Sec. 3. Conditional permanent resident status for immigrants with an advanced degree in a STEM field
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Chapter 2 of title II of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1181 et seq. ) is amended by inserting after section 216A the following: Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security may adjust the status of not more than 50,000 aliens who have earned a master’s degree or a doctorate degree at an institution of higher education in a STEM field to that of an alien conditionally admitted for permanent residence and authorize each alien granted such adjustment of status to remain in the United States— for up to 1 year after the expiration of the alien’s student visa under section 101(a)(15)(F)(i) if the alien is diligently searching for an opportunity to become actively engaged in a STEM field; and indefinitely if the alien remains actively engaged in a STEM field.
Every alien applying for a conditional permanent resident status under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary of Homeland Security before the expiration of the alien's student visa in such form and manner as the Secretary shall prescribe by regulation. An alien granted conditional permanent resident status under this section shall not be eligible, while in such status, for— any unemployment compensation (as defined in section 85(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986); or any Federal means-tested public benefit (as that term is used in section 403 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1613)).
An alien granted conditional permanent resident status under this section shall be deemed to have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence for purposes of meeting the 5-year residency requirement set forth in section 316(a)(1). The Secretary of Homeland Security shall remove the conditional basis of an alien’s conditional permanent resident status under this section on the date that is 5 years after the date such status was granted if the alien maintained his or her eligibility for such status during the entire 5-year period.
In this section: The term actively engaged in a STEM field — means— gainfully employed in a for-profit business or nonprofit organization in the United States in a STEM field; teaching 1 or more STEM field courses at an institution of higher education; or employed by a Federal, State, or local government entity; and includes any period of up to 6 months during which the alien does not meet the requirement under subparagraph
(A)if such period was immediately preceded by a 1-year period during which the alien met the requirement under subparagraph (A). The term institution of higher education has the meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1001(a) ). The term STEM field means any field of study or occupation included on the most recent STEM-Designated Degree Program List published in the Federal Register by the Department of Homeland Security (as described in section 214.2(f)(11)(i)(C)(2) of title 8, Code of Federal Regulations). . The table of contents for the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq. ) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 216A the following: Sec. 216B. Conditional permanent resident status for aliens with an advanced degree in a STEM field. . Not later than 3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report on the alien college graduates granted immigrant status under section 216B of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as added by subsection (a). The report described in paragraph
(1)shall include— the number of aliens described in paragraph
(1)who have earned a master’s degree, broken down by the number of such degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; the number of aliens described in paragraph
(1)who have earned a doctorate degree, broken down by the number of such degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; the number of aliens described in paragraph
(1)who have founded a business in the United States in a STEM field; the number of aliens described in paragraph
(1)who are employed in the United States in a STEM field, broken down by employment sector (for profit, nonprofit, or government); and the number of aliens described in paragraph
(1)who are employed by an institution of higher education. The terms institution of higher education and STEM field have the meaning given such terms in section 216B(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as added by subsection (a).
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Sec. 3
Conditional permanent resident status for immigrants with an advanced degree in a STEM field
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