Courtney Helps Pass Bipartisan Bill to Expedite Visas for Afghan Interpreters

WASHINGTON, DC—Today, Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02) voted to pass the Honoring Our Promises through Expedition (HOPE) for Afghan SIVs Act (H.R. 3385), a bill that would help expedite the issuance of special immigrant visas (SIVs) for Afghan translators and allies who assisted the United States by allowing these individuals to complete the requisite medical examination after they have safely left Afghanistan. Under this bipartisan legislation, SIV recipients would be admitted to the United States as conditional permanent residents once the medical examination is completed, typically within 30 days, and the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that they are not inadmissible on health-related grounds.

Rep. Courtney is a co-sponsor of the HOPE for Afghan SIVs Act, which was introduced by Reps. Jason Crow (D-CO), and Brad Wenstrup (R-OH)—both of whom are U.S. Army veterans who served in the Middle East. The bill passed the House today by a vote of 366-46.

"We owe a great debt to local Afghan translators and their families who took up common cause with America, worked alongside our troops, and helped keep them safe," said Congressman Courtney. "Their decision to support us came at great risk to themselves and their entire families, and our involvement in Afghanistan cannot end without ensuring our troops and our allies who risked their lives to support them have been safely removed from the immediate danger they face in the country. Bottom line, for the sake of our nation's reputation to protect those who help our soldiers and diplomats, we must pass this bill. I want to thank my colleagues, Rep. Jason Crow and Rep. Brad Wenstrup, for leading this bipartisan effort—this is the right thing to do, and I was proud to vote to pass this bill in the House today."

The Afghan SIV Program was created in 2009 to provide safety for Afghan interpreters, contractors, and security personnel who worked with the U.S. government in Afghanistan. The application process has been plagued by delays since the program was established and faces severe backlogs, with wait times routinely stretching for years.

Among the bureaucratic hurdles facing SIV applicants, many have cited the medical examination requirement, which can cost thousands of dollars, as a serious delay in the process. There is currently only one facility in Kabul that conducts all immigrant visa examinations for the entire country, forcing applicants from the outer provinces to travel to Kabul in often dangerous circumstances.

Specifically, the HOPE for Afghan SIVs Act would:

• Provide the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security with the authority to expedite the issuance of special immigrant visas (SIVs) for Afghan translators and contractors who assisted the U.S. government by allowing these individuals to complete the requisite medical examination after they enter the United States.
• SIV recipients would be admitted to the United States as conditional permanent residents until such time that the medical examination is completed, and the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that they are not inadmissible on health-related grounds.
• The bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to consult with the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish procedures to ensure, to the greatest extent practicable, that medical examinations are completed within 30 days of admission.

Click here to read the bill text.

Since the Biden Administration announced its plans to withdraw all US forces from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021, Rep. Courtney has joined members of Congress on both sides of the aisle in calling on the Administration to expedite this visa process, as Afghan SIV applicants and their families are increasingly under threat by the Taliban. Last week, Courtney became one of the first co-sponsors of the bipartisan Averting Loss of Life and Injury by Expediting SIVs (ALLIES) Act, which would increase the Afghan SIV cap by an additional 8,000 visas and remove burdensome application requirements that slow down the process, without impacting national security. Click here to read more.

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