Sponsors (11)
The bill strengthens U.S. action against severe religious freedom abusers by barring and (in many cases) publicly identifying them, trading stronger protections for persecuted communities and deterrence against increased risks to due process, individual safety, diplomacy, and administrative complexity.
Non-U.S. persons who have committed severe violations of religious freedom will be barred from entering the United States, reducing the likelihood that perpetrators gain safe haven here.
The government will publicly identify individuals barred for severe religious freedom abuses, increasing transparency and signaling U.S. support for persecuted religious communities abroad.
The Secretary is given discretion to withhold identities when disclosure would harm U.S. foreign policy or security interests, reducing risks from mandatory public disclosure in sensitive cases.
Individuals could be denied U.S. entry based on roles tied to foreign-government actions under the statute with limited appeal or due-process protections, risking wrongful exclusion and legal fairness concerns.
Publicly posting the identities of accused perpetrators could endanger those individuals (e.g., counterintelligence risks, retaliation) and complicate diplomatic relations if names are disclosed despite safety or diplomatic concerns.
Broad definitions tied to the International Religious Freedom Act may be applied widely, creating complexity in immigration bars and adding administrative burden for State, DHS, and local governments implementing and adjudicating cases.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Bars admission of foreign nationals who committed defined severe violations of religious freedom and requires the State Department to publish their identities, with limited withholding authority.
Introduced April 2, 2026 by Tim Moore · Last progress April 2, 2026
Amends U.S. immigration law to make foreign nationals who committed particularly severe violations of religious freedom inadmissible to the United States and requires the State Department to publish the identities of those determined inadmissible. The Secretary of State may withhold an individual’s identity on a case-by-case basis if disclosure would have adverse foreign policy consequences, and that withholding is committed to the Secretary’s sole, unreviewable discretion. The change uses definitions from the International Religious Freedom Act to identify covered conduct, applies whether the conduct occurred while serving as a foreign government official or with direction/authorization/participation, and places a new public-reporting duty on the State Department without specifying new funding or an effective date.