The Legal Immigration Family Equity Act (LIFE Act) of 2000 was a grouping of temporary provisions impacting U.S. immigration law. They included the following changes:
Temporary Restoration of § 245(i) of the Immigration and Naturalization Act
Section 245(i) of the Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA) provides the conditions under which an eligible nonimmigrant may apply for adjustment of status to that of a person admitted for permanent residence in the United States. The LIFE Act states that § 245(i) is temporarily available to certain people who were physically in the United States on December 21, 2000, the date of the LIFE Act's enactment. The LIFE Act allowed an alien who was ineligible to adjust his or her status due to an immigration violation, but who otherwise would qualify for lawful permanent residency, to pay a fine and process his or her adjustment of status application without first returning to their country of origin. The LIFE Act provisions on this matter allowed for an application under the LIFE Act through April 30, 2001.
Temporary "V" Visa
The LIFE Act created a temporary "V" visa status for certain non-immigrants. "V" status was made available to spouses and children of lawful permanent residents of the United States who had been waiting for more than three years for an immigrant visa. To qualify, the immigrant petition had to have been filed before the LIFE Act's effective date. People receiving "V" status were authorized to work and were protected from removal.
Temporary "K" Visa
Prior to the LIFE Act, the "K" visa was only available for fiances of U.S. citizens. The LIFE Act authorized temporary "K" visa status for spouses and children of U.S. citizens who were living outside the United States.
Late Amnesty
The LIFE Act also affected members of three different class action lawsuits involving "late amnesty" legislation passed in 1986. Class action members who entered the United States before January 1, 1982 were eligible for adjustment of status under the LIFE Act provisions.
Impact on the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act
The LIFE Act impacted certain Haitian nationals in the United States. The Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act of 1998 (HRIFA) was an act that impacted the procedures for adjustment of status for certain Haitian nationals. The deadline to apply for the special procedures under HRIFA was March 31, 2000. The LIFE Act provided a short time period in which Haitian nationals could still apply for an adjustment of status or they could seek reconsideration of an HRIFA application that had been denied. The deadline for this extended time period under the LIFE Act was June 19, 2001.
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