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United States · Bill · S

S. 1934 (108th)

ICARE Act

referredUnited States· United States Congress· EN

Introduced

23 November 2003

Last action

23 November 2003 · Introduced

Status

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR S15648-15651)

Sponsors

Sen. Nickles, Don [R-OK], Sen. Landrieu, Mary L. [D-LA], Sen. Craig, Larry E. [R-ID], Sen. Bingaman, Jeff [D-NM], Sen. Inhofe, James M. [R-OK], Sen. Smith, Gordon H. [R-OR], Sen. Lincoln, Blanche L. [D-AR], Sen. Fitzgerald, Peter [R-IL], Sen. Coleman, Norm [R-MN], Sen. Dorgan, Byron L. [D-ND], Sen. Miller, Zell [D-GA], Sen. Hutchison, Kay Bailey [R-TX], Sen. Lieberman, Joseph I. [ID-CT]

Subjects

Immigration

Source updated

10 August 2026

Immigration

Official sourceDownload fileView documentsShare

Summary

Intercountry Adoption Reform Act of 2003 or ICARE Act - Establishes an Office of Intercountry Adoptions within the Department of State (DOS). Requires the President to appoint an Ambassador at Large to head the Office. Transfers to the Office all immigration functions with respect to intercountry adoptions currently performed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to grant automatic U.S. citizenship to internationally adopted children upon entry of a full and final adoption decree (thus dispensing with the need for such children to obtain visas). Creates a new W nonimmigrant visa category for children traveling to the United States to be adopted by U.S. citizens. Allows adopted children age 18 or under to claim an exception to immunization requirements for purposes of admissibility (currently limited to those age 10 or under). Redefines the term "adoptable child." Requires U.S. citizen adoptive parents to obtain approval of an adoption petition prior to issuance of a W visa or a full and final adoption decree. Provides that such petitions are subject to the terms applicable to orphan petitions. Directs the Ambassador to issue regulations: (1) establishing an expedited reapproval process for families whose prior approvals to adopt have expired; and (2) governing the appeal of petition denials. Requires the Office to determine whether a child is an adoptable child, pursuant to specified procedures, as a prerequisite to the issuance of a W visa or a full and final adoption decree.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

  1. 23 November 2003

    Introduced

    Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR S15648-15651)

    Source: IntroReferral

  2. 23 November 2003

    Introduced

    Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S15647-15648)

    Source: IntroReferral

  3. 23 November 2003

    Introduced

    Introduced in Senate

    Source: IntroReferral

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

Documents

3 official files

Introduced in Senate (text)

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  • Introduced in Senate (text)

    Introduced in Senate · EN · 23 November 2003

    ViewDownloadOpen at official source

  • Introduced in Senate (PDF)

    Introduced in Senate · EN · 23 November 2003

    ViewDownloadOpen at official source

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  • Introduced in Senate

    summary · EN · 23 November 2003

    Open at official source

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Sponsors

Related records

Sources

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