Sec. 6. Improving efficiency and oversight of refugee and special immigrant processing
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In addition to the methods authorized under the heading relating to the Immigration and Naturalization Service under title I of the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 1998 ( Public Law 105–119 , 111 Stat. 2448; 8 U.S.C. 1103 note), and other applicable law, and subject to such safeguards as the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Defense, as appropriate, shall prescribe to ensure the integrity of the biometric collection (which shall include verification of identity by comparison of such fingerprints with fingerprints taken by or under the direct supervision of the Secretary prior to or at the time of the individual’s application for admission to the United States), the Secretary may, in the case of any application for any benefit under the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq. ), accept fingerprint cards or any other submission of biometrics— prepared by international or nongovernmental organizations under an appropriate agreement with the Secretary or the Secretary of State; prepared by employees or contractors of the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of State; or provided by an agency (as defined under section 3502 of title 44, United States Code).
The Secretary of State, the Secretary, the Secretary of Defense, and any other agency authorized to carry out the vetting process under this Act, shall each ensure sufficient staffing, and request the resources necessary, to efficiently and adequately carry out the vetting of applicants for— referral to the United States Refugee Admissions Program, consistent with the determinations established under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1157 ); and special immigrant status.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall ensure sufficient staffing to efficiently provide assistance under chapter 2 of title IV of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1521 et seq. ) to refugees resettled in the United States. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of State and the Secretary shall employ remote processing capabilities for refugee processing under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1157 ), including secure digital file transfers, videoconferencing and teleconferencing capabilities, remote review of applications, remote interviews, remote collection of signatures, waiver of the applicant’s appearance or signature (other than a final appearance and verification by the oath of the applicant prior to or at the time of the individual’s application for admission to the United States), waiver of signature for individuals under 5 years old, and any other capability the Secretary of State and the Secretary consider appropriate, secure, and likely to reduce processing wait times at particular facilities.
With respect to monthly reports issued by the Secretary of State relating to United States Refugee Admissions Program arrivals, the Secretary of State shall report— the number of monthly admissions of refugees, disaggregated by priorities; and the number of Afghan allies admitted as refugees. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall establish an Interagency Task Force on Afghan Ally Strategy (referred to in this section as the Task Force )— to develop and oversee the implementation of the strategy and contingency plan described in subparagraph (A)(i) of paragraph (4); and to submit the report, and provide a briefing on the report, as described in subparagraphs
(A)and
(B)of paragraph (4). The Task Force shall include— 1 or more representatives from each relevant Federal agency, as designated by the head of the applicable relevant Federal agency; and any other Federal Government official designated by the President. In this paragraph, the term relevant Federal agency means— the Department of State; the Department of Homeland Security; the Department of Defense; the Department of Health and Human Services; the Department of Justice; and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. The Task Force shall be chaired by the Secretary of State. Not later than 180 days after the date on which the Task Force is established, the Task Force, acting through the chair of the Task Force, shall submit a report to the appropriate committees of Congress that includes— a strategy for facilitating the resettlement of nationals of Afghanistan outside the United States who, during the period beginning on October 1, 2001, and ending on September 1, 2021, directly and personally supported the United States mission in Afghanistan, as determined by the Secretary of State in consultation with the Secretary of Defense; and a contingency plan for future emergency operations in foreign countries involving foreign nationals who have worked directly with the United States Government, including the Armed Forces of the United States and United States intelligence agencies. The report required under clause
(i)shall include— the total number of nationals of Afghanistan who have pending specified applications, disaggregated by— such nationals in Afghanistan and such nationals in a third country; type of specified application; and applications that are documentarily complete and applications that are not documentarily complete; an estimate of the number of nationals of Afghanistan who may be eligible for special immigrant status or classification as an Afghan ally; with respect to the strategy required under subparagraph (A)(i)(I)— the estimated number of nationals of Afghanistan described in such subparagraph; a description of the process for safely resettling such nationals of Afghanistan; a plan for processing such nationals of Afghanistan for admission to the United States that— discusses the feasibility of remote processing for such nationals of Afghanistan residing in Afghanistan; includes any strategy for facilitating refugee and consular processing for such nationals of Afghanistan in third countries, and the timelines for such processing; includes a plan for conducting rigorous and efficient vetting of all such nationals of Afghanistan for processing; discusses the availability and capacity of sites in third countries to process applications and conduct any required vetting for such nationals of Afghanistan, including the potential to establish additional sites; and includes a plan for providing updates and necessary information to affected individuals and relevant nongovernmental organizations; a description of considerations, including resource constraints, security concerns, missing or inaccurate information, and diplomatic considerations, that limit the ability of the Secretary of State or the Secretary to increase the number of such nationals of Afghanistan who can be safely processed or resettled; an identification of any resource or additional authority necessary to increase the number of such nationals of Afghanistan who can be processed or resettled; an estimate of the cost to fully implement the strategy; and any other matter the Task Force considers relevant to the implementation of the strategy; with respect to the contingency plan required by clause (i)(II)— a description of the standard practices for screening and vetting foreign nationals considered to be eligible for resettlement in the United States, including a strategy for vetting, and maintaining the records of, such foreign nationals who are unable to provide identification documents or biographic details due to emergency circumstances; a strategy for facilitating refugee or consular processing for such foreign nationals in third countries; clear guidance with respect to which Federal agency has the authority and responsibility to coordinate Federal resettlement efforts; a description of any resource or additional authority necessary to coordinate Federal resettlement efforts, including the need for a contingency fund; and any other matter the Task Force considers relevant to the implementation of the contingency plan; and a strategy for the efficient processing of all Afghan special immigrant visa applications and appeals, including— a review of current staffing levels and needs across all interagency offices and officials engaged in the special immigrant visa process; an analysis of the expected Chief of Mission approvals and denials of applications in the pipeline in order to project the expected number of visas necessary to provide special immigrant status to all approved applicants under this Act during the several years after the date of the enactment of this Act; an assessment as to whether adequate guidelines exist for reconsidering or reopening applications for special immigrant visas in appropriate circumstances and consistent with applicable laws; and an assessment of the procedures throughout the special immigrant visa application process, including at the Portsmouth Consular Center, and the effectiveness of communication between the Portsmouth Consular Center and applicants, including an identification of any area in which improvements to the efficiency of such procedures and communication may be made. The report required under clause
(i)shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified annex. Not later than 60 days after submitting the report required by clause (i), the Task Force shall brief the appropriate committees of Congress on the contents of the report. The Task Force shall remain in effect until the later of— the date on which the strategy required under paragraph (4)(A)(i)(I) has been fully implemented; the date of a determination by the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary, that a task force is no longer necessary for the implementation of subparagraphs
(A)and
(B)of paragraph (1); or the date that is 10 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. Section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1157 ) is amended— in subsection (a), by amending paragraph
(4)to read as follows: In the determination made under this subsection for each fiscal year (beginning with fiscal year 1992), the President shall enumerate, with the respective number of refugees so determined, the number of aliens who were granted asylum in the previous year. In making a determination under paragraph (1), the President shall consider the information in the most recently published projected global resettlement needs report published by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. ; in subsection (e), by amending paragraph
(2)to read as follows: A description of the number and allocation of the refugees to be admitted, including the expected allocation by region, and an analysis of the conditions within the countries from which they came. ; and by adding at the end the following— Not later than 30 days after the last day of each quarter beginning the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024, the President shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a report that includes the following: The number of refugees admitted to the United States during the preceding quarter. The cumulative number of refugees admitted to the United States during the applicable fiscal year, as of the last day of the preceding quarter. The number of refugees expected to be admitted to the United States during the remainder of the applicable fiscal year. The number of refugees from each region admitted to the United States during the preceding quarter. The number of aliens, by nationality, security check, and responsible vetting agency, for whom a National Vetting Center or other security check has been requested during the preceding quarter, and the number of aliens, by nationality, for whom the check was pending beyond 30 days. The number of aliens, by nationality, security check, and responsible vetting agency, for whom a National Vetting Center or other security check has been pending for more than 180 days. For the preceding quarter— the number of Refugee Corps officers deployed on circuit rides and the overall number of Refugee Corps officers; the number of individuals interviewed— on each circuit ride; and at each circuit ride location; the number of circuit rides; and for each circuit ride, the duration of the circuit ride. For the subsequent 2 quarters— the number of circuit rides planned; and the number of individuals planned to be interviewed. For refugees admitted to the United States during the preceding quarter, the average number of days between— the date on which an individual referred to the United States Government as a refugee applicant is interviewed by the Secretary of Homeland Security; and the date on which such individual is admitted to the United States. For refugee applicants interviewed by the Secretary of Homeland Security in the preceding quarter, the approval, denial, recommended approval, recommended denial, and hold rates for the applications for admission of such individuals, disaggregated by nationality. .
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- Pub. L. 105-119
- 111 Stat. 2448
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Sec. 6
Improving efficiency and oversight of refugee and special immigrant processing
Pub. L.Pub. L. 105-119
Stat.111 Stat. 2448
Cites 6Cited by 0 across 0 sources