CQ repoted that: The Senate cleared legislation by voice vote Thursday that would ease burdens faced by military spouses seeking U.S. citizenship while their partners are deployed overseas.
The legislation (HR 398) would amend U.S. Immigration law (PL 82-414) to allow the couple to postpone a residency petition and interview process.
The measure corrects what supporters call a flaw in the Immigration law that creates bureaucratic and logistical problems for deployed servicemembers and their spouses when they apply for permanent residency.
Under current law, a U.S. citizen or permanent resident can sponsor a non-U.S. spouse for permanent residency. That spouse becomes a conditional permanent resident, and after nearly two years, the couple must file a petition with the Department of Homeland Security to lift the conditional status.
The bill would allow deployed servicemembers and their spouses who cannot meet two 90-day deadlines for filing residency petitions and interviewing with the Homeland Security Department to suspend those deadlines, avoiding the prospect of having a spouse's conditional legal status terminated. Such termination can lead to the initiation of removal proceedings.
During House consideration of the bill, Zoe Lofgren of California, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement estimated that the bill would help a few dozen soldiers each year.
The legislation (HR 398) would amend U.S. Immigration law (PL 82-414) to allow the couple to postpone a residency petition and interview process.
The measure corrects what supporters call a flaw in the Immigration law that creates bureaucratic and logistical problems for deployed servicemembers and their spouses when they apply for permanent residency.
Under current law, a U.S. citizen or permanent resident can sponsor a non-U.S. spouse for permanent residency. That spouse becomes a conditional permanent resident, and after nearly two years, the couple must file a petition with the Department of Homeland Security to lift the conditional status.
The bill would allow deployed servicemembers and their spouses who cannot meet two 90-day deadlines for filing residency petitions and interviewing with the Homeland Security Department to suspend those deadlines, avoiding the prospect of having a spouse's conditional legal status terminated. Such termination can lead to the initiation of removal proceedings.
During House consideration of the bill, Zoe Lofgren of California, the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement estimated that the bill would help a few dozen soldiers each year.
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