GRATEFUL Act

The GRATEFUL Act (S 1887) creates a dedicated visa program for foreign national employees of U.S. government agencies who have provided 15+ years of exceptional service abroad. It directly affects employees of agencies like the State Department, USAID, Defense, and Homeland Security, along with their immediate families, by guaranteeing visa access when regular categories lack availability. The bill sets annual caps of 3,500 visas for fiscal year 2024 and 3,000 visas for subsequent years. To fund this, it temporarily reduces diversity visa allocations, ensuring the new program does not diminish existing visa categories. This is a concrete policy change that expands immigration pathways for long-serving government employees without altering current visa category limits.