HR 10460: SMARTER Act

HR 10460 in plain English: The SMARTER Act would create or modify visa and immigration pathways related to skilled workers and higher education institutions, including new fee structures for applicants and employers. It establishes different rules based on whether an institution of higher education has spent at least $100,000 in federally financed research and development. It also creates a pathway for individuals or corporations willing to pay large investment fees to obtain status.

Stated purpose

The SMARTER Act aims to shift U.S. immigration toward a skills-based points system, limit family-sponsored immigration to spouses and minor children, and eliminate the Diversity Visa Program.

Key points

• Sets a $160 application fee for electronic visa submissions
• Distinguishes eligibility rules for universities that spent at least $100,000 in federally financed research and development
• Individuals can obtain status by paying $1,000,000 plus a $15,000 processing fee personally, or $2,000,000 plus a $15,000 processing fee if paid by a corporation
• Requires the Department of Homeland Security to conduct background checks on applicants

Arguments supporters make

• A points-based system rewards education, job skills, and economic contributions, helping fill labor shortages and grow the economy.
• Focusing family visas on spouses and minor children keeps families together while reducing a broad chain-migration system that supporters say has grown beyond its original intent.
• Ending the diversity lottery removes a random selection process and redirects those visa slots to people whose qualifications can be objectively evaluated.

Arguments opponents make

• Removing parents from the immediate-relative category separates many U.S. citizens from close family members and breaks from longstanding American immigration values centered on family unity.
• Critics argue eliminating the diversity lottery cuts off a legal pathway for immigrants from underrepresented countries, reducing the variety of backgrounds and perspectives that immigration brings.
• A purely skills-based system may favor applicants from wealthier countries who have better access to higher education and credentialing, disadvantaging equally talented people from lower-income nations.

Tradeoffs

Prioritizing skills and nuclear-family ties may bring economic benefits and streamline the system, but it reduces pathways for extended family members and people from underrepresented countries who currently rely on those visa categories. Gains in economic selectivity come at the cost of reduced family reunification options and geographic diversity in immigration.

Current status in Congress: In committee.

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