1.This Act may be cited as the
International Marriage Broker
Regulation Act of 2005
.
2.Congress finds the following:
(1)There is a substantial international
marriage broker business worldwide. A 1999 report by the Immigration and
Naturalization Service estimated that there were at least 200 such companies
operating in the United States, and that as many as 4,000 to 6,000 individuals
in the United States, almost all male, found foreign spouses through for-profit
international marriage brokers each year. The international marriage broker
business has grown significantly in recent years, greatly facilitated by the
Internet. Studies suggest that in 2005 approximately 500 such companies operate
in the United States. In addition, the total number of foreign individuals
entering the United States to marry United States residents each year more than
doubled between 1998 and 2002. It is estimated, then, that in 2005 at least
8,000 to 12,000 individuals in the United States find foreign spouses through
for-profit international marriage brokers each year.
(2)That report noted that the
pervasiveness of domestic violence in our society has already been
documented, and with the burgeoning number of unregulated international
matchmaking organizations and clients using their services, the potential for
abuse in mail-order marriages is considerable.
The report noted further
that men in the United States who use the services of an international marriage
broker tend to seek relationships with women whom they feel they can
control.
(3)The dangers posed to foreign women who meet
their United States husbands through international marriage brokers are
underscored by the growing number of cases across the United States of foreign
women who have been abused or killed by those husbands. Two highly publicized
examples are the murders in Washington State of Susanna Remunerata Blackwell of
the Philippines and Anastasia Solovieva King of Kyrgyzstan.
(4)A 2003 survey of programs providing legal
services to battered immigrant women across the country found that more than 50
percent of these programs had served female immigrant clients battered by men
in the United States they met through international marriage brokers.
(5)30.4 percent of all women in the United
States are physically abused by their husbands or male cohabitants at some
point in their lives. 49.3 percent of immigrants reported physical abuse by an
intimate partner during their lifetimes, with 42.1 percent reporting severe
physical or sexual abuse. Among immigrants who were married or formerly married
the lifetime abuse rate raises as high as 59.5 percent.
(6)Of abusive United States citizen or legal
resident spouses, 72.3 percent never file the immigration papers necessary for
their foreign spouses to obtain legal immigrant status, and the 27.7 percent
who eventually do file wait an average of 4 years to do so. In 1994, Congress
included immigration protections in the Violence Against Women Act
(VAWA
) (Public Law 103–322; 108 Stat. 1902), to remove the
ability of abusive United States citizens and legal permanent residents to
fully control their foreign spouses' ability to gain legal immigration status.
By removing the threat of automatic deportation, VAWA aims to enable battered
immigrants to take actions to protect themselves and their children, such as
calling the police, obtaining a civil protection order, or filing criminal
charges.
(7)Aliens seeking to enter the United States
to marry citizens or legal residents of the United States currently lack the
ability to access and fully verify personal history information about their
prospective spouses in the United States.
(8)Many individuals entering the United States
on K nonimmigrant visas to marry citizens of the United States are unaware of
United States laws regarding—
(A)domestic violence, including protections
for immigrant victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and
stalking;
(B)prohibitions on involuntary
servitude;
(C)protections from automatic deportation;
and
(D)the role of police and the courts in
providing assistance to victims of domestic violence and other crimes.
3.In this Act:
(1)The term crime
of violence has the meaning given such term in section 16 of title 18,
United States Code.
(2)The term
domestic violence means any crime of violence, or other act
forming the basis for a past or outstanding protective order, restraining
order, no-contact order, conviction, arrest, or police report, committed
against a person by—
(A)a current or former spouse of the
person;
(B)an individual with whom the person shares a
child in common;
(C)an individual with whom the person is
cohabiting or has cohabited;
(D)an individual similarly situated to a
spouse of the person under the domestic or family violence laws of the
jurisdiction in which the offense occurs; or
(E)any other individual if the person is
protected from that individual’s acts pursuant to a court order issued under
the domestic or family violence laws of the United States or any State, Indian
tribal government, or unit of local government.
(3)The term
foreign national client means an individual who is not a United
States citizen, a national of the United States, or an alien lawfully admitted
to the United States for permanent residence and who utilizes the services of
an international marriage broker, and includes an alien residing in the United
States who is in the United States as a result of utilizing the services of an
international marriage broker.
(4)International
marriage broker
(A)The term
international marriage broker means a corporation, partnership,
business, individual, or other legal entity, whether or not organized under any
law of the United States, that charges fees for providing dating, matrimonial,
matchmaking services, or social referrals between United States clients and
foreign national clients by providing personal contact information or otherwise
facilitating communication between individuals from these respective
groups.
(B)Such term does not include—
(i)a traditional matchmaking organization of a
cultural or religious nature that operates on a nonprofit basis and in
compliance with the laws of the countries in which it operates, including the
laws of the United States; or
(ii)an entity that provides dating services
between United States citizens or residents and other individuals who may be
aliens, but does not do so as its principal business, and charges comparable
rates to all individuals it serves regardless of the gender, country of
citizenship, or residence of the individual.
(5)The term K
nonimmigrant visa means a nonimmigrant visa issued pursuant to clause
(i) or (ii) of section 101(a)(15)(K) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8
U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(K)).
(6)Personal
contact information
(A)The term
personal contact information means information or a forum that
would permit individuals to contact each other and includes—
(i)the name, telephone number, postal address,
electronic mail address, and voice message mailbox of an individual; and
(ii)the provision of an opportunity for an
in-person meeting.
(B)Such term does not include a photograph or
general information about the background or interests of a person.
(7)The term State includes the
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American
Samoa.
(8)The term United
States client means a United States citizen or other individual who
resides in the United States and who makes a payment or incurs a debt in order
to utilize the services of an international marriage broker.
4.Regulation of
international marriage brokers
(a)Prohibition on
marketing childrenAn
international marriage broker shall not provide any United States client or
other person with the personal contact information, photograph, or general
information about the background or interests of any individual under the age
of 18.
(b)Limitations on
sharing information regarding foreign national clients
(1)An international
marriage broker shall not provide any United States client or other person with
the personal contact information of any foreign national client or other
individual 18 years of age or older unless and until the international marriage
broker has—
(A)collected certain background information
from the United States client or other person to whom the personal contact
information would be provided, as specified in subsection (c);
(B)provided a copy of that background
information to the foreign national client or other individual in the primary
language of that client or individual;
(C)provided to the foreign national client or
other individual in such primary language the information about legal rights
and resources available to immigrant victims of domestic violence and other
crimes in the United States developed under section 5;
(D)received from the foreign national client
or other individual in such primary language a written consent that is signed
(including using an electronic signature) to release such personal contact
information to the specific United States client or other person to whom the
personal contact information would be provided; and
(E)informed the United States client or other
person from whom background information has been collected that, after filing a
petition for a K nonimmigrant visa, the United States client or other person
will be subject to a criminal background check.
(2)Confidentiality
after order of protection or crime
(A)Nondisclosure
of information regarding individuals with protection orders and victims of
crimesIn fulfilling its
obligations under this subsection, an international marriage broker shall not
disclose the name or location of an individual who obtained a restraining or
protection order as described in subsection (c)(2)(A), or of any other victim
of a crime as described in subparagraphs (B) through (D) of subsection
(c)(2).
(B)Disclosure of
information regarding United States clientsAn international marriage broker shall
disclose the relationship of the United States client or other person to an
individual or victim described in paragraph (A).
(c)Obligations of
international marriage broker with respect to mandatory collection of
information
(1)Each international
marriage broker shall collect the background information listed in paragraph
(2) from each United States client or other person to whom the personal contact
information of a foreign national client or any other individual would be
provided. The background information must be in writing and signed (including
using an electronic signature) by the United States client or other person to
whom the personal contact information of a foreign national client or any other
individual would be provided.
(2)Required
Background informationAn
international marriage broker shall collect from a United States client or
other person under paragraph (1) background information about each of the
following:
(A)Any court order restricting the client’s or
person’s physical contact or communication with or behavior towards another
person, including any temporary or permanent civil restraining order or
protection order.
(B)Any arrest or conviction of the client or
person for homicide, murder, manslaughter, assault, battery, domestic violence,
rape, sexual assault, abusive sexual contact, sexual exploitation, incest,
child abuse or neglect, torture, trafficking, peonage, holding hostage,
involuntary servitude, slave trade, kidnapping, abduction, unlawful criminal
restraint, false imprisonment, stalking, or any similar activity in violation
of Federal, State or local criminal law.
(C)Any arrest or conviction of the client or
person for—
(i)solely or principally engaging in, or
facilitating, prostitution;
(ii)any direct or indirect attempts to procure
prostitutes or persons for the purpose of prostitution; or
(iii)any receipt, in whole or in part, of the
proceeds of prostitution.
(D)Any arrest or conviction of the client or
person for offenses related to controlled substances or alcohol.
(E)Marital history of the client or person,
including—
(i)whether the client or individual is
currently married;
(ii)whether the client or person has previously
been married and how many times;
(iii)how previous marriages of the client or
person were terminated and the date of termination; and
(iv)whether the client or person has previously
sponsored the immigration of an alien to whom the client or person was engaged
or married.
(F)The ages of any children of the client or
person under the age of 18.
(G)All States in which the client or person
has resided since the age of 18.
(d)
(1)
(A)An international marriage broker that
violates subsection (a), (b), or (c) is subject to a civil penalty of not less
than $20,000 for each such violation.
(B)Procedures for
imposition of penaltyThe
Secretary of Homeland Security may impose a penalty under paragraph (A) only
after notice and an opportunity for an agency hearing on the record in
accordance with subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5, United States
Code.
(2)An international
marriage broker that violates subsection (a), (b), or (c) within the special
maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States shall be fined in
accordance with subchapter B of chapter 229 of title 18, United States Code, or
imprisoned for not less than 1 year and not more than 5 years, or both.
(3)In any case in
which the Attorney General of a State has reason to believe that an interest of
the residents of that State has been, or is threatened to be, adversely
affected by a violation of subsection (a), (b), or (c) by an international
marriage broker, the State, as parens patriae, may bring a civil action on
behalf of the residents of the State in a district court of the United States
with appropriate jurisdiction to—
(A)enjoin that practice;
(B)enforce compliance with this section;
or
(C)obtain damages.
(4)The penalties and
remedies under this subsection are in addition to any other penalties or
remedies available under law.
(e)Nothing in this section shall
preempt—
(1)any State law that provides additional
protections for aliens who are utilizing the services of an international
marriage broker or other international matchmaking organization; or
(2)any other or further right or remedy
available under law to any party utilizing the services of an international
marriage broker or other international matchmaking organization.
(f)Repeal of
mail-Order bride provisionSection 652 of the Illegal Immigration
Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1375) is hereby
repealed.
5.Information about
legal rights and resources for immigrant victims of domestic violence
(a)Development of
information pamphlet
(1)The Secretary of
Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall develop
an information pamphlet to ensure the consistency and accuracy of information
disseminated to—
(A)foreign national clients or other
individuals by international marriage brokers pursuant to section 4(b)(1)(C);
and
(B)beneficiaries of petitions filed by United
States citizens for K nonimmigrant visas.
(2)Consultation
with expert organizationsThe
Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State,
shall develop such information pamphlet by working in consultation with
non-profit, non-governmental immigrant victim advocacy organizations.
(b)Contents of
Information pamphletThe
information pamphlet required under subsection (a) shall include information on
the following:
(1)The K nonimmigrant visa application process
and the marriage-based immigration process, including conditional residence and
adjustment of status.
(2)The requirement that international marriage
brokers provide foreign national clients with background information collected
from United States clients regarding their marital history and domestic
violence or other violent criminal history, but that such information may not
be complete or accurate.
(3)The illegality of domestic violence, sexual
assault, and child abuse in the United States.
(4)Information on the dynamics of domestic
violence.
(5)Domestic violence and sexual assault
services in the United States, including the National Domestic Violence
Hotline, a project of the Texas Council on Family Violence, a nonprofit
organization dedicated to fighting domestic violence, and the National Sexual
Assault Hotline, operated by the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, and
independent anti-sexual assault organization.
(6)A description of immigration relief
available to an immigrant victim of domestic violence, sexual assault,
trafficking, and other crimes under the Violence Against Women Act, including
the amendments made by that Act, section 101(a)(15)(U) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(U)), and section 101(a)(15)(T) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(T)).
(7)The legal rights of immigrant victims of
abuse and other crimes in immigration, criminal justice, family law, and other
matters.
(8)The obligations of parents to provide child
support for children.
(9)The illegality of and penalties for
knowingly entering into marriage for the purpose of evading the immigration
laws of the United States.
(c)
(1)In order to best serve the language groups
most recruited by international marriage brokers and having the greatest
concentration of K nonimmigrant visa applicants, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall translate the
information pamphlet developed under this section, subject to paragraph (2),
into the following languages:
(A)Arabic.
(B)Chinese.
(C)French.
(D)Hindi.
(E)Japanese.
(F)Korean.
(G)Polish.
(H)Portuguese.
(I)Russian.
(J)Spanish.
(K)Tagalog.
(L)Thai.
(M)Ukrainian.
(N)Vietnamese.
(2)The Secretary of
Homeland Security may modify the translation requirements of paragraph (1) if
the report submitted under section 7(b) includes recommendations for such
modification.
(d)Availability and
distributionThe information
pamphlet under this subsection shall be made available and distributed as
follows:
(1)International
marriage brokers and victim advocacy organizationsThe
information pamphlet shall be made available to each international marriage
broker and to each governmental or non-governmental victim advocacy
organization.
(2)K nonimmigrant
visa applicants
(A)Mailing with
immigration formsThe
information pamphlet shall be mailed by the National Visa Center, of the
Secretary of State, to each applicant for a K nonimmigrant visa at the same
time that Form DS–3032 is mailed to such applicant. The pamphlet so mailed
shall be in the primary language of the applicant, or in English if no
translation into the applicant’s primary language is available.
(B)The Secretary of
State shall post the content of the pamphlet on the web site of the National
Visa Center, as well as on the web sites of all consular posts processing K
nonimmigrant visa applications.
(C)The Secretary of
State shall require that the pamphlet be distributed directly to such
applicants at all consular interviews for K nonimmigrant visas. If no written
translation into the applicant’s primary language is available, the consular
officer conducting the visa interview shall review the pamphlet with the
applicant orally in the applicant’s primary language, in addition to
distributing the pamphlet to the applicant in English.
6.Changes in processing
K nonimmigrant visas; consular confidentiality
(a)K nonimmigrant
visa processingSection
214(d) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(d)) is amended—
(1)by striking Attorney General
and inserting Secretary of Homeland Security
each place it
appears;
(2)by inserting (1)
before
A visa
; and
(3)by adding at the end the following:
(2)A
United States citizen may not file a petition under paragraph (1) if such a
petition filed by that petitioner for another alien fiancée or fiancé is
pending or has been approved and is still valid.
(3)The Secretary of Homeland Security shall
provide to the Secretary of State the criminal background information on a
petitioner for a visa under clause (i) or (ii) of section 101(a)(15)(K) to
which it has access under existing authority in the course of adjudicating the
petition.
(4)Each petitioner for a visa under clause (i)
or (ii) of section 101(a)(15)(K) shall provide, as part of the petition, in
writing and signed under penalty of perjury, information described in section
4(c)(2) of the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act of 2005.
(5)The Secretary of State shall ensure that an
applicant for a visa under clause (i) or (ii) of section 101(a)(15)(K)—
(A)shall be provided, by mail or
electronically—
(i)a copy of the petition for such visa
submitted by the United States citizen petitioner; and
(ii)any information that is contained in the
background check described in paragraph (3) relating to any court orders,
arrests, or convictions described in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of section
4(c)(2) of the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act of 2005;
(B)shall be informed that petitioner
information described in subparagraph (A) is based on available records and may
not be complete; and
(C)shall be asked in the primary language of
the visa applicant whether an international marriage broker has facilitated the
relationship between the visa applicant and the United States petitioner and
whether that international marriage broker complied with the requirements of
section 4 of such Act.
(6)The Secretary shall provide for the
disclosure of information described in paragraph (5) to the visa applicant at
the consular interview in the primary language of the visa applicant.
(7)The fact that an alien described in clause
(i) or (ii) of section 101(a)(15)(K) is aware of any information disclosed
under paragraph (5) shall not be used against the alien in any determination of
eligibility for relief under this Act or the Violence Against Women Act (Public
Law 103–322; 108 Stat. 1902), and the amendments made by that Act.
(8)In fulfilling the requirements of paragraph
(5)(A)(ii), a consular officer shall not disclose the name or location of any
person who obtained a restraining or protective order against the petitioner,
but shall disclose the relationship of the person to the
petitioner.
.
(b)Sharing of
certain informationSection
222(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1202(f)) shall not be
construed to prevent the sharing of information under section 214(d) of such
Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(d)).
(c)The amendment made by
subsection (a) shall apply to petitions filed after the date of enactment of
this Act.
7.
(a)The Secretary of Homeland Security, through
the Director of the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services, shall
conduct a study of the international marriage broker industry in the United
States that—
(1)estimates, for the years 1995 through
2005,the number of international marriage brokers doing business in the United
States, the number of marriages resulting from the services provided by such
brokers, and the extent of compliance with the applicable requirements of this
Act;
(2)assess the information gathered under this
Act from clients by international marriage brokers and from petitioners by the
Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services;
(3)examine, based on the information gathered,
the extent to which persons with a history of violence are using the services
of international marriage brokers and the extent to which such persons are
providing accurate information to international marriage brokers in accordance
with section 4;
(4)assess the accuracy of the criminal
background check at identifying past instances of domestic violence; and
(5)assess the extent to which the languages of
translation required under section 5(c)(1) continue to accurately reflect the
highest markets for recruitment by international marriage brokers and the
greatest concentrations of K nonimmigrant visa applicants.
(b)Not later than 3 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall submit a report
to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the
Judiciary of the House of Representatives setting forth the results of the
study conducted under subsection (a).
8.
(a)Except as provided in
subsection (b), section 5, and the amendments made by section 6, this Act shall
take effect on the date which is 60 days after the date of enactment of this
Act.
(b)Additional time
allowed for information pamphletSection 5(b) shall take effect on the date
which is 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act.