PAUSE Act of 2025

Summary#

This bill would pause the issuance of most visas and the granting of most immigration statuses until a set of requirements in the bill are met. Those requirements would let states and localities deny public school access to people here without lawful status; stop nonimmigrants from adjusting to lawful permanent resident status; limit birthright citizenship so a child born in the United States is a citizen only if at least one parent is a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident; limit certain family-based immigrant visas to spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents; bar many people from receiving lawful status if they are described in the bill as an Islamist, an observer of Sharia law, a member or associate of the Chinese Communist Party, a known or suspected terrorist or terrorist affiliate; and bar many federal benefits to aliens, including Medicare, certain Medicaid emergency medical assistance, Supplemental Security Income, SNAP, certain tax credits, WIC, some federal student loans, many housing and community development programs, and Small Business Act loans or guarantees. The bill also creates a new $100,000 fee for employers filing certain H-1B petitions, ends employment authorization tied to the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program for certain students, and repeals the Diversity Immigrant Visa program. Many provisions take effect on enactment. The bill directs that certain pending or selected applications (for visas, OPT, or diversity visas) be revoked and that fees paid by those applicants be refunded. The bill includes an exception saying the general pause does not apply to a visa or status under section 101(a)(15)(B)(ii).

What it means for you#

  • If you are an immigrant or waiting for a visa: most visas and status grants could be paused until the bill's listed conditions are met. Some pending applications could be revoked and refunded if they were submitted before enactment.
  • If you are a child born in the United States: under the bill, birthright citizenship would apply only when at least one parent is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.
  • If you are a nonimmigrant worker or an employer using H-1B visas: employers would have to pay an additional $100,000 fee for certain new, extension, or change-of-employer H-1B petitions (starting in fiscal year 2026).
  • If you are an international student on F-1/OPT: the bill would end OPT employment authorization for students no longer engaged in full-time study; some selected OPT authorizations before enactment would be revoked and refunded.
  • If you applied for the Diversity Visa program: that program would be ended and selected applicants notified before enactment could have their applications revoked and fees refunded.
  • If you are a provider or recipient of federal programs: the bill lists many federal benefits that could no longer be provided to aliens as described in the text.

Expenses#

No publicly available information about overall budgetary or economic effects is included in the bill text. The bill does specify direct financial provisions: it adds an additional fee of $100,000 on employers filing certain H-1B petitions beginning in fiscal year 2026. The bill also requires refunds of fees for certain revoked visa, OPT, and diversity visa applications submitted before enactment.

Proponents' View#

No publicly available information.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.