Bill > HR7063

This bill, titled the "Student Visa Integrity Act of 2026," aims to enhance the student and exchange visitor visa programs by increasing criminal penalties for visa fraud to 15 years imprisonment for offenses related to an educational institution's participation in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), which is managed by the Department of Homeland Security to track foreign students and exchange visitors using the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). The bill mandates that academic institutions, language training programs, and other educational programs seeking to host international students must be accredited by agencies recognized by the Secretary of Education, with limited waivers available for institutions in the process of accreditation. It also requires reporting of full tuition payments, introduces stricter scrutiny for institutions with ties to the Chinese government, and imposes significant penalties, including fines and termination of program approval, for failing to comply with SEVIS reporting requirements. Furthermore, the bill allows for immediate suspension of SEVP certification and permanent disqualification for individuals convicted of certain serious crimes related to visa fraud or other offenses, and establishes a more rigorous eligibility review process for individuals involved in managing these programs, including background checks and training. It also restricts online education to a maximum of 10% of a student's coursework, prohibits flight training and nuclear studies for nationals of certain "countries of concern" and "foreign adversaries" like China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela, and sets definite end dates for student visa durations, generally not exceeding four years. Finally, the bill mandates the implementation of a modernized, paperless SEVIS II system and requires a GAO report to assess the effectiveness of these changes.

Justice

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7063/all-info