Temporary Worker Registration and Visa Act of 2005 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for issuance of a temporary (initial three-year period with three-year extensions) worker visa (W-visa) for qualifying aliens who have been continuously unlawfully present and working full-time in the United States from January 1, 2005 through the application date provided for under this Act.
Conditions such admission on the alien worker's continuous employment.
Limits family member follow-to-join admissions to situations where the family member meets registration or W-visa requirements.
[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4065 Introduced in House (IH)]
109th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4065
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide certain
undocumented workers with temporary work visas.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 17, 2005
Mr. Osborne introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide certain
undocumented workers with temporary work visas.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Temporary Worker Registration and
Visa Act of 2005''.
SEC. 2. ISSUANCE OF TEMPORARY WORKER VISA FOR CERTAIN UNDOCUMENTED
WORKER REGISTRANTS.
(a) In General.--The Immigration and Nationality Act is amended by
inserting after section 245A (8 U.S.C. 1255a) the following new
section:
``SEC. 245B. ISSUANCE OF TEMPORARY WORKER VISA FOR CERTAIN UNDOCUMENTED
WORKER REGISTRANTS.
``(a) Registration Process for Certain Undocumented Workers.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
register under this subsection an alien if the alien
demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that the
alien meets the following requirements:
``(A) Application.--
``(i) In general.--The alien applies for
such registration in a form and manner
specified by the Secretary during the
registration period under clause (ii).
``(ii) Registration period.--The
registration period under this clause shall be
a 12-month period beginning on a date (not
later than 180 days after the enactment of this
section) designated by the Secretary.
``(B) Continuous unlawful presence.--
``(i) In general.--The alien has been
continuously unlawfully present in the United
States from January 1, 2005, through the date
the application under subparagraph (A) is
filed.
``(ii) Unlawful presence not known.--The
alien's unlawful presence in the United States
is not known to officials of the Bureau of
Immigration and Customs Enforcement of the
Department of Homeland Security (as evidenced
by documentary records) at any time prior to
the alien's application for registration under
this subsection.
``(iii) Treatment of brief, casual, and
innocent absences.--An alien shall not be
considered to have failed to have maintained
continuous physical presence in the United
States for purposes of clause (i) by virtue of
brief, casual, and innocent absences from the
United States or a brief, temporary trip abroad
required by emergency or extenuating
circumstances outside the control of the alien
``(iv) No authorization of admission.--
Nothing in this section shall be construed as
authorizing an alien to apply for admission to,
or to be admitted to, the United States in
order to register under this subsection.
``(C) Nonimmigrants.--
``(i) In general.--In the case of an alien
who entered the United States as a nonimmigrant
before the date specified in subparagraph
(B)(i), the alien's period of authorized stay
as a nonimmigrant expired through the passage
of time before such date.
``(ii) Exchange visitors.--If the alien was
at any time a nonimmigrant exchange alien (as
described in section 101(a)(15)(J)), the alien
was not subject to the two-year foreign
residence requirement of section 212(e) or has
fulfilled that requirement or received a waiver
thereof.
``(D) Admissible as temporary worker.--The alien--
``(i) is admissible to the United States as
an immigrant, except as otherwise provided
under paragraph (3), and is not inadmissible
under paragraph (2) or (3) of section 212(a) or
deportable under paragraph (2)(A)(iii) or (4)
of section 237(a);
``(ii) has not been convicted of any felony
or of three or more misdemeanors committed in
the United States; and
``(iii) has not assisted in the persecution
of any person or persons on account of race,
religion, nationality, membership in a
particular social group, or political opinion.
``(E) Biometric identifiers.--The alien provides
the Secretary with such biometric identifiers as the
Secretary may require for the issuance of a visa, in
accordance with section 303(b)(1) of the Enhanced
Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2002 (8
U.S.C. 1732(b)(1)).
``(F) Registration fee.--The alien has paid such
registration fee as the Secretary shall specify.
``(G) Abandonment of other applications for
relief.--The alien has withdrawn or has otherwise
abandoned or terminated any other application for
relief from removal under any law, which may have been
pending prior to the submission of the application
under subparagraph (A), and the alien has permanently
relinquished the opportunity subsequently to submit any
other such application for relief.
``(H) Employment in the united states.--
``(i) In general.--Except as provided in
clause (ii), the alien was employed on a full-
time basis in the United States since the date
specified in subparagraph (B)(i).
``(ii) Exception for spouses and minor
children of registrants.--Clause (i) shall not
apply in the case of an alien who is the spouse
or minor child of an alien who is registered
(or in the process of registering) under this
subsection.
``(2) Benefits of registration.--
``(A) Work authorization.--
``(i) In general.--The Secretary shall
authorize an alien who is registered under this
subsection to engage in employment in the
United States during the term of the alien's
registration and shall provide the alien with
an `employment authorized' endorsement or other
appropriate document signifying authorization
of employment.
``(ii) Granting upon prima facie showing of
eligibility.--In the case of an alien who
applies for registration under this subsection
and who establishes a prima facie case of
eligibility to be so registered, the Secretary
shall provide such alien with the employment
authorization described in clause (i) during
the pendency of such application.
``(3) Waiver of certain grounds for removal.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in this
paragraph, the provisions of subparagraphs (A) and (B)
of subsection (d)(2) of section 245A shall apply to
determinations of eligibility for registration under
this subsection in the same manner as they apply to
determinations of admissibility for purposes of such
section.
``(B) Modification of reference.--In applying
subparagraph (A), any reference in section
245A(d)(2)(A) to section 212(a)(7)(A) is deemed a
reference to section 212(a)(7)(B).
``(C) Inapplicability of certain grounds for
subsequent removal.--For purposes of obtaining the
benefits described in this subsection, and for purposes
of any other determination under the immigration laws
of the United States, any ground for removal or denial
of admission (including grounds under sections
212(a)(6)(A) and 212(a)(9)(B)) applicable to an alien
registered under this subsection shall be disregarded
if the ground is reflected in the records of the
Department of Homeland Security or the Department of
State on the date on which the alien first applied for
such registration and if such ground is waived under
this paragraph.
``(4) Termination of registration.--
``(A) Expiration.--Except as provided in
subparagraph (B), the period of registration of an
alien under this section shall expire at the end of the
6-month period beginning on the date of the approval of
such registration.
``(B) Termination of registration.--The Secretary
of Homeland Security shall provide for the termination
of registration of an alien under this subsection--
``(i) if it appears to the Secretary that
the alien was in fact not eligible for such
registration; or
``(ii) if the alien commits an act that
makes the alien inadmissible to the United
States as a nonimmigrant under section
101(a)(15)(W).
``(b) Provision of Temporary Worker Visa.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
approve the issuance of a visa to an alien as a nonimmigrant
described in section 101(a)(15)(W) if the alien--
``(A) is registered under subsection (a); and
``(B) makes application for such visa at an
appropriate consular office outside the United States
in the alien's country of nationality or, in the case
of an alien having no nationality, in the alien's
country of last habitual residence outside the United
States, not later than 6 months after the date of
approval of such registration.
``(2) Period of authorized admission.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the
initial period of authorized admission as a
nonimmigrant described in section 101(a)(15)(W) shall
be 3 years.
``(B) Employment required to maintain status.--
``(i) In general.--An alien's admission as
a nonimmigrant under section 101(a)(15)(W),
other than as the spouse or child of such a
nonimmigrant, is conditioned upon continuous
employment in the United States.
``(ii) Short breaks in employment permitted
with notice.-- An alien does not violate clause
(i) if--
``(I) the break in employment does
not exceed 30 days (or such longer
period as the Secretary may provide
based on extraordinary circumstances);
and
``(II) the Secretary is provided
notice in a timely manner of the break
in employment and of the resumption of
employment.
``(C) Extension.--
``(i) In general.--The period of authorized
admission as a nonimmigrant under section
101(a)(15)(W) may be extended by the Secretary
in 3-year increments. The Secretary may not
authorize such extension for an alien if the
alien violated subparagraph (B) for the
previous period of authorized admission.
``(ii) Extension fee.-- The Secretary shall
impose a fee on applicants for an extension
under clause (i).
``(D) Termination of nonimmigrant status.--The
Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide for the
termination of nonimmigrant status granted an alien
under this subsection if it appears to the Secretary
that the alien was in fact not eligible for
registration under subsection (a).
``(c) Application of Certain Provisions.--
``(1) Confidentiality and false statement.--The provisions
of paragraphs (5) and (6) of subsection (c) of section 245A
shall apply to applications for registration under subsection
(a) in the same manner as they applied to applications for
adjustment under section 245A.
``(2) Temporary stay of deportation.--The provisions of
subsection (e)(1) of section 245A shall apply to aliens with
respect to the application period and registration under
subsection (a) in the same manner as they applied to the
application period and applications for adjustment under
subsection (a) of such section.
``(d) Construction.--
``(1) Limited follow-to-join authority for family
members.--Nothing in this section shall be construed as
authorizing, in the case of an alien registered under
subsection (a)--
``(A) the registration of any family member of such
alien unless such family member meets the requirements
for such registration; or
``(B) the issuance of a nonimmigrant visa under
section 101(a)(15)(W) to such family member unless such
family member qualifies for such a visa.
``(2) Change in nonimmigrant classification; adjustment of
status.--Nothing in this section shall be construed as
prohibiting the change of nonimmigrant classification, or
adjustment to lawful permanent resident status, of an alien who
is a nonimmigrant described in section 101(a)(15)(W).''.
(b) New Nonimmigrant Visa Category.--Section 101(a)(15) of such Act
(8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (U), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(2) in subparagraph (V), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; or''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(W) an alien who is coming temporarily to the United
States to be employed in accordance with subsection (b) of
section 245B, and the spouse and minor children of such alien
if accompanying or following to join the alien and qualified
under paragraph (1) of such subsection to be provided
nonimmigrant status under this subparagraph.''.
(c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for such Act is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 245A the
following:
``Sec. 245B. Issuance of temporary worker visa for certain undocumented
worker registrants.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law.
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E3975-3976)
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