Protecting Religious Minorities Persecuted by ISIS Act of 2015

Protecting Religious Minorities Persecuted by ISIS Act of 2015

This bill directs the Secretary of State to establish or use existing refugee processing mechanisms in Iraq and in other countries through which aliens from Iraq or Syria who have been persecuted, or have a credible fear of being persecuted, by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS/ISIL), or a similar group, based on gender or religious or ethnic membership may apply directly to the United States Refugee Admissions Program for priority 2 refugee admission to the United States.

The processing mechanisms shall ensure that background and security checks are conducted, including the use of biographic and biometric data.

The Secretary of State shall: (1) report to Congress a plan to expedite the processing of refugee admissions applications for such aliens, and (2) implement the plan within 180 days of enactment of this Act.

It is U.S. policy that when conflict arises the United States should:

• undertake efforts with the international community to protect local populations and enable them to remain safely in their home countries or in neighboring host countries until they can be safely repatriated; and
• facilitate third country resettlement if necessary, including U.S. resettlement when such refugees are of special humanitarian concern to the United States.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov