Sponsors (21)
The bill expands and speeds pathways, protections, and remote processing for Afghan allies and their families—improving access, family unity, and oversight—while imposing substantial federal costs, administrative complexity, and heightened security/privacy and fraud risks that must be managed.
Afghan nationals physically present in the U.S. (and eligible family members) can obtain conditional lawful permanent resident status, giving them work authorization, access to most public benefits, and greater immigration stability.
Parents and siblings of U.S. service members/veterans and other eligible Afghan allies gain an expanded, expedited Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) pathway (including carry-forward of unused visas and extended program deadlines), preserving family reunification opportunities and SIV eligibility for more applicants.
The bill creates/authorizes a designated U.S. office and embassy-like/consular functions (to the extent practicable) in Afghanistan and other remote processing authorities, improving Afghans' ability to apply for visas, be interviewed, and receive case assistance when a full embassy is not operational.
Federal taxpayers and budgets will likely face substantial costs from expanded refugee/SIV processing, additional staffing, remote-processing systems, fee waivers, and required appropriations over multiple years.
Remote processing, accepting external biometrics, and waived in‑person requirements increase vetting and fraud risks (poor-quality biometric data, identity uncertainty, or fraudulent submissions), which could complicate security screening and slow final decisions.
Creating new systems, offices, exemptions to personnel limits, and expanded processing duties will add administrative complexity and workload for State, DHS, and DOJ, potentially straining resources and delaying other visa services.
Based on analysis of 10 sections of legislative text.
Creates conditional LPR for certain Afghans in the U.S., prioritizes Afghan allies for refugee processing, adds an SIV category for parents/siblings of service members, and expands remote vetting and fee waivers.
Creates multiple immigration pathways and processing changes for Afghan nationals and Afghan allies. It lets certain Afghans already in the U.S. become conditional lawful permanent residents, designates Afghan allies as refugees of special humanitarian concern and prioritizes their remote processing, adds a new special immigrant visa category for parents and siblings of U.S. service members, extends and reforms Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program rules and deadlines, and authorizes fee waivers and expanded remote/biometric processing and interagency vetting. Requires interagency staffing and reporting, sets timelines for removing conditional bases of status and for reporting to Congress, and mandates secure digital/remote tools and biometric safeguards to speed and scale referrals, interviews, and adjudications for Afghan-related immigration benefits.
Introduced August 5, 2025 by Mariannette Miller-Meeks · Last progress August 5, 2025