H.R. 9249: No PLA Employees Act of 2026

This bill would change U.S. immigration law to make it harder for certain foreign nationals to enter or stay in the United States if they have worked for companies or institutions the U.S. Department of Defense has identified on two existing lists.

What the bill does

• It adds a new ground of inadmissibility, meaning a person could be denied entry or certain immigration benefits if they currently work, or previously worked, for:
  • an entity listed under Section 1260H of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, described in the bill as a “Chinese military company,” or
  • an entity listed under Section 1286 of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, described in the bill as a “foreign institution engaged in problematic activity.”
• It also adds a new ground of deportability, meaning a person already in the United States could be removed if they currently work, or previously worked, for one of those listed entities.

How it would work in practice

The bill does not create a new list itself. Instead, it relies on existing Defense Department lists already found in federal law. If a person has worked for an entity on one of those lists at any time in the past, that work history alone could be used as a basis to deny admission or to deport them.

The bill uses broad language: it covers both current and previous employment. It does not, in the text provided, set out exceptions for the length of employment, the type of job, or whether the person left the company before it was placed on the list.

Legal effect

If enacted, the bill would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act by adding these employment-based immigration penalties to existing federal law. In effect, it would make past or present employment at certain listed foreign entities a direct immigration disqualifier.

Relevant Companies

None found