~ The Reuniting Families Act would reduce visa backlogs, boost efficiency across the immigration process, and ensure a fairer, more humane process for immigrant families ~
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) reintroduced the Reuniting Families Act of 2025, legislation to strengthen protections for immigrant families and address long-standing problems in a family immigration system that hasn’t seen meaningful reform in more than three decades. U.S. Representative Judy Chu (D-CA) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
“Immigrant families currently experience unnecessary obstacles and delays due to our country’s broken immigration system, keeping families separated for potentially long periods of time,” said Senator Hirono. “By reducing family-based immigration backlogs and making common sense updates to how we treat families, the Reuniting Families Act will help take the first step in the right direction to keeping families together as they navigate our immigration system.”
“As Donald Trump’s inhumane mass deportation campaign rips apart families and communities across the country, it’s paramount we address the unnecessary barriers in our immigration system that have created backlogs and kept families apart for years,” said Senator Duckworth. “Our legislation would implement commonsense reforms to help end family-based backlogs, which keep too many with approved green card applications stuck in bureaucratic limbo, and help get more families where they belong—together.”
"Family-based immigration makes our country stronger. But our broken immigration system is preventing individuals from reuniting with their loved ones and contributing to our communities and economies. With over four million individuals with approved visa applications stuck in limbo through no fault of their own, families are needlessly suffering,” said Representative Chu. “That’s why I am proud to reintroduce the commonsense Reuniting Families Act of 2025 with Senator Hirono to ensure that no one should have to wait years, sometimes decades, to reunite with a loved one and to ensure our family-based immigration system works more efficiently and humanely.”
Today, nearly four million people with approved visa applications remain trapped in a massive immigration backlog, with many waiting more than a decade to reunite with their loved ones. This crisis is the direct result of an outdated system that has not seen meaningful reform for more than thirty years. The Reuniting Families Act tackles these delays by recapturing unused visas, rolling them into future years, expanding who qualifies as a family member to include permanent partners, and increasing both the total number of available family preference visas and per-country limits.
This bill tackles several major challenges within the immigration system. Among the key improvements are:
The bill is endorsed by American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), CenterLink: The Community of LGBTQ Centers, Church World Service, Coalition on Human Needs, COOLJC Region 8 SJEREC, Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC), Franciscan Action Network, Global Refuge, Japanese American Citizens League, Mennonite Central Committee U.S., National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association, National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF), National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), National Council of Jewish Women, National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC), National Tongan American Society, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, Refugee Council USA, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC), Stop AAPI Hate, Union for Reform Judaism, Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice, Woodhull Freedom Foundation, Regional/State/Local Groups, AAPI Equity Alliance, ACLU People Power Fairfax, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | Chicago, Ayuda, BISN, BRIJ PEACE EMPOWERERS, Caribbean Equality Project (CEP), Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto, Equality California, HANA Center, Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef), InterReligious Task Force on Central America, Just Neighbors, Khmer Maine, Maine Immigrants' Rights Coalition, Mountain State Justice, Ohio Immigrant Coalition, OPAWL - Building AAPI Feminist Leadership, Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, R320 Design, Reconciling & Social Justice Team 1st United Methodist Church Sacramento, Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN), SWMI Indivisible, Transformations CDC, WADEIn New Jersey.
The full text of the legislation is available here.
###