and the Attorney Gen-
eral and the Service shall not have access to such 
files or records relating to an alien without the con-
sent of the alien. 
‘‘(6) CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 
this paragraph, neither the Attorney General, 
nor any other official or employee of the De-
partment of Justice, or bureau or agency there-
of, may—
‘‘(i) use the information furnished by 
the applicant pursuant to an application 
filed under this section for any purpose 
other than to make a determination on the 
application, for enforcement of paragraph 
(7); 
‘‘(ii) make any publication whereby 
the information furnished by any par-
ticular applicant can be identified; or 
‘‘(iii) permit anyone other than the 
sworn officers and employees of the De-
partment or bureau or agency or, with re-
spect to applications filed with a des-
ignated entity, that designated entity, to 
examine individual applications. 
‘‘(B) REQUIRED
DISCLOSURES.—The At-
torney General shall provide the information 
furnished under this section, and any other in-
formation derived from such furnished informa-
tion, to a duly recognized law enforcement enti-
ty in connection with a criminal investigation or 
prosecution, when such information is requested 
in writing by such entity, or to an official cor-
oner for purposes of affirmatively identifying a
deceased individual (whether or not such indi-
vidual is deceased as a result of a crime). 
‘‘(C) 
AUTHORIZED
DISCLOSURES.—The 
Attorney General may provide, in the Attorney 
General’s discretion, for the furnishing of infor-
mation furnished under this section in the same 
manner and circumstances as census informa-
tion may be disclosed by the Secretary of Com-
merce under section 8 of title 13, United States 
Code. 
‘‘(D) CONSTRUCTION.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Nothing in this 
paragraph shall be construed to limit the 
use, or release, for immigration enforce-
ment purposes or law enforcement pur-
poses of information contained in files or 
records of the Service pertaining to an ap-
plication filed under this section, other 
than information furnished by an applicant 
pursuant to the application, or any other 
information derived from the application, 
that is not available from any other source. 
‘‘(ii) CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS.—Infor-
mation concerning whether the applicant 
has at any time been convicted of a crime
may be used or released for immigration 
enforcement or law enforcement purposes. 
‘‘(E) CRIME.—Whoever knowingly uses, 
publishes, or permits information to be exam-
ined in violation of this paragraph shall be fined 
not more than $10,000. 
‘‘(7) PENALTIES FOR FALSE STATEMENTS IN 
APPLICATIONS.—Whoever files an application for ad-
justment of status under this section and knowingly 
and willfully falsifies, misrepresents, conceals, or 
covers up a material fact or makes any false, ficti-
tious, or fraudulent statements or representations, 
or makes or uses any false writing or document 
knowing the same to contain any false, fictitious, or 
fraudulent statement or entry, shall be fined in ac-
cordance with title 18, United States Code, or im-
prisoned not more than five years, or both. 
‘‘(8) APPLICATION FEES.—
‘‘(A) FEE SCHEDULE.—The Attorney Gen-
eral shall provide for a schedule of fees to be 
charged for the filing of applications for adjust-
ment under this section. Such fees shall not ex-
ceed the Attorney General’s costs in adjudi-
cating the applications.
‘‘(B) USE OF FEES.—The Attorney Gen-
eral shall deposit payments received under this 
paragraph in a separate account and amounts 
in such account shall be available, without fiscal 
year limitation, to cover administrative and 
other expenses incurred in connection with the 
review of applications filed under this sub-
section. 
‘‘(9) AUTHORIZED
TRAVEL
AND
EMPLOY-
MENT.—During the period after an alien has sub-
mitted an application under this subsection and be-
fore the Attorney General has rendered a decision to 
accept or reject such application, and during the pe-
riod after the acceptance of an alien’s application 
under this subsection and before the Attorney Gen-
eral has rendered a final decision granting or deny-
ing such application, the Attorney General—
‘‘(A) shall not remove the alien from the 
United States; 
‘‘(B) shall, in accordance with regulations, 
permit the alien to return to the United States 
after such brief and casual trips abroad as re-
flect an intention on the part of the alien to ad-
just to lawful permanent resident status under 
subsection (a) and after brief temporary trips
abroad occasioned by a family obligation involv-
ing an occurrence such as the illness or death 
of a close relative or other family need; and 
‘‘(C) shall, not later than 90 days after the 
alien’s application under this subsection has 
been accepted under paragraph (1), grant the 
alien authorization to engage in employment in 
the United States and provide to the alien an 
‘employment authorized’ endorsement or other 
appropriate work permit. 
‘‘(c) WAIVER OF NUMERICAL LIMITATIONS AND CER-
TAIN GROUNDS FOR INADMISSIBILITY.—
‘‘(1) 
NUMERICAL
LIMITATIONS
DO
NOT 
APPLY.—The numerical limitations of sections 201 
and 202 shall not apply to the adjustment of aliens 
to lawful permanent resident status under subsection 
(a) or (g). 
‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF GROUNDS FOR INADMIS-
SIBILITY.—
‘‘(A) INAPPLICABLE GROUNDS FOR INAD-
MISSIBILITY.—In the determination of an 
alien’s admissibility under subsection (a), the 
provisions of paragraphs (4), (5), (6)(A), 
(6)(C), (6)(F), (6)(G), (7)(A), (9)(B), and 
(9)(C) of section 212(a) shall not apply.
‘‘(B) WAIVER OF GROUNDS FOR INADMIS-
SIBILITY.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Except as pro-
vided in clause (ii), the Attorney General 
may waive any other provision of section 
212(a) in the case of individual aliens for 
humanitarian purposes, to assure family 
unity, or when it is otherwise in the public 
interest. 
‘‘(ii) GROUNDS
THAT
MAY
NOT
BE 
WAIVED.—The following provisions of sec-
tion 212(a) may not be waived by the At-
torney General under clause (i): 
‘‘(I) 
Paragraphs 
(2)(A) 
and 
(2)(B) (relating to criminals). 
‘‘(II) Paragraph (2)(C) (relating 
to drug offenses), except for so much 
of such paragraph as relates to a sin-
gle offense of simple possession of 30 
grams or less of marijuana. 
‘‘(III) Paragraph (3) (relating to 
security and related grounds). 
‘‘(C) MEDICAL EXAMINATION.—The alien 
shall be required, at the alien’s expense, to un-
dergo such a medical examination (including a
determination of immunization status) as is ap-
propriate and conforms to generally accepted 
professional standards of medical practice. 
‘‘(d) TEMPORARY
STAY
OF
DEPORTATION
AND 
WORK AUTHORIZATION BEFORE APPLICATION PERIOD.—
The Attorney General may provide that in the case of an 
alien who is apprehended before the beginning of the ap-
plication period described in subsection (a)(2)(A) and who 
can establish a prima facie case of eligibility to have his 
status adjusted under subsection (a) or (g) (but for the 
fact that the alien may not apply for such adjustment until 
the beginning of such period), until the alien has had the 
opportunity during the first 180 days of the application 
period to complete the filing of an application for adjust-
ment, the alien—
‘‘(1) may not be removed from the United 
States; and 
‘‘(2) shall be granted authorization to engage in 
employment in the United States and be provided an 
‘employment authorized’ endorsement or other ap-
propriate work permit. 
‘‘(e) ADMINISTRATIVE AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.—
‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATIVE
AND
JUDICIAL
RE-
VIEW.—There shall be no administrative or judicial 
review of a determination respecting an application
for adjustment of status under subsection (a) or (g) 
except in accordance with this subsection. 
‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—
‘‘(A) SINGLE LEVEL OF ADMINISTRATIVE 
APPELLATE
REVIEW.—The Attorney General 
shall establish an appellate authority to provide 
for a single level of administrative appellate re-
view of a determination described in paragraph 
(1). 
‘‘(B) STANDARD FOR REVIEW.—Such ad-
ministrative appellate review shall be based 
solely upon the administrative record estab-
lished at the time of the determination on the 
application and upon such additional or newly 
discovered evidence as may not have been avail-
able at the time of the determination. 
‘‘(3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—
‘‘(A) LIMITATION TO REVIEW OF DEPOR-
TATION.—There shall be judicial review of such 
a denial only in the judicial review of an order 
of removal under section 242. 
‘‘(B) STANDARD FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW.—
Such judicial review shall be based solely upon 
the administrative record established at the 
time of the review by the appellate authority
and the findings of fact and determinations 
contained in such record shall be conclusive un-
less the applicant can establish abuse of discre-
tion or that the findings are directly contrary to 
clear and convincing facts contained in the 
record considered as a whole. 
‘‘(f) IMPLEMENTATION OF SECTION.—
‘‘(1) REGULATIONS.—The Attorney General, 
after consultation with the Committees on the Judi-
ciary of the House of Representatives and of the 
Senate, shall prescribe—
‘‘(A) regulations establishing a definition 
of the term ‘continuous residence’, as used in 
this section, and the evidence needed to estab-
lish that an alien has resided continuously in 
the United States for purposes of this section; 
and 
‘‘(B) such other regulations as may be nec-
essary to carry out this section. 
‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In prescribing regula-
tions described in paragraph (1)(A), the following 
requirements shall apply: 
‘‘(A) PERIODS
OF
CONTINUOUS
RESI-
DENCE.—The Attorney General shall specify 
periods of absence from the United States
‘‘(D) WAIVERS OF CERTAIN ABSENCES.—
The Attorney General shall provide for a waiv-
er, in the discretion of the Attorney General, of 
the periods specified under subparagraph (A) in 
the case of an absence from the United States 
due merely to a brief temporary trip abroad re-
quired by emergency or extenuating cir-
cumstances outside the control of the alien. 
‘‘(E) USE
OF
CERTAIN
DOCUMENTA-
TION.—The Attorney General shall provide that 
the applicant may submit evidence to establish 
his or her continuous residence, including—
‘‘(i) attestations; 
‘‘(ii) photographs; 
‘‘(iii) rental records; 
‘‘(iv) medical records; 
‘‘(v) employment; 
‘‘(vi) school records; 
‘‘(vii) bank records; and 
‘‘(viii) attestations from community 
leaders, religious leaders, coworkers, or so-
cial service providers. 
‘‘(g) FAMILY UNIFICATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The status of an alien shall 
be adjusted by the Attorney General to that of an
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence con-
currently with the adjustment of the principal alien, 
if—
‘‘(A) the alien is the spouse or child of an 
alien whose status is adjusted to that of an 
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence 
under subsection (a); 
‘‘(B) the alien is otherwise admissible to 
the United States for permanent residence, ex-
cept in determining such admissibility the 
grounds for inadmissibility specified in para-
graphs (4), (5), (6)(A), (6)(C), (6)(F), (6)(G), 
(7)(A), (9)(B), and (9)(C) of section 212(a) 
shall not apply; and 
‘‘(C) the spouse or child was included in 
the application required under subsection (a). 
‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF WHETHER APPLICANT 
IS A CHILD.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), a 
determination of whether an alien is a child shall be 
made using the age of the alien on the date on 
which the application under subsection (a) is filed. 
‘‘(h) INAPPLICABILITY OF REMOVAL ORDER REIN-
STATEMENT.—Section 241(a)(5) shall not apply with re-
spect to an alien who is applying for adjustment of status 
under this section.
‘‘(i) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION ON LEGAL-
IZATION PROGRAM.—Beginning not later than the first 
day of the application period described in subsection 
(a)(2)(A), the Attorney General, in cooperation with quali-
fied designated entities, shall broadly disseminate informa-
tion respecting the benefits which aliens may receive under 
this section and section 245C and the requirements to ob-
tain such benefits.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
245A the following:
‘‘Sec. 245B. Adjustment of status of certain 5-year residents to that of person 
admitted for lawful residence.’’.
SEC. 102. CONDITIONAL PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS 
FOR CERTAIN OTHER ALIENS UNABLE TO 
SATISFY 5-YEAR RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title II, as amended 
by section 101, is further amended by inserting after sec-
tion 245B the following:
‘‘CONDITIONAL PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS FOR CER-
TAIN ALIENS INELIGIBLE FOR ADJUSTMENT UNDER 
SECTION 245B 
‘‘SEC. 245C. (a) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(1) CONDITIONAL BASIS.—In the case of an 
alien who has commenced a period of continuous 
residence in the United States, who timely applies
for adjustment of status under section 245B, and 
who is otherwise eligible for adjustment of status 
under subsection (a) of such section, except that the 
alien is unable to satisfy the 5-year residence re-
quirement described in subsection (a)(3)(A)(i) of 
such section, the Attorney General, notwithstanding 
such inability—
‘‘(A) shall accept the application in accord-
ance with subsection (b)(1) of such section if 
the application otherwise satisfies the require-
ments of section 245B; and 
‘‘(B) shall adjust the status of the alien to 
that of an alien lawfully admitted for perma-
nent residence on a conditional basis if the alien 
otherwise satisfies the requirements of section 
245B. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The Attorney General shall 
deem an alien described in paragraph (1) to have 
satisfied the 5-year residence requirement described 
in section 245B(a)(3)(A)(i), and shall adjust the sta-
tus of the alien under section 245B(a) and not 
under this section, if the alien establishes, before the 
application for adjustment of status under section 
245B is adjudicated (and subject to section
245B(a)(3)(A)(ii)), that period of residence in the 
United States—
‘‘(A) has remained continuous for not less 
than 5 years; or 
‘‘(B) will satisfy subparagraph (A) not 
later than the end of the 90-day period begin-
ning on such adjudication date. 
‘‘(b) FAMILY UNIFICATION.—In the case of a spouse 
or child of a principal alien who obtains permanent resi-
dent status on a conditional basis under subsection (a), 
the Attorney General shall provide for the concurrent 
granting of the same status to the spouse or child if, dis-
regarding the inability of the principal alien to satisfy the 
5-year residence 
requirement 
described 
in 
section 
245B(a)(3)(A)(i), the spouse or child is eligible for adjust-
ment of status under section 245B(g). 
‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS.—
Except as otherwise provided in this section, the provisions 
of subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (h) of section 245B 
shall apply under this section in the same manner as such 
provisions apply under section 245B. 
‘‘(d) NOTICE OF REQUIREMENTS.—
‘‘(1) AT TIME OF OBTAINING PERMANENT RESI-
DENCE.—At the time an alien obtains permanent 
resident status on a conditional basis under sub-
section (a) or (b), the Attorney General shall provide 
for notice to such alien respecting the provisions of 
this section and the requirements to have the condi-
tional basis of such status removed. 
‘‘(2) AT TIME OF REQUIRED PETITION.—In ad-
dition, the Attorney General shall attempt to provide 
notice to such alien, at or about the beginning of the 
90-day period described in subsection (e)(2), of such 
provisions and requirements. 
‘‘(3) EFFECT
OF
FAILURE
TO
PROVIDE
NO-
TICE.—The failure of the Attorney General to pro-
vide a notice under this subsection shall not affect 
the enforcement of the provisions of this section with 
respect to any alien. 
‘‘(e) REQUIREMENT OF TIMELY PETITION FOR RE-
MOVAL OF CONDITION ON PRINCIPAL ALIEN.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order for the conditional 
basis established under subsection (a) for an alien to 
be removed, the alien must submit to the Attorney 
General a petition which requests the removal of 
such conditional basis and which states, under pen-
alty of perjury, facts and information establishing—
‘‘(A) subject to section 245B(a)(3)(A)(ii), 
that the period of residence described in sub-
section (a) has remained continuous for not less 
than 5 years; 
‘‘(B) that the alien has never been inad-
missible under section 212(a)(4); and 
‘‘(C) subject to the exceptions described in 
section 245B(c)(2), that the alien satisfies the 
requirements of section 245B(a)(5). 
‘‘(2) SUBMISSION
PERIOD.—A petition under 
paragraph (1) shall be submitted during the 90-day 
period ending on the date that is 5 years after the 
date on which the alien commenced the period of 
residence described in subsection (a). 
‘‘(3) TERMINATION OF PERMANENT RESIDENT 
STATUS FOR FAILURE TO FILE PETITION.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an alien 
with permanent resident status on a conditional 
basis under subsection (a), if no petition is filed 
with respect to the alien in accordance with the 
provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2), the Attor-
ney General shall terminate the permanent resi-
dent status of the alien (and that of the alien’s 
spouse and children, if obtained under sub-
section (b)) as of the 5-year anniversary of the 
date on which the period of residence described 
in subsection (a) commenced.
‘‘(B) 
HEARING
IN
REMOVAL
PRO-
CEEDING.—In any removal proceeding with re-
spect to an alien whose permanent resident sta-
tus is terminated under subparagraph (A), the 
burden of proof shall be on the alien to estab-
lish compliance with the conditions of para-
graphs (1) and (2). 
‘‘(C) HARDSHIP
WAIVER.—The Attorney 
General, in the Attorney General’s discretion, 
may remove the conditional basis of the perma-
nent resident status for an alien who fails to 
meet the requirements of paragraphs (1) and 
(2) if the alien demonstrates that extreme hard-
ship would result if such alien is removed. 
‘‘(f) DETERMINATION AFTER PETITION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a petition is filed in ac-
cordance with the provisions of subsection (e), the 
Attorney General shall make a determination, within 
90 days of the date of the filing, as to whether the 
facts and information alleged in the petition are 
true. 
‘‘(2) REMOVAL OF CONDITIONAL BASIS IF FA-
VORABLE DETERMINATION.—
‘‘(A) PRINCIPAL ALIEN.—If the Attorney 
General determines that such facts and infor-
mation are true, the Attorney General shall so 
notify the parties involved and shall remove the 
conditional basis of the principal alien effective 
as of the 5th anniversary of the date on which 
the period of residence described in subsection 
(a) commenced. 
‘‘(B) SPOUSE
AND
CHILDREN.—In the 
case of a spouse or child with permanent resi-
dent status on a conditional basis under sub-
section (b), upon the removal of the principal 
alien’s conditional basis under subparagraph 
(B), the Attorney General shall determine 
whether the spouse or child satisfies the re-
quirement of section 245B(g)(1)(B). If the 
spouse or child is determined to satisfy such re-
quirement, the Attorney General shall so notify 
the parties involved and shall remove the condi-
tional basis of the spouse or child effective as 
of the 5th anniversary of the date on which the 
period of residence described in subsection (a) 
commenced. Otherwise, the Attorney General 
shall so notify the parties involved and shall 
terminate the permanent resident status of the 
spouse or child.
‘‘(3) TERMINATION
IF
ADVERSE
DETERMINA-
TION.—If the Attorney General determines that such 
facts and information are not true, the Attorney 
General shall so notify the parties involved and, sub-
ject to paragraph (4), shall terminate the permanent 
resident status of the principal alien (and that of the 
alien’s spouse and children, if obtained under sub-
section (b)). 
‘‘(4) HEARING IN REMOVAL PROCEEDING.—Any 
alien whose permanent resident status is terminated 
under paragraph (3) may request a review of such 
determination in a proceeding to remove the alien. 
In such proceeding, the burden of proof shall be on 
the Attorney General to establish, by a preponder-
ance of the evidence, that the facts and information 
required to be alleged in the petition are not true. 
‘‘(g) DETERMINATION OF WHETHER A CHILD.—For 
purposes of this section, a determination of whether an 
alien is a child shall be made using the age of the alien 
on the date on which the alien files an application for per-
manent residence under subsection (b). 
‘‘(h) TREATMENT OF PERIOD FOR PURPOSES OF 
NATURALIZATION.—For purposes of title III, in the case 
of an alien who is in the United States as a lawful perma-
nent resident on a conditional basis under this section, the
alien shall be considered to have been admitted as an alien 
lawfully admitted for permanent residence and to be in 
the United States as an alien lawfully admitted to the 
United States for permanent residence.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
245B the following:
‘‘Sec. 245C. Conditional permanent resident status for certain aliens ineligible 
for adjustment under section 245B.’’.
TITLE 
II—MODIFICATION 
OF 
PROVISIONS AFFECTING RE-
MOVAL OF ALIENS
SEC. 201. ELIMINATION OF RETROACTIVE APPLICATION OF 
CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE IMMIGRATION 
AND NATIONALITY ACT. 
(a) CANCELLATION OF REMOVAL.—Section 240A (8 
U.S.C. 1229b) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(f) APPLICATION OF LAW.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of this section, an alien who committed an 
offense that was a ground for deportation or exclusion 
prior to April 1, 1997, shall have the law in effect at the 
time of the offense apply with respect to any application 
for relief from deportation or exclusion on that ground. 
For purposes of determining eligibility for such relief, such 
alien shall be credited with any periods of residency in the
United States that the alien has accrued without regard 
to whether or not the residency occurred after the commis-
sion of the offense or service of a notice to appear under 
section 239(a).’’. 
(b) APPLICATION OF AGGRAVATED FELONY DEFINI-
TION.—The last sentence of section 101(a)(43) (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)(43)) is amended to read as follows: ‘‘The term 
shall not apply to any offense that was not covered by 
the term on the date on which the offense occurred.’’. 
(c) GROUNDS OF DEPORTABILITY.—Section 237 (8 
U.S.C. 1227) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this sec-
tion, an alien is not deportable by reason of committing 
any offense that was not a ground of deportability on the 
date the offense occurred.’’. 
(d) GROUNDS OF INADMISSIBILITY.—Section 212 (8 
U.S.C. 1182) is amended—
(1) by redesignating the subsection (p) added 
by section 1505(f) of P.L. 106–386 (114 Stat. 
1526) as a subsection (s); and 
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(t)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
section, an alien is not inadmissible by reason of commit-
ting any offense that was not a ground of inadmissibility 
on the date the offense occurred. 
‘‘(2) Any alien who applied for admission to the 
United States or adjustment of status to that of an alien 
lawfully admitted for permanent residence prior to April 
1, 1997, and was inadmissible under subsection (a)(6)(C), 
shall be eligible for the relief available (including any waiv-
er of inadmissibility) at the time the application was 
filed.’’. 
(e) PROSPECTIVE EFFECTIVE DATES.—
(1) ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION REFORM AND IMMI-
GRANT RESPONSIBILITY ACT.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, the Illegal Immigration Re-
form and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, and 
the amendments made by that Act, shall apply only 
to persons seeking admission, or who became inad-
missible or deportable, on or after April 1, 1997, as 
the case may be.
(2) ANTITERRORISM
AND
EFFECTIVE
DEATH 
PENALTY ACT OF 1996.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, title IV of the Antiterrorism and 
Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, and the 
amendments made by that title, shall only apply to 
persons seeking admission, or who become deport-
able, on or after April 24, 1996.
(3) REINSTATEMENT OF REMOVAL ORDERS.—
Section 241(a)(5) (8 U.S.C. 1231(a)(5)) is repealed, 
and such repeal shall apply to all proceedings pend-
ing at any stage as of the date of the enactment of 
this Act and to all cases brought on or after such 
date. 
SEC. 
202. 
RESTORATION 
OF 
PROPORTIONALITY 
TO 
GROUNDS OF REMOVAL. 
(a) DEFINITION OF CRIMES INVOLVING MORAL TUR-
PITUDE.—Section 
237(a)(2)(A)(i) 
(8 
U.S.C. 
1227(a)(2)(A)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(i) CRIMES OF MORAL TURPITUDE.—Any 
alien who is convicted of a crime involving 
moral turpitude committed within five years 
after the date of admissions (or 10 years in the 
case of an alien provided lawful permanent resi-
dence status under section 245(j)) for which the 
alien is confined in a prison or correctional in-
stitution for more than one year, is deport-
able.’’. 
(b) DEFINITION OF AGGRAVATED FELONY.—Section 
101(a)(43) (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(43)) is amended—
(1) in subparagraphs (F), (G), (J), (R), and 
(S), by striking ‘‘one year’’ each place it appears 
and inserting ‘‘five years’’;
(2) by amending subparagraph (N) (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)(43)(N)) to read as follows: 
‘‘(N) an offense described in section 274(a)(1) 
(relating to alien smuggling) for the purpose of com-
mercial advantage.’’; 
(3) 
in 
subparagraph 
(P)(ii) 
(8 
U.S.C. 
1101(a)(43)(P)(ii)), by striking ‘‘child’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘son or daughter’’; 
(4) in subparagraph (T), by striking ‘‘2 years’ ’’ 
and inserting ‘‘5 years’ ’’; and 
(5) by adding at the end of section 101(a)(43) 
the following: ‘‘No crime shall be deemed to be an 
aggravated felony if the underlying conviction is a 
misdemeanor or if the sentence imposed is not in ex-
cess of one year.’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall apply to convictions entered before, on, 
or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(d) CONVICTION DEFINED.—Section 101(a)(48)(A) 
(8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(48)(A)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as sub-
clauses (I) and (II), respectively; 
(2) by striking ‘‘(48)(A) The term’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘(48)(A)(i) Except as provided in clause (ii), the 
term’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(ii) For purposes of determinations under this Act, 
the term ‘conviction’ does not include any Federal, State, 
or foreign guilty plea or other record of guilt or conviction 
that has been expunged, dismissed, canceled, vacated, dis-
charged or otherwise removed, or any Federal, State, or 
foreign deferred adjudication, adjudication of guilt with-
held, order of probation without entry of judgment, or 
similar disposition.’’. 
(e) DEFINITION OF TERM OF IMPRISONMENT.—Sec-
tion 101(a)(48)(B) (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(48)(B)) is amended 
to read as follows: 
‘‘(B) Any reference to a term of imprisonment or a 
sentence with respect to an offense is deemed to include 
the period of incarceration or confinement ordered by a 
court of law excluding any period of the suspension of the 
imposition or execution of that imprisonment or sentence 
in whole or in part.’’. 
(f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) GROUND
OF
INADMISSIBILITY.—Section 
212(a)(6)(E) (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(6)(E)) is amend-
ed—
(A) in clause (i), by inserting ‘‘and for 
commercial advantage’’ after ‘‘knowingly’’; 
(B) by striking clause (ii); and
(C) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause 
(ii). 
(2) 
GROUND
OF
DEPORTABILITY.—Section 
237(a)(1)(E) (8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(1)(E)) is amend-
ed—
(A) in clause (i), by inserting ‘‘and for 
commercial advantage’’ after ‘‘knowingly’’; 
(B) by striking clause (ii); and 
(C) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause 
(ii). 
SEC. 203. ELIMINATION OF PROHIBITION ON ADMISSION 
FOR ALIENS WHO HAVE BEEN UNLAWFULLY 
PRESENT IN THE UNITED STATES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 212(a)(9) (8 U.S.C. 
1182(a)(9)) is amended—
(1) by striking subparagraph (B); and 
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as sub-
paragraph (B).
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 248 (8 
U.S.C. 1258) is amended by striking ‘‘and who is not in-
admissible under section 212(a)(9)(B)(i) (or whose inad-
missibility under such section is waived under section 
212(a)(9)(B)(v))’’.
TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS
SEC. 301. FAMILY UNIFICATION THROUGH CHANGE IN 
WORLDWIDE LEVEL OF FAMILY-SPONSORED 
IMMIGRANTS. 
Section 201(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act (8 U.S.C. 1151(c)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘the 
sum of the number of aliens described in subparagraphs 
(A) and (B) of subsection (b)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘the num-
ber of aliens described in subsection (b)(2)(B)’’.
SEC. 302. VISA FOR CERTAIN SPOUSES AND CHILDREN OF 
CITIZENS AND PERMANENT RESIDENTS TEM-
PORARILY WAITING FOR VISA NUMBERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 101(a)(15)(V) (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)(15)(V)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(V) subject to section 214(o), an alien (other 
than one coming for the purpose of study or of per-
forming skilled or unskilled labor or as a representa-
tive of foreign press, radio, film, or other foreign in-
formation media coming to engage in such vocation) 
who is the beneficiary of a petition approved 
under—
‘‘(i) section 204 (excluding the provisions 
of such section referred to in clause (ii)) for 
classification by reason of a relationship de-
scribed in section 203(a)(2)(A) with an alien
lawfully admitted for permanent residence, who 
is awaiting the availability of an immigrant visa 
based upon such approval, and who seeks to 
enter the United States to achieve family unity 
by joining the permanent resident alien in the 
United States; or 
‘‘(ii) clause (iii), (iv), or (v) of section 
204(a)(1)(A) or clause (ii), (iii), or (iv) of sec-
tion 204(a)(1)(B) and who is awaiting the 
availability of an immigrant visa based upon 
such approval.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 214 (8 
U.S.C. 1184) is amended—
(1) by redesignating the subsections (o) and (p) 
added by sections 1102(b) and 1103(b), respectively, 
of the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and 
State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appro-
priations Act, 2001, as enacted into law by section 
1(a)(2) of P.L. 106–553 as subsections (p) and (q); 
and 
(2) in subsection (p) (as so redesignated)—
(A) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by striking 
‘‘under section 203(a)(2)(A)’’ each place such 
term appears;
(B) by striking paragraph (2) and redesig-
nating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2); and 
(C) in paragraph (2)(C) (as so redesig-
nated), by striking ‘‘(6)(A), (7), and (9)(B)’’ 
and inserting ‘‘(6)(A) and (7)’’. 
TITLE IV—GENERAL 
PROVISIONS 
SEC. 401. REGULATIONS. 
The Attorney General shall promulgate regulations to 
implement this Act not more than 90 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 402. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro-
priated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this 
Act. 
(b) AVAILABILITY
OF
FUNDS.—Amounts appro-
priated pursuant to subsection (a) are authorized to re-
main available until expended. 
SEC. 403. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the amend-
ments made by this Act shall take effect on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.
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