The Dignity Act

On July 15, 2025, a bipartisan group of representatives led by Reps. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and Veronica Escobar (D-TX) introduced an updated version of the DIGNITY Act (H.R. 4393) to fix our nation’s broken immigration system. This historic bill is the first serious bipartisan immigration solution proposed by Congress in decades.

Original cosponsors include:

Republicans (11): María Elvira Salazar (FL-27), Mike Lawler (NY-17), David Valadao (CA-22), Dan Newhouse (WA-04), Mike Kelly (PA-16), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), Gabe Evans (CO-08), Marlin Stutzman (IN-03), Don Bacon (NE-02), Young Kim (CA-40), Mario Díaz-Balart (FL-26).

Democrats (11): Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Hillary Scholten (MI-03), Susie Lee (NV-03), Adam Gray (CA-13), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), Mike Levin (CA-49), Nikki Budzinski (IL-13), Laura Gillen (NY-04), Jake Auchincloss (MA-04), Lori Trahan (D-MA-3)

The bill consists of five core principles: (1) ending illegal immigration once and for all; (2) fixing our outdated asylum system, (3) providing a dignified solution for undocumented immigrants living in America; (4) protects American workers and supports industries; and (5) ensuring the United States remain prosperous and competitive in the future.

The Dignity Act is based on the biblical principles of Dignity. It will restore law and order to our immigration system and support American workers. It was written in consultation with American businesses leaders, agriculture and farming industries, the faith-based community, immigration reform groups, and border security experts.

Key Provisions of the Dignity Act

(1) Securing the Border and Restoring Law and Order

• Mandate 100% nationwide E-Verify to ensure all American businesses are hiring legal workers.
• Achieves operational control and advantage of the Southern Border by employing a comprehensive Southern Border Strategy.
• Constructs enhanced physical barriers and deploys the most up-to-date technology at the border.
• Implements new policies to stop criminals crossing the border illegally, including new authorities to track illicit spotters.
• Raises penalties on human traffickers and child sex traffickers.
• Increases penalties for helping individuals illegally cross the border, and for destroying equipment and sensors intended to deter illegal border crossings.
• Provides DHS the authority to use DNA testing to verify family relationships.
• Enhances port-of-entry security by expanding surveillance and intrusion detection systems.
• Improves legal commerce and trade by expanding inspection lanes and investing in X-ray technology to safely inspect commercial vehicles.

(2) Fixing our Asylum System

• Expedites processing and ends catch-and-release policies.
• Establishes at least three Humanitarian Campuses (HC) that will receive individuals and families arriving at the southern border for immediate processing.
  • Asylum-seekers will remain at an HC until their case is decided.
  • They will have freedom of movement within the HC, access to state-of-the-art facilities, medical personnel, social workers, mental health professionals, legal counsel, and non-governmental organizations.
• Decides asylum cases within 60 days. Asylum-seekers will undergo an initial credible fear interview within 15 days of their arrival and further screening by trained asylum officers for final determination within an additional 45 days.
• Creates additional immigration centers in Latin America to stop migrant caravans and prevent individuals from making the dangerous land journey to the United States.
  • The centers will offer asylum pre-screening, family reunification services for children, and employment consultation services.
• Increases penalties for applicants that make false statements or provide false documentation. Authorizes USCIS to terminate asylum applications if fraud is detected.
• Establishes a new two-strike policy for anyone caught crossing at a non-port-of-entry, to ensure legitimate asylum seekers are processed appropriately while bad actors are apprehended and removed expeditiously.

(3) Giving Dignity to Undocumented Immigrants

• Dreamers and DACA recipients are provided with conditional permanent resident status for 10 years. Then, they will have a pathway to adjust to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status through work experience, military service, or higher education.
• Establishes the Dignity Program, a practical solution for undocumented immigrants who have been in the U.S. for more than five years (before December 31, 2020).
  • Recipients will be offered a chance to work, pay restitution, get right with the law, and earn legal status.
  • Applicants must comply with all federal and state laws, pass a criminal background check, repay back taxes owed, and start paying income taxes.
  • Dignity participants will also pay $7,000 in restitution over seven years, check in with DHS every two years, and remain in good public standing.
  • Individuals in the Dignity Program will not have access to federal means-tested benefits or entitlements. They will be net contributors to tax revenue and to the U.S. economy.
  • NO path to LPR or citizenship is available through the Dignity Program.
  • Upon successful completion of the Dignity Program, the individual can apply for the Dignity Status.
• Dignity Status
  • Individuals will remain protected from deportation and will have access to full work authorization, the ability to live in the U.S., and travel authorization outside the U.S.
  • They will remain ineligible for means-tested benefits and entitlements.
  • Dignity Status can be renewed indefinitely as long as the individual remains in good standing with all federal and state laws.
  • NO path to LPR or citizenship is available through the Dignity Status.

(4) Dignity for American Workers

• Creates a new American Worker Fund using restitution payments from the Dignity Program and Dignity Status. This fund will provide workforce training, upskilling, and education for unemployed American workers.
  • For every participant in the Dignity Program, their restitution payments will help train or retrain at least one American worker.
    • In total, this will be at least $70 billion investment in the U.S. workforce.
  • The American Worker Fund provides grants for workforce education initiatives and apprenticeships to help U.S. citizens looking for work or transitioning to different careers.
    • This ensures Americans can secure employment in in-demand careers.

(5) Unleashing American Prosperity and Competitiveness

• Modernizes our legal immigration system and fixes backlogs.
  • Allows someone that has been waiting for a legal visa (either family-based or employment-based) for 10 years or more (calculated by priority date) to pay a $20,000 premium processing fee to receive that visa.
  • Raises the per-country cap set in the Immigration Act of 1990 from 7% to 15%.
  • Allows STEM PhD graduates from American universities, including medical students, to be eligible for an O visa. This allows “Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement” to stay and work in the U.S. if they choose to.
  • Increases high-skilled employment visa opportunities by only counting the principal applicant and excluding derivatives (children and spouses) from counting towards the annual Employment-Based visa caps. It does not raise the caps.
  • Includes the American Families United Act, which authorizes discretion if an undocumented child or spouse of a U.S. citizen is denied a visa or has received a deportation order, affording families relief on a case-by-case basis.
  • Includes the Temporary Family Visitation Act, which creates a new, 90-day visitor visa that can be used by foreigners to travel to the United States for business, pleasure, or family purposes.
  • Ensures that children legally present in the United States do not age out of receiving certain visas due to USCIS processing delays.
  • Requires students working in the United States as part of the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program to pay FICA (Social Security and Medicare) taxes.
  • Modernizes student visas by changing the F visa to be “dual intent.”
  • Creates an Immigration Agency Coordinator position to oversee and streamline immigration functions at USCIS, the State Department, and the Department of Labor.
  • Surge resources to USCIS operations, the Bureau of Consular Affairs and Visa Service at the State Department, and the Office of Foreign Labor Certification at DOL to reduce delays and improve visa processing.

No taxpayer funds will be used to pay for the Dignity Act.

• The border infrastructure, improved ports of entry infrastructure, new humanitarian campuses, increased personnel, and all other associated costs in this bill are paid for by an “Immigration Infrastructure Levy.”
  • A 1% levy will be deducted from the paychecks of individuals given work authorization under the Dignity Program. These levies will be deposited into the Immigration Infrastructure Fund to be used to carry out the provisions of this act, and then pay down the U.S. national debt by at least $50 billion.
• The American Worker Fund, used to provide workforce development for American workers, will be funded by restitution payments from the Dignity Programs.

Background and More Information: 

In March 2021, Rep. Salazar announced her vision for immigration reform in the Dignity Plan. Less than a year later, she introduced the first version of her Dignity Act. After consulting with members of both parties and a diverse group of interested stakeholders, Reps. Salazar and Escobar teamed up to introduce a new, better, and bipartisan version of the Dignity Act. Specifically, the new bill secures the border once and for all, reforms our broken asylum system, strengthens support for border communities, and stops the humanitarian crisis we are currently facing.

To address those currently in the United States, the bill establishes a seven-year Dignity Program. The program protects eligible undocumented immigrants from deportation. It gives them the opportunity to work, travel, and come out of the shadows, as long as they maintain good conduct and make restitution payments to the American taxpayer. While we are a nation of laws, we have also historically been a nation of second chances. This provides the undocumented living in the shadows a second chance to get right with the law.

Additionally, the bill solves critical labor shortages across industries. It addresses longstanding backlogs and inefficiencies in our legal immigration process, giving U.S. employers the ability to fill the millions of job vacancies that remain open. If the U.S. economy cannot grow and prosper, the American Dream could be out of reach for future generations.

The Dignity Act prioritizes American workers and our national security every step of the way, both through the establishment of the American Worker Fund to retrain American workers to meet the needs of a changing economy, and through the resources that are provided for border security and law enforcement to keep our communities safe. All of this will be fully funded through fees on immigrants and restitution payments made by participants in the Dignity program, at no expense to the American taxpayer.

Quotes:

“For 40 years, every president and Congress has looked the other way while millions have lived here illegally, many working in key industries that keep our economy running. It’s the Achilles’ heel no one wants to fix. The Dignity Act offers a commonsense solution: certain undocumented immigrants can earn legal status, not citizenship, by working, paying taxes, and contributing to our country. No handouts. No shortcuts. Just accountability and a path to stability for our economy and our future.” - Rep. María Elvira Salazar

"I have seen firsthand the devastating consequences of our broken immigration system, and as a member of Congress, I take seriously my obligation to propose a solution. Realistic, common-sense compromise is achievable, and is especially important given the urgency of this moment. I consider the Dignity Act of 2025 a critical first step to overhauling this broken system,” said Congresswoman Escobar. “Immigrants – especially those who have been in the United States for decades – make up a critical component of our communities and also of the American workforce and economy. The vast majority of immigrants are hard-working, law-abiding residents; and, most Americans recognize that it is in our country’s best interest to find bipartisan reforms. We can enact legislation that incorporates both humanity and security, and the Dignity Act of 2025 offers a balanced approach that restores dignity to people who have tried to navigate a broken system for far too long. The reintroduction of this legislation includes changes that reflect the challenges in today’s political environment. I’m proud of my bipartisan work with Representative Salazar, who has been a strong partner on this issue since December 2022. It is our hope that Congress seizes the opportunity to take an important step forward on this issue."

RESOURCES:

Full press conference, click here. 

One-pager on the Dignity Act, click here.

Detailed summary of the Dignity Act, click here. 

Section-by-section breakdown of the Dignity Act, click here. 

For the media kit, click here.

Full text of the bill, click here.