H.R. 5528 — Protecting Children of Long-Term Visa Holders Act of 2025

This section establishes a new category of immediate relatives exempt from numerical visa limits under the Immigration and Nationality Act for aliens who (1) are not inadmissible under INA §212(a) or deportable under INA §237(a); (2) were lawfully present in the United States as a dependent child of a nonimmigrant admitted for employment (excluding A, G, N, or S visas) for an aggregate period of at least eight years; (3) have been lawfully present in the United States for an aggregate period of at least 10 years on the date of application; and (4) have graduated from an institution of higher education (as defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965). Such aliens may self-petition the Department of Homeland Security for lawful permanent resident status.

This section establishes age-out protections and revises priority date retention under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). **Age-out protections.** The section adds INA §101(b)(6) to define a "child" (i.e., unmarried alien under age 21) for family- or employment-based petitions under INA §204 and subsequent visa or adjustment applications using the alien's age on the earlier of the petition filing date or labor certification filing date; provides an exception for aliens dependent on a nonimmigrant parent for an aggregate of 8 years before age 21 using the parent's initial filing date; and reverts to biological age if the alien does not seek permanent resident status within 2 years of visa availability absent extraordinary circumstances. (As background, these rules protect beneficiaries from "aging out" and losing derivative eligibility upon turning 21 due to processing delays.) The section also revises INA §201(f) to apply the new child definition in determining immediate relative status for certain U.S. citizen children's petitions (striking prior Child Status Protection Act rules). Amendments apply as if included in the Child Status Protection Act of 2002 and allow motions to reopen denials within 2 years of enactment if they would have been approved under the new rules, exempting approvals from INA numerical limits (§§201-203). **Nonimmigrant dependents.** The section adds INA §214(s) to base dependent child eligibility under employment- or E-nonimmigrant petitions on the new §101(b)(6) definition (with long-term dependents eligible despite marriage); and authorizes such dependents to work incident to status. **Priority date retention.** The section revises INA §203(h) to define an individual's priority date (i.e., place in line for a visa number) as the earliest petition filing date under INA §204 or preceding labor certification filing date; and requires principal and derivative beneficiaries to retain that date for any subsequent approved petition or certification (replacing prior rules limited to specific conversion scenarios).