Reuniting Families Act
The Reuniting Families Act reduces family-based visa backlogs by reclassifying spouses, permanent partners, and minor children of legal permanent residents as immediate relatives, allowing them to be processed more quickly. The bill recaptures unused visa numbers from previous years, increasing the total number of available family-based visas without changing the overall annual caps. It expands rights for permanent partners (not just married spouses) and provides relief for orphans, widows, and widowers with pending applications. The legislation also prohibits removal of aliens with pending applications and prioritizes family reunification in refugee resettlement processes.
Bill status
in committee
1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Sep 2023
Committee Review
Floor Vote
President
Introduced Sep 19, 2023
Last action Sep 19, 2023
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
2
Key actions
0
Committee
1
Sep 19, 2023
Committee
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
lower
Sep 19, 2023
Introduced
Introduced in House
lower
1 primary · 41 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Judy Chu
DDemocratic
Co
Adam B. Schiff
DDemocratic
Co
Adam Smith
DDemocratic
Co
Adriano Espaillat
DDemocratic
Co
Al Green
DDemocratic
Co
Becca Balint
DDemocratic
Co
David J. Trone
DDemocratic
Co
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
DDemocratic
Co
Delia C. Ramirez
DDemocratic
Co
Doris O. Matsui
DDemocratic
Co
Eleanor Holmes Norton
DDemocratic
Ask Maddy
·
AI policy assistant
Ask Maddy about HR 5560
Scope: US
Hi! I can help you understand HR 5560. What would you like to know?
Try one of these
i
Maddy answers using official bill text and legislative records. Always verify before sharing.
Sources cited inline