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The legislation would require the State Department to designate as refugees of special humanitarian concern Hong Kong residents who suffered persecution, or have a well-founded fear of it, due to their expression of political opinions or peaceful participation in political activities. The privileges would extend to those individuals’ spouses, children and parents, provided the parents are Chinese citizens, the text says.

The paperwork could be completed in Hong Kong or in a third country, and refugees would then be able to apply for permanent residency and citizenship. The opportunity, which wouldn’t be restricted by the current U.S. cap on refugees, would be valid for five years from the date of the bill’s passage.

Examples of the types of people who could claim refugee status under the bill include those who organized antigovernment protests in 2019 and 2020 or had a leadership role in civil-society organizations supportive of them; acted as first-aid responders during the demonstrations; suffered harm while covering them as journalists; provided legal services to those arrested for participating in the protests; or were charged, detained or convicted for their own participation.

The introduction of the legislation, called the Hong Kong Safe Harbor Act, follows the Senate’s passage last week of a bipartisan bill that would put sanctions on Chinese officials who erode Hong Kong’s limited autonomy from Beijing, as well as the banks and firms that do business with them.

“Following last night’s implementation of Beijing’s National Security Law, the U.S. must help Hong Kongers preserve their society at home and find refuge for those who face persecution for exercising the rights once guaranteed under the Joint Declaration,” said Mr. Rubio, referring to the Sino-British agreement laying out Hong Kong’s status after Beijing took control of the territory from the U.K. in 1997.

“We are introducing this bipartisan legislation to reiterate to the Chinese Communist Party that we stand resolutely with Hong Kong and its residents, and we will ensure they don’t fall through the cracks of our broken immigration system just because they were forced to flee for standing up for their rights,” Mr. Menendez said.

Also on Tuesday, Reps. Tom Malinowski (D., N.J.), Adam Kinzinger (R., Ill.) and co-sponsors introduced a separate bill to expedite admission to the U.S. for highly skilled Hong Kongers—including those with graduate degrees, those who have completed undergraduate studies in the U.S., and those who own businesses with more than 50 employees—and to expedite permanent residency for Hong Kongers who have fled to the U.S.

The flurry of Congressional action related to Hong Kong presents a challenge for President Trump, who has toughened his tone on China and blamed it for the spread of coronavirus, but who has also been reluctant to risk upsetting the trade deal with China that he views as a major accomplishment. Beijing has been warning Washington against what it considers “meddling” in Hong Kong, Taiwan and other matters, saying it could jeopardize Chinese goods purchases under the deal.

Meanwhile, administration officials have continued to ramp up pressure on Beijing. Last week the State Department said it would impose U.S. visa restrictions on current and former Chinese Communist Party officials “believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy” and said their family may also be subject to these restrictions. It didn’t name any officials.

On Monday, the State and Commerce Departments said they would cease offering Hong Kong any preferential treatment over China to receive U.S. exports as a result of the national security law.

The new law, which imposes penalties up to life imprisonment, criminalizes secessionist, subversive and terrorist activities in Hong Kong, as well as acts of collusion with foreign forces that endanger national security. It also empowers the central government to supervise the policing of subversive activities in the former British colony and, in some cases, intervene directly.

The standing committee of China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress, would also reserve the right to interpret the law, meaning Beijing has the final say over how it is implemented, rather than the city’s courts.

Last year, a bill backed by Sen. Rubio and others—the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act—mandated the U.S. consulate not to consider peaceful-protest-related arrests as a factor when assessing applications for visas to come to the U.S.

This latest bill addresses refugee status. In it, legislators urged U.S. allies and partners to make similar accommodations for Hong Kongers.

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said this month that Britain is considering providing a route to British citizenship for nearly three million Hong Kong residents. Currently, 350,000 of Hong Kong’s 7.5 million residents hold British National Overseas passports, to which people who were citizens of Hong Kong before Britain returned the city to Chinese rule in 1997 are entitled. Holders of those passports can visit the U.K. for a period of six months but currently don’t have the automatic right to live or work in the country.

—Michelle Hackman contributed to this article.