Sec. 1202. Protections for minors seeking asylum

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Section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1158 ) is amended— in subsection (a)(2), as amended by sections 1103 and 1104, by amending subparagraph

(E)to read as follows: Subparagraphs

(A)and

(B)shall not apply to an applicant who is younger than 18 years of age on the earlier of— the date on which the asylum application is filed; or the date on which any notice to appear is issued. ; and in subsection (b)(4), as added by section 1105, by adding at the end the following: An asylum officer (as defined in section 235(b)(1)(E)) shall have initial jurisdiction over any asylum application filed by an applicant who is younger than 18 years of age on the earlier of— the date on which the asylum application is filed; or the date on which any notice to appear is issued. . Section 208(b)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1158 ), as amended by section 1105, is further amended— in the paragraph heading, by striking and inserting and children ; , children, mothers, and fathers in subparagraph (A), by striking (as defined in section 101(b)(1)(A), (B), (C), (D), or (E)) of an alien and inserting (as defined in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), or

(H)of section 101(b)(1)) of an alien, or the mother or father of an alien who is such a child, ; and by amending subparagraph

(B)to read as follows: An unmarried alien who seeks to accompany, or follow to join, a mother or father granted asylum under this subsection, and any child of such unmarried alien, shall continue to be classified as a child for purposes of this paragraph and shall be considered a refugee, if— the alien was younger than 21 years of age on the date on which such mother or father applied for asylum under this section; and the alien attained 21 years of age while such application was pending. A mother or father who seeks to accompany, or follow to join, an alien granted asylum under this subsection shall continue to be classified as a mother or father for purposes of this paragraph, and together with the spouse or child of such mother or father, be considered a refugee, if the alien attained 21 years of age while such application was pending. . Section 235(a) of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232(a) ) is amended— by striking paragraph (2); by amending paragraph

(3)to read as follows: The custody of unaccompanied alien children who are apprehended at the border of the United States or at a United States port of entry shall be treated in accordance with subsection (b). ; by amending paragraph

(4)to read as follows: Within 48 hours of the apprehension of a child who is believed to be an unaccompanied alien child, the child shall be transferred to the Secretary of Health and Human Services and treated in accordance with subsection (b). Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to preclude an earlier transfer of a child. ; by amending paragraph

(5)to read as follows: Any unaccompanied alien child sought to be removed by the Department of Homeland Security shall be— placed in removal proceedings under section 240 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1229a ); eligible for relief under section 240B of that Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1229c ) at no cost to the child; and provided access to counsel in accordance with subsection (c)(5). ; and by redesignating paragraphs

(3)through

(5)as paragraphs

(2)through (4), respectively. Section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232 ) is amended— in subsection (c)(5), by striking , and who are not described in subsection (a)(2)(A), ; and in subsection (e), by striking , including children described in subsection (a)(2) . Section 235(a) of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232(a) ), as amended by subsection (c), is further amended by adding at the end the following: Upon identification as an unaccompanied alien child, a child shall be afforded all substantive and procedural protections provided for unaccompanied alien children under this section and any other Federal law for the duration of the child’s removal proceedings. The head of a Federal agency may not— reevaluate or revoke a determination that an individual is an unaccompanied alien child; or deny or impede access to any protections provided for unaccompanied alien children by Federal law, including on the basis of the individual’s reunification with a parent or legal guardian or the individual having attained 18 years of age. . The purposes of this subsection are— to ensure the safety and access to protection of children temporarily in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection by requiring the Secretary of Homeland Security to hire child welfare professionals; and to prevent unnecessary family separation through the deployment of officials of the Department of Health and Human Services to U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities to evaluate unaccompanied children arriving with non-parent, adult family members for reunification within 72 hours. The term child welfare professional means an individual who— is State-licensed in social work; has direct experience working with children; has expertise in— child development; and culturally competent, trauma-centered, and developmentally appropriate interviewing skills; has knowledge of Federal and State child welfare laws and standards; and is proficient in 1 or more of the most common languages spoken by children apprehended at the southern border of the United States. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that 1 or more child welfare professionals is available at each port of entry and Border Patrol station along the southern land border of the United States to accomplish the duties described in this subsection. The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall hire, or seek to enter into contracts with, child welfare professionals who shall— work onsite on a full-time basis at ports of entry or Border Patrol stations that have had not fewer than 25 children in custody— on any day during the preceding fiscal year; or during the fiscal year in which this Act is enacted based on a review of monthly statistical reports during the such fiscal year; remain available by telephone and videoconference on an on-call basis to U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel at ports of entry or Border Patrol stations that are not described in subclause (I). In the case of a child welfare professional who does not speak the best language of a child in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection at a port of entry or Border Patrol station along the southern land border of the United States, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide an interpreter. In accordance with the timeframe under subsections (a)(4) and (b)(3) of section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232 ), as amended by this Act, child welfare professionals placed as ports of entry and Border Patrol stations under subparagraph

(B)shall— conduct screening of each child in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection in accordance with such subsection (a)(4); ensure appropriate care of each child in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; ensure that any allegation of abuse or mistreatment of a child in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection is referred to the appropriate Federal and State authorities; with respect to a child who may meet the notification and transfer requirements under subsections

(a)and

(b)of section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232 ), including a child for whom a determination cannot be made, notify the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Assistant Secretary of the Office of Refugee Resettlement of the presence of such child at the port of entry or Border Patrol station; conduct an initial family relationship and trafficking assessment for each child in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and perform other duties as appropriate. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every quarter thereafter, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives a report that, for the preceding fiscal quarter— describes the activities carried out by child welfare professionals under this subsection; assesses the effectiveness of such activities; and includes non-personally identifiable data on all children screened by child welfare professionals under this subsection, including— the number and location of children in the physical custody of the Department of Homeland Security; the number of children transferred to the custody of the Secretary of Health and Human Services; and the number of children removed from the United States, and the countries of nationality of such children. Unaccompanied children encountered by the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection together with 1 or more adult family members who are not their parents or legal guardians shall be— transferred, along with those adult family members, to the nearest U.S. Customs and Border Protection reception center where field staff of the Department of Health and Human Services are onsite; and screened, along with the 1 or more adult family members, by such field staff shall to assess— the validity of the relationship between the child and 1 or more adult family members; the ability of the 1 or more adult family members to care for child; and any risk of trafficking or abuse from the 1 or more adult family members. In conducting the screening under subparagraph (A)(ii), the field staff of the Department of Health and Human Services shall interview the child— together with the 1 or more adult family members; and separately from the adult family member(s). In the case of young children and infants screened under this paragraph, in addition to evaluating the documentary evidence of relationship provided, the field staff of the Department of Health and Human Services shall observe the interactions between the children and their 1 or more adult family members. During the screening required by this paragraph, an unaccompanied child described in subparagraph

(A)shall remain in the legal custody of the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection for not more than 72 hours. If field staff of the Health and Human Services determine that an adult family member is a safe sponsor, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, absent exigent circumstances, shall approve the sponsor for release and transfer custody of the child from the Commissioner to the Secretary of Health and Human Services in a designated space so that the Office of Refugee Resettlement may promptly reunify the child directly with the adult sponsor. The Assistant Secretary of the Office of Refugee Resettlement shall ensure that any child approved for release with their family sponsor under this subparagraph is referred to a legal services provider funded by the Department of Health and Human Services to represent the child post-release. In any case in which Department of Health and Human Services field staff cannot approve a child’s reunification not later than 72 hours after the time at which the child is apprehended— the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall transfer custody of the child to the Secretary of Health and Human Services for placement in Office of Refugee Resettlement care in the least restrictive setting in the child’s best interest, as required by section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008; and the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall appoint an independent child advocate to the child upon the child's arrival in Office of Refugee Resettlement care. The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall work with stakeholders to ensure that legal staff are detailed to U.S. Customs and Border Protection reception centers sites to provide legal orientation presentations to unaccompanied children while their 1 or more adult family members are evaluated by Department of Health and Human Services field staff. Nothing in this subsection may be construed to modify— the definition of the term unaccompanied alien child under section 462(g)(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 279(g)(2) ); the obligation of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to take a child into custody, and if the child cannot be reunified with the adult family member as set forth in paragraph (3)(E) to place the child in the least restrictive setting in their best interests, consistent with section 279(g) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 279(g) ) or section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232 ); or the duration of the unaccompanied alien child determination and associated legal protections under section 235 of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 ( 8 U.S.C. 1232 ). Section 201(b)(1)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1151(b)(1)(A) ) is amended by striking subparagraph

(A)or

(B)and inserting subparagraph (A), (B), or

(J). Section 203(b)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(4) ) is amended by striking subparagraph

(A)or

(B)and inserting subparagraph (A), (B), or

(J).

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