[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 120 (Thursday, June 23, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Page 37524]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13474]


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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Office of the Secretary

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Office of the Secretary


Exercise of Authority Under Section 212(d)(3)(B)(i) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DOS; Office of the Secretary, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of determination.

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    Following consultations with the Attorney General, the Secretary of 
State and the Secretary of Homeland Security have determined that the 
grounds of inadmissibility at section 212(a)(3)(B) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(B), bar certain 
individuals who do not pose a national security or public safety risk 
from admission to the United States and from obtaining immigration 
benefits or other status. Accordingly, consistent with prior exercises 
of the exemption authority, the Secretary of State and the Secretary of 
Homeland Security hereby conclude, as a matter of discretion in 
accordance with the authority granted by section 212(d)(3)(B)(i) of the 
INA, 8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(3)(B)(i), as amended, after considering the 
foreign policy and national security interests deemed relevant in these 
consultations, that section 212(a)(3)(B) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 
1182(a)(3)(B), excluding subclause (i)(II), shall not apply with 
respect to an individual who was employed as a civil servant in 
Afghanistan at any time from September 27, 1996 to December 22, 2001, 
or from August 15, 2021, or thereafter, if the individual establishes 
that they did not voluntarily and knowingly engage in terrorist 
activity on behalf of the Taliban or another designated terrorist 
organization, and provided that the individual satisfies the relevant 
agency authority that the individual:
    (a) Is seeking a benefit or protection under the INA and has been 
determined to be otherwise eligible for the benefit or protection;
    (b) Has undergone and passed all relevant background and security 
checks;
    (c) Has fully disclosed, to the best of their knowledge, in all 
relevant applications and interviews with U.S. government 
representatives and agents, the nature and circumstances of any 
activities or associations falling within the scope of section 
212(a)(3)(B) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(B);
    (d) Has not participated in, or provided material support for the 
commission of, a terrorist activity that they knew or reasonably should 
have known targeted noncombatant persons or U.S. interests;
    (e) Is not otherwise inadmissible under section 212(a)(3)(B) of the 
INA, 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(B), for which no exemption applies;
    (f) Poses no danger to the safety and security of the United 
States; and
    (g) Warrants an exemption from the relevant inadmissibility 
provision(s) in the totality of the circumstances.
    Implementation of this determination will be made by U.S. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), in consultation with U.S. 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), or by U.S. consular 
officers, as applicable, who shall ascertain, to their satisfaction, 
and in their discretion, that the particular applicant meets each of 
the criteria set forth above.
    This exercise of authority supersedes a similar exercise of 
authority by then Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson and then 
Secretary of State John Kerry signed on January 18, 2017, expanding the 
covered time period of employment as a civil servant in Afghanistan to 
include the period from ``August 15, 2021, or thereafter,'' in addition 
to the period from September 27, 1996 to December 22, 2001. This 
exercise of authority may be revoked as a matter of discretion and 
without notice at any time with respect to any and all persons subject 
to it. Any determination made under this exercise of authority as set 
out above can inform but shall not control a decision regarding any 
subsequent benefit or protection application, unless such exercise of 
authority has been revoked.
    This exercise of authority shall not be construed to prejudice, in 
any way, the ability of the U.S. government to commence subsequent 
criminal or civil proceedings in accordance with U.S. law involving any 
beneficiary of this exercise of authority (or any other person). This 
exercise of authority creates no substantive or procedural right or 
benefit that is legally enforceable by any party against the United 
States or its agencies or officers or any other person.
    In accordance with section 212(d)(3)(B)(ii) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 
1182(d)(3)(B)(ii), a report on the individuals to whom this exercise of 
authority is applied, on the basis of case-by-case decisions by the 
U.S. Department of State or by the U.S. Department of Homeland 
Security, shall be provided to the specified congressional committees 
not later than 90 days after the end of the fiscal year.
    This determination is based on an assessment related to the 
national security and foreign policy interests of the United States as 
they apply to the particular persons described herein and shall not 
have any application with respect to other persons or to other 
provisions of U.S. law.
    Authority: 8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(3)(B)(i).

    Dated: June 8, 2022.
Alejandro N. Mayorkas,
Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

    Dated: June 8, 2022.
Antony J. Blinken,
Secretary, U.S. Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2022-13474 Filed 6-21-22; 11:15 am]
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