Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929

Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929

This bill expands eligibility for a program that authorizes the Department of Homeland Security to, at its discretion, provide lawful permanent resident status to certain long-term residents of the United States, including individuals who are unlawfully present.

Currently, this program, sometimes referred to as the Registry program, is only available to eligible non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) who entered the United States before January 1, 1972. The bill removes this entry cutoff date and opens up the program to eligible individuals who have resided in the United States for at least seven years.

Existing requirements (e.g., the individual must not be inadmissible or deportable due to certain grounds related to crime or terrorism) continue to apply.