United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 11 D · 11 R cosponsors

HR 5492 — PAAF Act

Last action — Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced September 18, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 42% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 22 sponsors

    1 primary, 21 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (11 D · 11 R) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

5 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill expands automatic U.S. citizenship provisions for certain internationally adopted individuals by creating new criteria and provisions specific to their situation.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1431(b)

    Subsection (a) shall apply to a child adopted by a United States citizen parent if the child satisfies the requirements applicable to adopted children under section 1101(b)(1) of this title. → (b) Adopted Children of Citizen Parent.--(1) In general.--Subsection (a) shall apply to a child adopted by a United States citizen parent if the child satisfies the requirements applicable to adopted children under subparagraph (E), (F), or (G) of section 101(b)(1), regardless of the date on which the adoption was finalized.

    This change specifies that the adoption requirements now include additional subparagraphs and removes the previous reference to section 1101(b)(1).

  • 8 U.S.C. 1431(b)

    (2) Limited application to certain adopted individuals residing in the United States.--Notwithstanding section 318, an individual born outside of the United States who was adopted by a United States citizen parent shall automatically become a citizen of the United States when all of the following conditions have been fulfilled: (A) The individual was adopted by a United States citizen before the individual reached 18 years of age. (B) The individual was physically present in the United States in the legal custody of the citizen parent pursuant to a lawful admission before the individual reached 18 years of age. (C) The individual never acquired United States citizenship before the date of the enactment of the Protect Adoptees and American Families Act. (D) The individual was residing in the United States on the date of the enactment of the Protect Adoptees and American Families Act pursuant to a lawful admission.

    This adds new criteria for automatic citizenship for individuals adopted while residing in the U.S.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1431(b)

    (3) Limited application to certain adopted individuals residing outside of the United States.--(A) In general.--An individual who meets all of the criteria described in paragraph (2) except for subparagraph (D) shall automatically become a citizen of the United States on the date on which the individual is physically present in the United States pursuant to a lawful admission.

    This introduces provisions for individuals adopted while residing outside the U.S., allowing citizenship upon their arrival.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1431(b)

    (B) Inapplicability of grounds of inadmissibility.--The grounds of inadmissibility set forth in section 212(a) shall not apply to an individual described in subparagraph (A) who is seeking admission to the United States.

    This provides that certain grounds for inadmissibility do not apply to this group of individuals.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1431(b)

    (C) Criminal background check.--Notwithstanding subparagraphs (A) and (B), an individual described in subparagraph (A) may not be issued a visa unless--(i) the individual was subjected to a criminal background check; and (ii) if the background check conducted pursuant to clause (i) reveals that the individual has committed a crime that was not properly resolved, the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State coordinated with relevant law enforcement agencies to ensure that appropriate action is taken to resolve such criminal activity.

    This mandates a criminal background check for individuals seeking a visa under this provision.

Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 21 co-sponsors · 525 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (21)

Not signed on (525)

525 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 525 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

immigration veterans healthcare
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors HR 5492?
HR 5492 is sponsored by Smith, Adam (Democratic), Bacon, Don (Republican), Raskin, Jamie (Democratic), Fitzpatrick, Brian K. (Republican), Jayapal, Pramila (Democratic), Moore, Blake D. (Republican), Chu, Judy (Democratic), Franklin, Scott (Republican), DelBene, Suzan K. (Democratic), Salazar, Maria Elvira (Republican), Carbajal, Salud O. (Democratic), Thompson, Glenn (Republican), Simon, Lateefah (Democratic), Stauber, Pete (Republican), Moore, Gwen (Democratic), Smith, Adrian (Republican), Ramirez, Delia C. (Democratic), Hill, J. French (Republican), Schakowsky, Janice D. (Democratic), Hinson, Ashley (Republican), Conaway, Herbert C. (Democratic), and Huizenga, Bill (Republican).
What is the current status of HR 5492?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced September 18, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track HR 5492?
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