[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5308 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 5308

   To designate Afghanistan under section 244 of the Immigration and 
 Nationality Act to permit nationals of Afghanistan to be eligible for 
 temporary protected status under such section, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             August 6, 2026

Mr. Coons (for himself, Ms. Murkowski, Ms. Klobuchar, and Mr. Cassidy) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To designate Afghanistan under section 244 of the Immigration and 
 Nationality Act to permit nationals of Afghanistan to be eligible for 
 temporary protected status under such section, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Afghanistan TPS Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. DESIGNATION FOR PURPOSES OF GRANTING TEMPORARY PROTECTED 
              STATUS.

    (a) Designation.--For purposes of section 244 of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a), Afghanistan shall be treated as 
if it has been designated under subsection (b)(1) of that section.
    (b) Period of Designation.--The initial period of the designation 
referred to in subsection (a) shall be for the period beginning on the 
date of the enactment of this Act and ending on July 1, 2029.
    (c) Receipt, Processing, and Adjudication.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall--
                    (A) receive and process applications for temporary 
                protected status, and applications for employment 
                authorization in connection with such status, submitted 
                by nationals of Afghanistan; and
                    (B) not later than 90 days after the date on which 
                such application is received, complete the adjudication 
                of such application.
            (2) Extension.--The Secretary of Homeland Security may 
        extend, by not more than 150 days, the timeline for 
        adjudication under paragraph (1)(B) with respect to an 
        applicant, if the Secretary certifies to the Committee on the 
        Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
        the Judiciary of the Senate that, based on derogatory 
        information specific to the applicant and in the interest of 
        national security, additional time is necessary to evaluate the 
        application.
    (d) Aliens Eligible.--As a result of the designation made under 
subsection (a), an alien who is a national of Afghanistan is deemed to 
satisfy the requirements under paragraph (1) of section 244(c) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a(c)), subject to 
paragraph (3) of such section, if the alien--
            (1) has been continuously physically present in the United 
        States since the date of enactment of this Act;
            (2) is admissible as an immigrant, except as otherwise 
        provided in paragraph (2)(A) of such section, and is not 
        ineligible for temporary protected status under paragraph 
        (2)(B) of such section; and
            (3) registers for temporary protected status consistent 
        with established procedures, including--
                    (A) submission of biometric and biographic data; 
                and
                    (B) completion of applicable criminal and national 
                security background checks.
    (e) Consent To Travel Abroad.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
        give prior consent to travel abroad, in accordance with section 
        244(f)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
        1254a(f)(3)), to an alien who is granted temporary protected 
        status pursuant to the designation made under subsection (a) if 
        the alien establishes to the satisfaction of the Secretary of 
        Homeland Security that emergency and extenuating circumstances 
        beyond the control of the alien require the alien to depart for 
        a brief, temporary trip abroad.
            (2) Treatment upon return.--An alien returning to the 
        United States in accordance with an authorization described in 
        paragraph (1) shall be treated as any other returning alien 
        provided temporary protected status under section 244 of the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a).
    (f) Waiver.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall permit aliens 
to apply for a waiver of any fees associated with filing an application 
for temporary protected status under section 244 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a) by a person who is only eligible for 
such a status by reason of subsection (a).
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