Title 42, The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-110

§19231 Requirements for Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs

Title 42 › CHAPTER 163 — RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, COMPETITION, AND INNOVATION › SUBCHAPTER VI — MISCELLANEOUS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY PROVISIONS › Part C — Research Security › § 19231

Last updated Sep 23, 2026|Official source

Summary

Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to create and share rules within 180 days after August 9, 2022, that make Federal research agencies stop their people from joining foreign talent recruitment programs. The rules must ban participation by agency staff and by contractors and other types of appointees (except peer reviewers), require people involved with research awards to tell their agency if they are in such a program, block research and development awards if a covered person is in a malign program, and, when possible, require award recipients to keep those people off funded projects. The Director must also explain what counts as a foreign talent recruitment program. Each Federal research agency must put a matching policy in place within one year after August 9, 2022, and the Director must try to keep the agencies’ policies consistent.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §19231

The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Purpose
The purpose of this part is to direct actions to prohibit participation in any foreign talent recruitment program by personnel of Federal research agencies and to prohibit participation in a malign foreign talent recruitment program by covered individuals involved with research and development awards from those agencies.
(b)Guidance
Not later than 180 days after August 9, 2022, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, in coordination with the interagency working group established under section 1746 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (42 U.S.C. 6601 note; Public Law 116–92), shall publish and widely distribute a uniform set of guidelines for Federal research agencies regarding foreign talent recruitment programs. Such policy guidelines shall—
(1)prohibit all personnel of each Federal research agency, including Federal employees, contract employees, independent contractors, individuals serving under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4701 et seq ), Visiting Scientist, Engineering, and Educator appointments, and special government employees other than peer reviewers, from participating in a foreign talent recruitment program;
(2)as part of the requirements under section 6605 of this title, require covered individuals to disclose if such individuals are a party to a foreign talent recruitment program contract, agreement, or other arrangement;
(3)prohibit research and development awards from being made for any proposal in which a covered individual is participating in a malign foreign talent recruitment program; and
(4)to the extent practicable, require recipient institutions to prohibit covered individuals participating in malign foreign talent recruitment programs from working on projects supported by research and development awards.
(c)Definition of foreign talent recruitment programs
As part of the guidance under subsection (b), the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy shall define and describe the characteristics of a foreign talent recruitment program.
(d)Implementation
Not later than one year after August 9, 2022, each Federal research agency shall issue a policy utilizing the guidelines under subsection (b).
(e)Consistency
The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy shall ensure that the policies issued by the Federal research agencies under subsection (d) are consistent to the greatest extent practicable.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 1970, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), is Pub. L. 91–648, Jan. 5, 1971, 84 Stat. 1909, which is classified principally to chapter 62 (§ 4701 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 4701 of this title and Tables.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 19231

Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Sep 23, 2026

Release point: 119-110