summary
Introduced
08/21/2020
08/21/2020
In Committee
08/21/2020
08/21/2020
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
12/31/2020
12/31/2020
Introduced Session
116th Congress
Bill Summary
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to expand premium processing for certain immigration benefits, and for other purposes. This bill expands Department of Homeland Security (DHS) authority to provide premium processing services for certain immigration-related applications and contains other related provisions. DHS may collect a fee to provide premium processing of an application for any immigration benefit that DHS considers appropriate, subject to certain requirements. Currently, DHS only has statutory authority to provide premium processing for employment-based applications. Under current law, DHS must use such premium fees to provide premium processing services and make infrastructure improvements. Under this bill, such fees shall be used for these purposes and other activities that offset the cost of providing adjudication and naturalization services.DHS may suspend premium processing of applications only if circumstances prevent the timely processing of a significant number of such applications. DHS shall provide those who have requested premium processing with access to case status information and communications channels to the premium processing units. DHS may expand premium processing to certain immigrant benefits and set fees for such processing without following certain rulemaking procedures if DHS meets certain requirements, such as limiting the premium fee to specified amounts. The bill also increases the premium fees charged to applicants. DHS may, subject to requirements, biennially adjust premium fees to reflect inflation without following certain rulemaking requirements.
AI Summary
This bill, the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization Act, expands the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) authority to provide premium processing services for certain immigration-related applications, such as employment-based petitions and applications to change or extend nonimmigrant status. The bill allows DHS to collect a fee for premium processing, which will be used to provide those services, make improvements to adjudication processes, and offset the cost of providing adjudication and naturalization services. The bill also sets specific fee and processing time requirements for certain benefit requests, such as petitions for classification under section 203(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and applications to change status to certain nonimmigrant classifications. Additionally, the bill requires DHS to develop a plan and provide regular updates to Congress on efforts to improve electronic filing, fee payment, and processing times for all immigration and naturalization benefit requests.
Committee Categories
Justice
Sponsors (7)
Zoe Lofgren (D)*,
Ken Buck (R),
Emanuel Cleaver (D),
Jeff Fortenberry (R),
Jerry Nadler (D),
Jamie Raskin (D),
Peter Welch (D),
Last Action
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. (on 08/21/2020)
Official Document
bill text
bill summary
Loading...
bill summary
Loading...
bill summary
| Document Type | Source Location |
|---|---|
| State Bill Page | https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/8078/all-info |
| BillText | https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr8078/BILLS-116hr8078ih.pdf |
| Bill | https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/hr8078/BILLS-116hr8078ih.pdf.pdf |
Loading...