S.744 Immigration bill - Sec. 2212: ADJUSTMENT TO PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS

Posted Wed, Apr 17, 2013 at 4:56 pm

    (a) In General- Except as provided in subsection (b), and not earlier than 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall adjust the status of an alien granted blue card status to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence if the Secretary determines that the following requirements are satisfied:

      (1) QUALIFYING EMPLOYMENT- Except as provided in paragraph (3), the alien--

        (A) during the 8-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, performed not less than 100 work days of agricultural employment during each of 5 years; or

        (B) during the 5-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, performed not less than 150 work days of agricultural employment during each of 3 years.

      (2) EVIDENCE- An alien may demonstrate compliance with the requirement under paragraph (1) by submitting--

        (A) the record of employment described in section 2211(e);

        (B) documentation that may be submitted under subsection (e)(5); or

        (C) any other documentation designated by the Secretary for such purpose.

      (3) EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES-

        (A) IN GENERAL- In determining whether an alien has met the requirement under paragraph (1), the Secretary may credit the alien with not more than 12 additional months of agricultural employment in the United States to meet such requirement if the alien was unable to work in agricultural employment due to--

          (i) pregnancy, disabling injury, or disease that the alien can establish through medical records;

          (ii) illness, disease, or other special needs of a child that the alien can establish through medical records;

          (iii) severe weather conditions that prevented the alien from engaging in agricultural employment for a significant period of time; or

          (iv) termination from agricultural employment, if the Secretary determines that--

            (I) the termination was without just cause; and

            (II) the alien was unable to find alternative agricultural employment after a reasonable job search.

        (B) EFFECT OF DETERMINATION- A determination under subparagraph (A)(iv), with respect to an alien, shall not be conclusive, binding, or admissible in a separate or subsequent judicial or administrative action or proceeding between the alien and a current or prior employer of the alien or any other party.

      (4) APPLICATION PERIOD- The alien applies for adjustment of status before the alien's agricultural card status expires.

      (5) FINE- The alien pays a fine of $400 to the Secretary, which shall be deposited into the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Trust Fund established under section 6(a)(1).

    (b) Grounds for Denial of Adjustment of Status-

      (1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary may not adjust the status of an alien granted blue card status if the alien--

        (A) is no longer eligible for blue card status; or

        (B) failed to perform the qualifying employment requirement under subsection (a)(1), considering any amount credited by the Secretary under subsection (a)(3).

      (2) MAINTENANCE OF WAIVERS OF INADMISSIBILITY- The grounds of inadmissibility set forth in section 212(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)) that were previously waived for the alien or made inapplicable shall not apply for purposes of the alien's adjustment of status under this section.

      (3) PENDING REVOCATION PROCEEDINGS- If the Secretary has notified the applicant that the Secretary intends to revoke the applicant's blue card status, the Secretary may not approve an application for adjustment of status under this section unless the Secretary makes a final determination not to revoke the applicant's status.

      (4) PAYMENT OF TAXES-

        (A) IN GENERAL- An applicant may not file an application for adjustment of status under this section unless the applicant has satisfied any applicable Federal tax liability.

        (B) COMPLIANCE- The applicant may demonstrate compliance with subparagraph (A) by submitting such documentation as the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, may require by regulation.

    (c) Spouses and Children- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall grant permanent resident status to the spouse or child of an alien whose status was adjusted under subsection (a) if--

      (1) the spouse or child applies for such status;

      (2) the principal alien includes the spouse and children in an application for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident; and

      (3) the spouse or child is not ineligible under section 245B(b)(3).

    (d) Numerical Limitations Do Not Apply-

      (1) IN GENERAL- The numerical limitations under sections 201 and 202 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151 and 1152) shall not apply to the adjustment of aliens to lawful permanent resident status under this section.

      (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT- Section 201(b)(1) is amended by adding at the end the following:

        `(F) Aliens granted lawful permanent resident status under section 245B.'.

    (e) Submission of Applications-

      (1) INTERVIEW- The Secretary may interview applicants for adjustment of status under this section to determine whether they meet the eligibility requirements set forth in this section.

      (2) FEES -

        (A) IN GENERAL- Applicants for adjustment of status under this section shall pay a processing fee to the Secretary in an amount that will ensure the recovery of the full costs of adjudicating such applications, including--

          (i) the cost of taking and processing biometrics;

          (ii) expenses relating to prevention and investigation of fraud; and

          (iii) costs relating to the administration of the fees collected.

        (B) AUTHORITY TO LIMIT FEES- The Secretary, by regulation--

          (i) may limit the maximum processing fee payable under this paragraph by a family, including spouses and unmarried children younger than 21 years of age; and

          (ii) may exempt individuals described in section 245B(c)(10) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as added by section 2201 of this Act, and other defined classes of individuals from the payment of the fee under subparagraph (A).

      (3) DISPOSITION OF FEES-

        (A) IN GENERAL- All fees collected under paragraph (1)(A) shall be deposited as offsetting receipts into the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Trust Fund established under section 6(a)(1).

        (B) USE OF FEES FOR APPLICATION PROCESSING- Amounts deposited into the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Trust Fund pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall remain available to the Secretary until expended for processing applications for agriculture card status or for adjustment of status under this section or section 2211.

      (4) DOCUMENTATION OF WORK HISTORY-

        (A) BURDEN OF PROOF- An alien applying for blue card status under this section or for adjustment of status under subsection (a) has provided evidence that the alien has worked the requisite number of hours or days required under section 2211(a)(1) or subsection (a)(3), as applicable.

        (B) TIMELY PRODUCTION OF RECORDS- If an employer or farm labor contractor employing such an alien has kept proper and adequate records respecting such employment, the alien's burden of proof under subparagraph (A) may be met by securing timely production of those records under regulations to be promulgated by the Secretary.

        (C) SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE- An alien may meet the burden of proof under subparagraph (A) to establish that the alien has performed the days or hours of work referred to in subparagraph (A) by producing sufficient evidence to show the extent of that employment as a matter of just and reasonable inference.

    (f) Limitation on Access to Information- Files and records collected or compiled by a qualified designated entity for the purposes of this section are confidential. The Secretary may not have access to such a file or record relating to an alien without the consent of the alien, except as allowed by a court order issued pursuant to subsection (g).

    (g) Confidentiality of Information- Except as otherwise provided in this section, the Secretary or any other official or employee of the Department may not--

      (1) use information furnished by the applicant pursuant to an application filed under this subtitle, the information provided by an applicant to a qualified designated entity, or any information provided by an employer or former employer for any purpose other than to make a determination on the application or for imposing the penalties described in subsection (h);

      (2) make any publication in which the information furnished by any particular individual can be identified; or

      (3) permit a person other than a sworn officer or employee of the Department or, with respect to applications filed with a qualified designated entity, that qualified designated entity, to examine individual applications.

    (h) Penalties for False Statements in Applications-

      (1) CRIMINAL PENALTY- Any person who--

        (A) files an application for blue card status under section 2211 or an adjustment of status under this section and knowingly and willfully falsifies, conceals, or covers up a material fact or makes any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements or representations, or makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry; or

        (B) creates or supplies a false writing or document for use in making such an application,

      shall be fined in accordance with title 18, United States Code, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.

      (2) INADMISSIBILITY- An alien who is convicted of a crime under paragraph (1) shall be deemed inadmissible to the United States on the ground described in section 212(a)(6)(C)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(6)(C)(i)).

      (3) DEPOSIT- Fines collected under paragraph (1) shall be deposited into the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Trust Fund established under section 6(a)(1).

    (i) Eligibility for Legal Services- Section 504(a)(11) of the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1996 (Public Law 104-134; 110 Stat. 1321-55) may not be construed to prevent a recipient of funds under the Legal Services Corporation Act (42 U.S.C. 2996 et seq.) from providing legal assistance directly related to an application for blue card status under section 2211 or an adjustment of status under this section.

2212
ADJUSTMENT TO PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS