NAFSA Supports International Student and Employment Provisions

Immigration Reform in the Senate

There are two proposals under consideration in the Senate Judiciary Committee that would make significant changes to immigration law for international students and scholars. The two include the Chairman Arlen Specter’s (R-Pa.) proposal, also known as the Chairman’s Mark and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist’s (R-Tenn.) bill (S. 2454). The Chairman’s Mark has not yet been introduced, but it has been widely shared within and outside of Congress. There have been four committee meetings to discuss the Mark and when the Senate returns from recess on Monday, March 27, 2006 there will be another committee meeting to discuss the bill. Senator Frist has stated that he will take his bill directly to the Senate floor for a vote if the Judiciary Committee does not report a bill out of committee.

NAFSA supports the international student and employment provisions of the Chairman’s Mark and Senator Frist’s bill because they:

1. Address competitiveness issues.

The international student and employment provisions in the Chairman’s Mark and Senator Frist’s bill would help our colleges and universities compete in the global marketplace for international students. Other countries are aggressively recruiting international students and changing their laws to allow them to work while in school, encouraging them to remain after graduation to work, and easing their transition to full members of their societies as permanent residents or as citizens.

2. Make improvements to immigrant intent/214(b).

The bills take the first step in eliminating the so-called 214(b) problem for international students – the requirement that, to receive a student visa, all students must prove that they have no intent to remain in the United States after graduating. View a full discussion of immigrant intent.
The bills create a new international student visa category (an F-4 visa) for those seeking advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM degrees) who would be allowed to have the intent to remain in the United States to seek employment after graduation. NAFSA has been advocating for this type of change for years now, saying that it is an arcane law that has outlived any usefulness it may have had when enacted. Any change in the immigrant intent requirement is a positive step toward recognizing the reality of a global workforce and improving our competitive edge in the global market for international students.

3. Improved access to green cards.

Both proposals would create the opportunity for STEM advanced degree graduates to apply directly from student status for a green card, without requiring an intervening H-1B process. We know that many international students want to begin the process of obtaining a green card right after graduation and that our nation would benefit from these students remaining in the United States. Our nation has an interest in encouraging international students to remain in the United States, and these proposals would allow this process to occur more smoothly, without unnecessary delays in the process.

4. Provide exemptions to the limit on the number of green cards available annually.

Currently, U.S. law includes an unreasonably low cap for employment-based green cards. When the green cards run out for the year, no additional green cards can be issued. We are facing backlogs for Indian and Chinese workers and without a change in the law, there is a possibility that we will face even more backlogs in the future. This means that the people we desperately want to permanently hire on our campuses will be stuck in long lines, waiting for the opportunity to even file for a green card, required the extension of their H-1Bs, and leaving them in a temporary status. When colleges and universities in other countries are touting the ability for these valued faculty members to quickly become full members of their societies and they face years of uncertainty in the United States, other countries will begin to win out.

5. Increase employment opportunities for students.

Both bills provide more employment opportunities for students while in school and after graduation. They would provide all F international students in good academic standing the option of working 20 hours a week during the school year and 40 hours a week during breaks and vacations. This will help schools with international recruitment, assist students in subsidizing their schooling, and it will side-step the thorny issue with the Social Security Administration that is currently refusing to issue Social Security cards to international students who are not currently employed. The bills would extend work authorization for students after graduation from the current 1 year limit to 2 years. Both of these will provisions will allow colleges and universities to compete with the many other countries that allow their international students to work while in school and after graduation.

Two other bills that were previously introduced, the PACE Act and the WISH Act, also include immigration provisions pertaining to international students. Outlined below are four major proposals currently under consideration.

A Side-by-side Comparison of Proposed Immigration Reform Provisions Affecting International Students

Acronyms

• EB - Employment-Based
• OPT- Optional Practical Training
• STEM - Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
• INA- Immigration and Nationality Act
• PACE Act - Protecting America’s Competitive Edge Through Education and Research Act of 2006
• WISH Act - Welcoming Immigrants to a Secure Homeland Act of 2006

Proposed Changes to Immigration Law for International Students
	Chairman Specter’s Mark/ Proposal (no bill number) 470kb	Sen. Frist’s Securing America’s Borders Act (S. 2454)	Sen. Domenici’s PACE Act (S. 2198)	Sen. Domenici’s WISH Act (S. 2326)
F-4 for STEM International Students	Creates new visa category for STEM graduate program students seeking an advanced degree. Allows for dual intent. Also changes section 214(b) of the INA. Valid status for 1 year post graduation to seek employment. Valid for an additional period for labor certification, EB immigrant petition, and adjustment of status, if labor certification or EB immigrant petition is filed no later than 1 year after graduation.	Creates new visa category for STEM graduate program students seeking an advanced degree. Allows for dual intent. Also changes section 214(b) of the INA. Valid status for 1 year post graduation to seek employment. Valid for an additional period for labor certification, EB immigrant petition, and adjustment of status, if labor certification or EB immigrant petition is filed no later than 1 year after graduation.	Creates new visa category for STEM PhDs only. Limits science to physical sciences only. Allows for dual intent. Valid status for 1 year post graduation to seek employment and an additional 6 months during pendency of adjustment of status.	Not included.
F-4 Adjustment of Status (Green Card)	May file if all of the following conditions apply: 1) student was issued an F-4 or would have qualified for F-4 if it were available before the student’s graduation; 2) student earned an advanced degree in STEM; 3) student is beneficiary of an EB filing; and 4) $1,000 fee is paid. Status not granted until visa number is available.	May file if all of the following conditions apply: 1) student was issued an F-4 or would have qualified for F-4 if it were available before the student’s graduation; 2) student earned an advanced degree in STEM; 3) student is beneficiary of an EB filing; and 4) $1,000 fee is paid. Status not granted until visa number is available.	May file if the student was issued an F-4; earned an advanced degree in STEM (limited to physical sciences) from a U.S. college or university; and is employed full-time. Adjustment of status may be granted with a $1,000 fee, even if a number is not immediately available.	Not included.
Exemptions from EB Immigrant Caps	Exemption if graduated with advanced degree in STEM and worked in U.S. in related field for 3 years prior to application. Allows special handling labor certification for those who receive a STEM advanced degree in the United States. Exempts extraordinary ability, outstanding researchers and professors, and national interest waivers. Exempts immediate relatives. Applies to applications pending on date of enactment and those filed after enactment.	Exemption if graduated with advanced degree in STEM and worked in U.S. in a related field for 3 years prior to application. Allows special handling labor certification for those who receive a STEM advanced degree in the United States. Exempts extraordinary ability, outstanding researchers and professors, and national interest waivers. Exempts immediate relatives. Applies to applications pending on date of enactment and those filed after enactment.	Exemption if graduated with advanced degree in STEM (does not limit areas of science) and worked in U.S. for 3 years prior to application. Exempts extraordinary ability, outstanding researchers and professors, and national interest waivers. Exempts immediate relatives. Applies to applications pending on date of enactment and those filed after enactment.	Exemption if graduated with advanced degree in STEM from a U.S. university and worked in U.S. for 3 years prior to application. Exempts extraordinary ability, outstanding researchers and professors, and national interest waivers. Exempts immediate relatives.
Student Employment (F)	Off-campus employment permitted in unrelated field for full-time students in good academic standing. Employer must file labor attestation of recruitment and pay. Allows 20 hours during school, 40 hours during vacations and between terms.	Off-campus employment permitted in unrelated field for full-time students in good academic standing. Employer must file labor attestation of recruitment and pay. Allows 20 hours during school, 40 hours during vacations and between terms.	Not included.	Off-campus employment permitted in unrelated field for full-time students in good academic standing. Employer must file labor attestation of recruitment and pay. Allows 20 hours during school, 40 hours during vacations and between terms.
Post -Completion OPT	Grants 24 months post-completion OPT.	Grants 24 months post-completion OPT.	Not included.	Creates new temporary nonimmigrant visa for F, J, M honors graduates from U.S. college or university to remain in the U.S. to await issuance of EB nonimmigrant visa if student has a bona fide job offer from an employer who utilizes a new Employment Management System.
H-1B	Increases the H-1B cap to 115,000 with annual increases possible. Exempts STEM advanced degrees from cap.	Increases the H-1B cap to 115,000 with annual increases possible. Exempts STEM advanced degrees from cap.	Includes recommendations in Findings, but this section is not legally binding.	Exempts all who receive a master’s degree from a U.S. institution of higher learning from the cap.
Travel	Not included.	Not included.	Includes recommendations in Sense of Senate, but this section is not legally binding.	Permit Fs, Ms, and Js to travel outside U.S. to attend meeting, seminar, or lecture if apply 30 days prior to departure.