I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3651
To account for all aliens unlawfully present in the United States by providing 
incentives for such aliens to register with the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, to provide immunity from criminal prosecution for the employer 
of such an alien if the employer pays all taxes and penalties owed 
by reason of such employment, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 8, 2003
Mr. ISSA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To account for all aliens unlawfully present in the United 
States by providing incentives for such aliens to register 
with the Secretary of Homeland Security, to provide 
immunity from criminal prosecution for the employer 
of such an alien if the employer pays all taxes and 
penalties owed by reason of such employment, 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 ‘‘Alien Accountability 
Act’’.
SEC. 2. ACCOUNTING FOR ALL UNLAWFULLY PRESENT 
ALIENS. 
(a) REGISTRATION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of each alien un-
lawfully present in the United States on December 
8, 2003 (or in the case of each alien who is a resi-
dent in a foreign contiguous territory and was habit-
ually unlawfully present in the United States during 
the 6-month period ending on December 8, 2003) 
who registers with the Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity during the 6-month period beginning on a date 
(not later than 180 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act) designated by the Secretary, and 
provides the Secretary with such biometric identi-
fiers as the Secretary may require—
(A) if the alien is eligible for adjustment of 
status under section 251 of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (as added by section 3 of 
this Act), the Secretary shall permit the alien to 
apply for such adjustment; or 
(B) if the alien is not so eligible, or does 
not desire to apply for such adjustment, and 
has not been determined by an immigration 
judge to be inadmissible under paragraph (2) or 
(3) of section 212(a) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)) or deport-
able under paragraph (2)(A)(iii) or (4) of sec-
tion 237(a) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1227(a))—
(i) the Secretary shall permit the alien 
voluntarily to depart the United States at 
the alien’s own expense in lieu of being 
subject to proceedings under section 240 of 
such Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a) during a vol-
untary departure period not exceeding 120 
days; and 
(ii) if the alien does so depart, the 
Secretary shall disregard such unlawful 
presence in the United States (and the 
alien’s unlawful entrance into the United 
States, where applicable) for purposes of 
any determination under such Act, or any 
other immigration law of the United 
States, made subsequent to such depar-
ture. 
(2) EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE
JOINT
REGISTRA-
TION.—An alien unlawfully present in the United 
States may register under paragraph (1) alone or to-
gether with the alien’s present or former employer. 
(3) EMPLOYER NOTIFICATION OF UNLAWFULLY 
EMPLOYED ALIEN.—If an employer desires to make 
a joint registration described in paragraph (2) with
an alien who has not yet registered under paragraph 
(1), but the alien refuses to do so, the employer may 
notify the Secretary of Homeland Security of such 
refusal. 
(b) IMMUNITY FROM FINES AND PENALTIES FOR 
UNLAWFUL EMPLOYMENT OF ALIENS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an employer 
who submits a joint registration described in sub-
section (a)(2) or a notification described in sub-
section (a)(3), if the employer pays to the Secretary 
of the Treasury any Federal tax (including penalties 
and interest) owed by reason of the employment of 
the alien, the employer shall considered relieved of li-
ability for any violation of section 274A of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a) aris-
ing out of such employment. Such immunity shall 
cover employment of the alien from the commence-
ment of such employment through the earlier of—
(A) the end of the application period de-
scribed in section 251(a)(1) of such Act (as 
added by section 3 of this Act), if the alien fails 
to submit an application under such section; or 
(B) the date on which the application of 
the alien under such section is finally adju-
dicated.
(2) RECOUPMENT
OF
CERTAIN
COSTS.—The 
Secretary of the Treasury may impose a fee on an 
employer paying taxes, penalties, or interest under 
paragraph (1), to be set at a level necessary to re-
cover the costs of collecting and processing such 
payments. 
(3) PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO STATES.—
The Secretary of the Treasury shall provide to any 
State in which an employer conducts (or has con-
ducted) business information that is collected by the 
Federal Government pursuant to the employer’s sub-
mission of a joint registration described in sub-
section (a)(2) or a notification described in sub-
section (a)(3), or pursuant to the employer’s pay-
ment of taxes, penalties, or interest under paragraph 
(1), but only if the State agrees to accept payment 
of all State and local taxes (including penalties and 
interest) owed by the employer in lieu of criminal 
prosecution. 
(c) EXIT PROGRAM.—The Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity shall implement an exit program to ensure that ap-
propriate data are collected about aliens departing volun-
tarily under subsection (a)(1)(B). 
(d) MINORS.—In the case of an alien who is under 
18 years of age, a parent or legal guardian of the alien
may exercise the authorities under this section on behalf 
of the alien. 
(e) LIMITATION
ON
REGISTRATION.—Any alien 
whose unlawful presence in the United States is known 
to officials of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement of the Department of Homeland Security (as 
evidenced by documentary records) at any time prior to 
the alien’s registration under this section is ineligible for 
such registration. Any purported registration by such an 
alien, or any purported notification made by an employer 
under subsection (a)(3) with respect to such an alien, shall 
be deemed null and void. 
(f) LIMITATIONS ON VOLUNTARY DEPARTURE.—
(1) FINANCIAL MEANS.—No alien may be per-
mitted to depart voluntarily under this section un-
less the alien has established by clear and convincing 
evidence that the alien has the means to depart the 
United States and intends to do so. 
(2) BOND.—An alien permitted to depart volun-
tarily under this section shall be required to post a 
voluntary departure bond, in an amount necessary to 
ensure that the alien will depart, to be surrendered 
upon proof that the alien has departed the United 
States within the time specified.
(3) ALIENS NOT ELIGIBLE.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall not permit an alien to de-
part voluntarily under this section if the alien is sub-
ject to pending civil or criminal proceedings, impris-
oned, sentenced to imprisonment, or on parole, su-
pervised release, or probation. 
(4) CIVIL
PENALTY
FOR
FAILURE
TO
DE-
PART.—In addition to being subject to removal pro-
ceedings under section 240 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a), if an alien is per-
mitted to depart voluntarily under this section and 
fails to do so within the time period specified, the 
alien shall be subject to a civil penalty in accordance 
with section 240B(d) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 
1229c(d)). 
SEC. 3. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS FOR CERTAIN REG-
ISTRANTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title II of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255 et seq.) is 
amended by inserting after section 250 the following: 
‘‘SEC. 251. ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS FOR CERTAIN REG-
ISTRANTS. 
‘‘(a) ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall adjust the status of an alien who 
has registered under section 2(a) of the Alien Account-
ability Act to that of a nonimmigrant under section 
101(a)(15)(W) if the alien meets the following require-
ments: 
‘‘(1) APPLICATION PERIOD.—The alien applies 
for such adjustment during the 6-month period be-
ginning on a date designated by the Secretary and 
occurring not later than 6 months after the termi-
nation of the registration period described in such 
section. 
‘‘(2) FEE.—The alien (or a present or former 
employer of the alien) pays a fee established by the 
Secretary in accordance with subsection (g). 
‘‘(3) ABANDONMENT OF OTHER APPLICATIONS 
FOR RELIEF.—The alien must withdraw or otherwise 
demonstrate voluntary abandonment or termination 
of any other application for relief from removal 
under this Act, or any other Federal immigration 
law, which may have been pending prior to the sub-
mission of the application under paragraph (1), and 
the alien must permanently relinquish the oppor-
tunity subsequently to submit any such application. 
‘‘(4) EMPLOYMENT
OR
SPONSORSHIP.—The 
alien, or an employer or other sponsor of the alien, 
has satisfied the requirements of subsection (b).
‘‘(5) CONTINUOUS UNLAWFUL RESIDENCE OR 
HABITUAL PRESENCE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The alien must estab-
lish that the alien entered the United States be-
fore December 8, 2003, and has resided con-
tinuously in the United States in an unlawful 
status since such date and through the date the 
application is filed under this subsection. 
‘‘(B) NONIMMIGRANTS.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an 
alien who entered the United States as a 
nonimmigrant before December 8, 2003, 
the alien must establish that the alien’s pe-
riod of authorized stay as a nonimmigrant 
expired before such date through the pas-
sage of time. 
‘‘(ii) EXCHANGE
VISITORS.—If the 
alien was at any time a nonimmigrant ex-
change 
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 sec-
tion 212(e) or has fulfilled that require-
ment or received a waiver thereof.
‘‘(C) HABITUAL BORDER CROSSERS.—Not-
withstanding subparagraph (A), in the case of 
an alien who is a resident of a foreign contig-
uous territory and has not established a resi-
dence in the United States, the alien must es-
tablish that the alien was habitually unlawfully 
present in the United States during the 6-
month period ending on December 8, 2003. 
‘‘(6) 
CRIMINAL, 
SECURITY, 
OR
RELATED 
GROUNDS.—The alien must establish that the alien 
has not been determined by an immigration judge to 
be inadmissible under paragraph (2) or (3) of sec-
tion 
212(a) 
or 
deportable 
under 
paragraph 
(2)(A)(iii) or (4) of section 237(a). 
‘‘(7) COOPERATION.—The alien must have pro-
vided truthful answers to all questions posed by offi-
cials of the Department of Homeland Security, and 
otherwise have cooperated in investigative efforts by 
such officials. 
‘‘(b) MEANS OF SUPPORT.—
‘‘(1) EMPLOYMENT.—An employer employing 
an alien in the United States may demonstrate (to 
the satisfaction of the Secretary pursuant to such 
standards as the Secretary shall by regulations es-
tablish) that such employment produces adequate
means financially to support the alien, and depend-
ents of the alien, for the duration of the period dur-
ing which the alien will be a nonimmigrant described 
in section 101(a)(15)(W). Alternatively, if the em-
ployer of the alien does not desire to make such 
demonstration, the alien may do so using adequate 
employment documentation established by the Sec-
retary. 
‘‘(2) SPONSORSHIP.—In the case of an alien 
who is not able to satisfy the requirements of para-
graph (1), if the alien is a financial dependent of an-
other individual, the alien may demonstrate (to the 
satisfaction of the Secretary pursuant to such stand-
ards as the Secretary shall by regulations establish) 
that such individual possesses lawful means ade-
quately to support the alien financially and has 
agreed (in a legally enforceable writing promulgated 
by the Secretary under such regulations) to provide 
such support for the duration of the period during 
which the alien will be a nonimmigrant described in 
section 101(a)(15)(W). 
‘‘(c) IDENTIFICATION DOCUMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each alien provided status 
under section 101(a)(15)(W) shall be given an iden-
tification document that uses biometric identifiers.
In carrying out the preceding sentence, the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security shall select from among 
biometric identifiers recognized by domestic and 
international standards organizations. 
‘‘(2) COST.—The cost of producing and issuing 
the identification documents described in paragraph 
(1) shall be taken into account in establishing fees 
under subsection (g). 
‘‘(d) BENEFITS.——
‘‘(1) WORK AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall authorize an adult alien 
whose status has been adjusted under subsection (a) 
to engage in employment in the United States dur-
ing the term of the alien’s lawful status and shall 
provide the alien with an ‘employment authorized’ 
endorsement or other appropriate document signi-
fying authorization of employment. 
‘‘(2) CHANGE IN NONIMMIGRANT CLASSIFICA-
TION; ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.—In the case of a 
nonimmigrant having lawful status under section 
101(a)(15)(W), the Secretary of Homeland Security 
may authorize a change of nonimmigrant classifica-
tion, or may adjust the status of the alien to that 
of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent resi-
dence, if the alien otherwise satisfies the require-
ments for such change or adjustment. 
‘‘(3) TRAVEL
ABROAD.—The Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall permit the alien to travel 
abroad for temporary periods without the prior con-
sent of the Secretary during periods of lawful status 
as a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(W). 
‘‘(4) INAPPLICABILITY
OF
CERTAIN
GROUNDS 
FOR REMOVAL.—For purposes of obtaining the bene-
fits described in this subsection, and for purposes of 
any other determination under the immigration laws 
of the United States, any ground for removal or de-
nial of admission applicable to an alien granted sta-
tus under section 101(a)(15)(W) shall be dis-
regarded if the ground is reflected in the records of 
the Department of Homeland Security or the De-
partment of State on the date on which the alien 
first applied for such status. 
‘‘(5) SPECIAL
RULE
FOR
HABITUAL
BORDER 
CROSSERS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 
this section, in the case of an alien described in sub-
section (a)(5)(C), the Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity shall have the discretion to impose conditions on 
the alien’s status under section 101(a)(15)(W) de-
signed to permit the alien to engage solely in those
activities in the United States in which the alien en-
gaged during the 6-month period described in sub-
section (a)(5)(C). 
‘‘(6) FAMILY MEMBERS MAY NOT FOLLOW TO 
JOIN.—No relative of an alien having status under 
section 101(a)(15)(W) may follow to join the alien. 
‘‘(e) MINORS.—In the case of an alien who is under 
18 years of age, a parent or legal guardian of the alien 
may exercise the authorities under this section on behalf 
of the alien. 
‘‘(f) PERIOD OF AUTHORIZED ADMISSION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The initial period of au-
thorized admission as a nonimmigrant described in 
section 101(a)(15)(W) shall be 1 year. 
‘‘(2) RENEWAL.—Such initial period may be re-
newed by the Secretary of Homeland Security up to 
5 times, in 1-year increments. The Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall impose a fee on applicants 
for status renewal in accordance with subsection (g). 
Renewal shall be contingent on the alien, or an em-
ployer or other sponsor of the alien, demonstrating 
continuous satisfaction of the employment or spon-
sorship requirements of subsection (b). 
‘‘(3) EMPLOYMENT
OR
SPONSORSHIP
TERMI-
NATION.—If at any time the employment or sponsor-
ship conditions described in subsection (b) that were 
the predicate for an initial or subsequent grant of 
status 
as 
a 
nonimmigrant 
under 
section 
101(a)(15)(W) terminate or change, the non-
immigrant shall notify the Secretary of Homeland 
Security. The Secretary shall grant the alien 30 
days to arrange new employment or sponsorship so 
as to satisfy such conditions. Such 30-day period 
may be extended by the Secretary in 30-day incre-
ments not more than twice. If the alien is unable to 
satisfy such conditions within the period granted by 
the Secretary, the Secretary shall terminate the 
alien’s authorization to remain in the United States. 
If the Secretary determines that an alien has failed 
to comply with the notification requirement of this 
paragraph, the Secretary shall terminate the alien’s 
authorization to remain in the United States. 
‘‘(g) AMOUNT OF FEES.—Fees collected under sub-
section (a)(2), and upon renewal of nonimmigrant status 
pursuant to subsection (f)(2), shall be set at a level that 
ensures recovery of at least the following costs: 
‘‘(1) The cost of processing applications for ad-
justment of status under subsection (a)(1) and ap-
plications for status renewal under subsection (f)(2).
‘‘(2) Other costs of administering this section 
and section 2 of the Alien Accountability Act. 
‘‘(3) The cost of increasing the personnel of the 
Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement 
by the number established under section 5(a)(2) of 
such Act. 
‘‘(h) SUNSET.—The authority of the Secretary of 
Homeland Security to adjust the status of an alien under 
subsection (a) shall expire 6 years after the first day on 
which any alien is provided status under section 
101(a)(15)(W). 
‘‘(i) WORK AUTHORIZATION FOR APPLICANTS.—The 
Secretary of Homeland Security may authorize an alien 
who has applied for adjustment of status under subsection 
(a) to engage in employment in the United States during 
the pendency of such application and may provide the 
alien with an ‘employment authorized’ endorsement or 
other appropriate document signifying authorization of 
employment, except that if such application is pending for 
a period exceeding 180 days, and has not been denied, 
the Secretary shall authorize such employment. Notwith-
standing the preceding sentence, the Secretary shall not 
be required to authorize employment for an alien described 
in subsection (a)(5)(C) unless the alien engaged in em-
ployment in the United States during the 6-month period 
described in such subsection.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
for the Immigration and Nationality Act is amended by 
inserting after the item relating to section 250 the fol-
lowing:
‘‘Sec. 251. Adjustment of status for certain registrants.’’.
SEC. 4. NEW NONIMMIGRANT VISA CATEGORY. 
Section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nation-
ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)) is amended—
(1) in subparagraph (U), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 
the end; 
(2) in subparagraph (V), by striking the period 
at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(W) an alien whose status is adjusted under 
section 251.’’. 
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR IN-
CREASE IN NUMBER OF CERTAIN IMMIGRA-
TION-RELATED PERSONNEL. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro-
priated for fiscal year 2005 and subsequent fiscal years 
such sums as may be necessary to enable the Secretary 
of Homeland Security to increase, above the number of 
positions for which funds were allotted for the preceding 
fiscal year, the total number of personnel of the Bureau