U.S. House Moves Immigration Reform in Bill Aimed at Increasing American Competitiveness and Helping Economy

WASHINGTON—Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed an economic competitiveness bill focused on advancing the United States’ innovation and global competitiveness, which also proposes reforms to U.S. immigration law to help attract and retain immigrant talent.

The bill, “America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength Act of 2022”—or the “America COMPETES Act of 2022”—contains a number of immigration provisions that aims to provide Temporary Protected Status for certain residents of Hong Kong, a new startup visa category, opportunities for immigrant entrepreneurs, and an immigration path for people who earn a Ph.D. in a specified field of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) from a school that meets specified research requirements.

The following statement is from Jeremy Robbins, executive director of the American Immigration Council:

“Today’s House passage of the America COMPETES Act is a positive development that would help the United States maintain its ability to remain competitive in the global economy, boost the U.S. economy, and expand opportunities and protections for many people shut out of this country by the current immigration system.

“While larger structural reforms to our immigration system remain necessary, the immigration provisions of the America COMPETES Act represent important incremental changes that would create new opportunities for immigrant entrepreneurs to build business in the United States, provide a direct path to permanent residence for non-citizens who earn a Ph.D. from qualified institutions in certain STEM fields, and provide “special immigrant status” for certain highly skilled Hong Kong residents. If adopted by the Senate, these provisions will encourage entrepreneurship and innovation, and help many immigrants find a way to bring their talent to the United States on a permanent basis.

“The House has worked its will over the last year, passing a series of bills that would help modernize our immigration system and provide opportunities for thousands of aspiring Americans to live, work, and contribute to the fabric of this great nation. It is now up to the Senate to continue the work of bringing our outdated immigration system into the 21st century.”

The American Immigration Council has a range of research and other resources on the economics of immigration, including experts available to speak on Temporary Protected Status, immigrant entrepreneurs, foreign-born STEM Workers in the United States, shortage of STEM workers,  attracting international STEM students,  and employment-based immigration and the workforce.

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For more information, contact:

 Maria Frausto at the American Immigration Council, [email protected] or 202-507-7526.