I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4467 
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for visas for 
certain advanced STEM graduates, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 10, 2014 
Mr. CAPUANO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide 
for visas for certain advanced STEM graduates, 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 ‘‘Best Return on America’s Investment 
Now Act’’; or 
(2) the ‘‘BRAIN Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. IMMIGRANT VISAS FOR CERTAIN ADVANCED STEM 
GRADUATES. 
(a) PREFERENCE ALLOCATION FOR EMPLOYMENT- 
BASED IMMIGRANTS.—Section 203(b) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraph (6) as para-
graph (7); and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(6) ALIENS
HOLDING
DOCTORATE
DEGREES 
FROM
U.S. DOCTORAL
INSTITUTIONS
OF
HIGHER 
EDUCATION IN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEER-
ING, OR MATHEMATICS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Visas shall be made 
available, in a number not to exceed 10 percent 
of such worldwide level, to qualified immigrants 
who— 
‘‘(i) hold a doctorate degree in a field 
of science, technology, engineering, or 
mathematics from a United States doctoral 
institution of higher education; and 
‘‘(ii) have taken all doctoral courses in 
a field of science, technology, engineering, 
or mathematics, including all courses taken 
by correspondence (including courses of-
fered by telecommunications) or by dis-
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tance education, while physically present in 
the United States. 
‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 
paragraph: 
‘‘(i) The term ‘distance education’ has 
the meaning given such term in section 
103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1003). 
‘‘(ii) The term ‘field of science, tech-
nology, 
engineering, 
or 
mathematics’ 
means a field included in the Department 
of Education’s Classification of Instruc-
tional Programs taxonomy within the sum-
mary groups of computer and information 
sciences and support services, engineering, 
mathematics and statistics, and physical 
sciences. 
‘‘(iii) The term ‘United States doc-
toral institution of higher education’ means 
an institution that— 
‘‘(I) 
is 
described 
in 
section 
101(a) of the Higher Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)) or is a 
proprietary institution of higher edu-
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cation (as defined in section 102(b) of 
such Act (20 U.S.C. 1002(b))); and 
‘‘(II) was classified by the Car-
negie Foundation for the Advance-
ment of Teaching on January 1, 
2012, as a doctorate-granting univer-
sity with a very high or high level of 
research activity or classified by the 
National Science Foundation after the 
date of enactment of this paragraph, 
pursuant to an application by the in-
stitution, as having equivalent re-
search activity to those institutions 
that had been classified by the Car-
negie Foundation as being doctorate- 
granting universities with a very high 
or high level of research activity.’’. 
(b) PROCEDURE FOR GRANTING IMMIGRANT STA-
TUS.—Section 204(a)(1)(E) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 
1154(a)(1)(E)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘(E)’’ and inserting ‘‘(E)(i)’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘203(b)(1)(A),’’ and inserting 
‘‘203(b)(1)(A) or 203(b)(6),’’; 
(3) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Security’’; and 
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(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(ii) The following processing standards 
shall apply with respect to petitions under 
clause (i) relating to alien beneficiaries quali-
fying under section 203(b)(6): 
‘‘(I) The Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity shall adjudicate such petitions not 
later than 60 days after the date on which 
the petition is filed. In the event that addi-
tional information or documentation is re-
quested by the Secretary during such 60- 
day period, the Secretary shall adjudicate 
the petition not later than 30 days after 
the date on which such information or doc-
umentation is received. 
‘‘(II) The petitioner shall be notified 
in writing within 30 days of the date of fil-
ing if the petition does not meet the stand-
ards for approval. If the petition does not 
meet such standards, the notice shall in-
clude the reasons therefore and the Sec-
retary shall provide an opportunity for the 
prompt resubmission of a modified peti-
tion.’’. 
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(c) SKILLED
WORKERS, PROFESSIONALS, 
AND 
OTHER WORKERS.—Section 203(b)(3)(A) of such Act (8 
U.S.C. 1153(b)(3)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘28.6’’ and 
inserting ‘‘25.74’’. 
(d) GAO STUDY.—Not later than June 30, 2018, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall provide to 
the Congress the results of a study on the use by the Na-
tional Science Foundation of the classification authority 
provided under section 203(b)(6)(B)(iii)(II) of the Immi-
gration 
and 
Nationality 
Act 
(8 
U.S.C. 
1153(b)(6)(B)(iii)(II)), as added by this section. 
(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall take effect on October 1, 2014, and shall 
apply with respect to fiscal years beginning on or after 
such date. Nothing in the preceding sentence shall be con-
strued to prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security 
from accepting before such date petitions under section 
204(a)(1)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(E)) relating to alien beneficiaries quali-
fying under section 203(b)(6) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 
1153(b)(6)) (as added by this section). 
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SEC. 3. NUMERICAL LIMITATION TO ANY SINGLE FOREIGN 
STATE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(a)(2) of the Immi-
gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(a)(2)) is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘subsections (a) and (b)’’ and 
inserting ‘‘subsection (a), and paragraphs (3), (4), 
and (5) of subsection (b),’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘such subsections’’ and inserting 
‘‘such provisions’’. 
(b) 
RULES
FOR
EMPLOYMENT-BASED
IMMI-
GRANTS.—Section 202(a)(5) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 
1152(a)(5)) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘(1), (2), 
(3), (4), or (5)’’ and inserting ‘‘(3), (4), or (5)’’; and 
(2) in subparagraph (B)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘paragraphs (3), (4), and 
(5) of’’ before ‘‘section 203(b) exceeds’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘section 203(b) consistent’’ 
and inserting ‘‘such paragraphs consistent’’. 
(c) SPECIAL RULES FOR COUNTRIES AT CEILING.— 
Section 202(e) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1152(e)) is amend-
ed— 
(1) by striking ‘‘subsections (a) and (b)’’ each 
place such term appears and inserting ‘‘subsection 
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