Adding Ireland to E-3 Nonimmigrant Visa Program
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7164, a bill to add Ireland to the E-3 nonimmigrant visa program.
In 2005, soon after the United States and Australia finalized the Australia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, Congress created the E-3 program for Australian nationals. That program provides up to 10,500 temporary visas, similar to H-1B visas, for Australians seeking to work in the United States in what are known as specialty occupations.
As with the H-1B program, specialty occupations are those that require ``theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge'' in fields such as science, engineering, and computer programming.
Australia has never used more than a fraction of the 10,500 E-3 visas that are made available each year in the program. In light of this fact, this bill would add Ireland to the program, thus allowing Irish nationals to use some of those remaining, unused visas. As amended, the bill would take the number of E-3 visas left unused by Australia in a given fiscal year and make that same number available to Irish nationals the following fiscal year.
This is a commonsense bill that recognizes the important bond we share with two of our country's closest and most steadfast allies.
I congratulate my friends, Mr. Sensenbrenner, former chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and Mr. Neal, ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee--soon to be chairman of the Ways and Means Committee--for championing this bill. They both deserve credit for working across the aisle on this issue.
I would be remiss, however, if I did not also point out the continuing need to reform our immigration system in a more comprehensive and fundamental manner. Small fixes such as this bill are fine, but this body also must find ways to come together to enact broader, more meaningful reforms of our immigration system for the good of the American people.
With that, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield myself the balance of my time.
I again urge every Member on both sides of the aisle to vote for this bill. I applaud the bipartisan nature of it. I applaud Mr. Sensenbrenner and Mr. Neal and Mr. Chabot for their roles in it, and this is a useful thing to do. I urge passage of the bill.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source