Title: Uniting Families Act of 2017
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Uniting Families Act of 2017
This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish a non-immigrant W-visa category for an alien who: (1) is 18 or older and is the genetic son or daughter of a U.S. citizen who served in the Armed Forces on active duty abroad, or (2) is the spouse or child of such alien and is accompanying, or following to join, such alien.
A visa shall not be issued until a petition has been filed in the United States by the applicant's citizen parent and approved by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Such petition shall include:
The bill provides that: (1) the period of authorized admission for a W-visa alien is five years, which may be extended for one additional two-year period; and (2) the total number of principal W-visa aliens who may be admitted during any fiscal is 5,000.
The bill prescribes the criteria that a W-visa alien must meet in order to adjust to lawful permanent resident status, including an understanding of the English language and U.S. history. (Such language and history requirements for naturalization purposes shall not apply to a person who has satisfied them in adjusting from W-visa status to lawful permanent resident status.)


[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1520 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1520

    To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for the 
   admission of certain sons and daughters of citizens of the United 
States, which citizens served on active duty in the Armed Forces of the 
             United States abroad, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 13, 2017

   Mr. Kind 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 the 
   admission of certain sons and daughters of citizens of the United 
States, which citizens served on active duty in the Armed Forces of the 
             United States abroad, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Uniting Families Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. ADMISSION OF CERTAIN SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF CITIZENS OF THE 
              UNITED STATES WHO SERVED IN THE ARMED FORCES.

    (a) Classification as a Nonimmigrant.--Section 101(a)(15) of the 
Immigration and Nationality 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 inserting after subparagraph (V) the following:
                    ``(W) subject to section 214(s), an alien who--
                            ``(i) is 18 years of age or older and is 
                        the genetic son or daughter of a citizen of the 
                        United States, which citizen served on active 
                        duty in the Armed Forces of the United States 
                        abroad; or
                            ``(ii) is the spouse or child of an alien 
                        described in clause (i) and is accompanying, or 
                        following to join, the alien.''.
    (b) Requirements for Admission.--Section 214 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(s)(1) A visa shall not be issued under section 101(a)(15)(W) 
until a petition has been filed in the United States by the citizen 
parent of the visa applicant and approved by the Secretary of Homeland 
Security.
    ``(2) The petition shall be in such form and contain such 
information as the Secretary of Homeland Security shall prescribe, and 
shall include the following information:
            ``(A) DNA evidence that establishes that the beneficiary is 
        the genetic child of the petitioner.
            ``(B) An agreement in writing that the parent will provide 
        financial support for the beneficiary until the beneficiary's 
        status is adjusted to the status of an alien lawfully admitted 
        for permanent residence.
            ``(C) Information that establishes that the petitioner--
                    ``(i) is a citizen of the United States; and
                    ``(ii) served on active duty in the Armed Forces of 
                the United States abroad.
    ``(3) The period of authorized admission for an alien admitted to 
the United States as a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(W) shall 
be 5 years, which may be extended for one additional 2-year period.
    ``(4) The total number of principal aliens who may be admitted 
under section 101(a)(15)(W) during any fiscal year may not exceed 
5,000.''.
    (c) Adjustment of Status.--Section 245 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(n)(1) The Secretary of Homeland Security may adjust the status 
of an alien admitted to the United States as a nonimmigrant under 
section 101(a)(15)(W) to that of an alien lawfully admitted for 
permanent residence if the alien--
            ``(A) is admissible to the United States as an immigrant; 
        and
            ``(B) satisfies the requirements under section 312, unless 
        the alien is a child described in section 101(a)(15)(W)(ii) who 
        is under the age of 18.
    ``(2) The numerical limitations of sections 201 and 202 shall not 
apply to the adjustment of aliens to lawful permanent resident status 
under this subsection.''.
    (d) Naturalization.--Section 312(b) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1423(b)) is amended by inserting at the end 
the following:
            ``(4) The requirements of subsection (a) shall not apply to 
        any person who has satisfied such requirements under section 
        245(n)(1)(B).''.
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