ACCESS TO THE NICARAGUAN ADJUSTMENT AND CENTRAL AMERICAN RELIEF ACT FOR BATTERED SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.

SEC. 1510. ACCESS TO THE NICARAGUAN ADJUSTMENT AND CENTRAL AMERICAN RELIEF ACT FOR BATTERED SPOUSES AND CHILDREN. (a) Adjustment of Status of Certain Nicaraguan and Cuban Battered Spouses.—Section 202(d) of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (8 U.S.C. 1255 note; Public Law 105–100, as amended) is amended— (1) in paragraph (1), by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following: “(B) the alien— “(i) is the spouse, child, or unmarried son or daughter of an alien whose status is adjusted to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence under subsection (a), except that in the case of such an unmarried son or daughter, the son or daughter shall be required to establish that the son or daughter has been physically present in the United States for a continuous period beginning not later than December 1, 1995, and ending not earlier than the date on which the application for adjustment under this subsection is filed; or “(ii) was, at the time at which an alien filed for adjustment under subsection (a), the spouse or child of an alien whose status is adjusted to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence under subsection (a), and the spouse, child, or child of the spouse has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by the alien that filed for adjustment under subsection (a);”; and (2) by adding at the end the following: “(3) Procedure.—In acting on an application under this section with respect to a spouse or child who has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty, the Attorney General shall apply section 204(a)(1)(H).”. (b) Cancellation of Removal and Suspension of Deportation Transition Rules for Certain Battered Spouses.—Section 309(c)(5)(C) of the Illegal Immigration and Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (division C of Public Law 104–208; 8 U.S.C. 1101 note) (as amended by section 1506(b)(3) of this title) is amended— (1) in clause (i)— (A) by striking the period at the end of subclause (VI) (as added by section 1506(b)(3) of this title) and inserting “; or”; and (B) by adding at the end the following: “(VII)(aa) was the spouse or child of an alien described in subclause (I), (II), or (V)— 114 STAT. 1532 “(AA) at the time at which a decision is rendered to suspend the deportation or cancel the removal of the alien; “(BB) at the time at which the alien filed an application for suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal; or “(CC) at the time at which the alien registered for benefits under the settlement agreement in American Baptist Churches, et. al. v. Thornburgh (ABC), applied for temporary protected status, or applied for asylum; and “(bb) the spouse, child, or child of the spouse has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by the alien described in subclause (I), (II), or (V).”; and (2) by adding at the end the following: “(iii) Consideration of petitions.—In acting on a petition filed under subclause (VII) of clause (i) the provisions set forth in section 204(a)(1)(H) shall apply. “(iv) Residence with spouse or parent not required.—For purposes of the application of clause (i)(VII), a spouse or child shall not be required to demonstrate that he or she is residing with the spouse or parent in the United States.”. (c) Effective Date.—The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) shall be effective as if included in the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (8 U.S.C. 1255 note; Public Law 105–100, as amended).