Sec. 1059. SPECIAL IMMIGRANT STATUS FOR PERSONS SERVING AS TRANSLATORS WITH UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES.2

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## SEC. 1059 SPECIAL IMMIGRANT STATUS FOR PERSONS SERVING AS TRANSLATORS WITH UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES.2 **[**[8 U.S.C. 1101 note](/us/usc/t8/s1101)**]** 2Section 3812 of Public Law 110–28 (121 Stat. 151) amended section 1059 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006. Identical amendments to such section were enacted into law by section 1 of Public Law 110–36 (121 Stat. 227). ###

(a)In General For purposes of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.), subject to subsection (c)(1), the Secretary of Homeland Security may provide an alien described in subsection

(b)with the status of a special immigrant under section 101(a)(27) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)), if the alien— ####

(1)files with the Secretary of Homeland Security a petition under section 204 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) for classification under section 203(b)(4) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(b)(4)); and ####

(2)is otherwise eligible to receive an immigrant visa and is otherwise admissible to the United States for permanent residence, except in determining such admissibility, the grounds for inadmissibility specified in section 212(a)(4) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(4)) shall not apply. ###

(b)Aliens Described ####

(1)Principal aliens An alien is described in this subsection if the alien— #####

(A)is a national of Iraq or Afghanistan; #####

(B)worked directly with United States Armed Forces, or under Chief of Mission authority, as a translator or interpreter for a period of at least 12 months; #####

(C)obtained a favorable written recommendation from the Chief of Mission or a general or flag officer in the chain of command of the United States Armed Forces unit that was supported by the alien; and #####

(D)before filing the petition described in subsection (a)(1), cleared a background check and screening, as determined by the Chief of Mission or a general or flag officer in the chain of command of the United States Armed Forces unit that was supported by the alien. ####

(2)Spouses and children An alien is described in this subsection if the alien is the spouse or child of a principal alien described in paragraph (1), and is following or accompanying to join the principal alien. ###

(c)Numerical Limitations ####

(1)In general The total number of principal aliens who may be provided special immigrant status under this section— #####

(A)during each of the fiscal years 2007 and 2008, shall not exceed 500; and #####

(B)during any other fiscal year shall not exceed 50. ####

(2)Aliens exempt from employment-based numerical limitations For purposes of the application of sections 201 through 203 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151–1153) in any fiscal year, aliens eligible to be provided status under this section shall be treated as special immigrants described in section 101(a)(27) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)) who are not described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or

(K)of such section and shall not be counted against the numerical limitations under sections 201(d), 202(a), and 203(b)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151(d), 1152(a), and 1153(b)(4)). ####

(3)Carry forward If the numerical limitation described in paragraph

(1)is not reached during a given fiscal year, the numerical limitation for the following fiscal year shall be increased by a number equal to the difference between the number of visas authorized for the given fiscal year and the number of aliens provided special immigrant status during the given fiscal year. ###

(d)Adjustment of Status Notwithstanding paragraphs (2),

(7)and

(8)of section 245(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255(c)), the Secretary of Homeland Security may adjust the status of an alien to that of a lawful permanent resident under section 245(a) of such Act if the alien— ####

(1)was paroled or admitted as a nonimmigrant into the United States; and ####

(2)is otherwise eligible for special immigrant status under this section and under the Immigration and Nationality Act. ###

(e)Naturalization ####

(1)In general A period of absence from the United States described in paragraph (2)— #####

(A)shall not be considered to break any period for which continuous residence or physical presence in the United States is required for naturalization under title III of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1401 et seq.); and #####

(B)shall be treated as a period of residence and physical presence in the United States for purposes of satisfying the requirements for naturalization under such title. ####

(2)Period of absence described A period of absence described in this paragraph is a period of absence from the United States due to a person's employment by the Chief of Mission or United States Armed Forces, under contract with the Chief of Mission or United States Armed Forces, or by a firm or corporation under contract with the Chief of Mission or United States Armed Forces, if— #####

(A)such employment involved supporting the Chief of Mission or United States Armed Forces as a translator, interpreter, or in a security-related position in an executive or managerial capacity; and #####

(B)the person spent at least a portion of the time outside the United States working directly with the Chief of Mission or United States Armed Forces as a translator, interpreter, or in a security-related position in an executive or managerial capacity. ###

(f)Application of Immigration and Nationality Act Provisions The definitions in subsections

(a)and

(b)of section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101) shall apply in the administration of this section. * * * * * * * # TITLE XI CIVILIAN PERSONNEL MATTERS ## SUBTITLE A EXTENSIONS OF AUTHORITIES * * * * * * *

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