12.09.15
Proposed Challenges to the Visa Waiver Program (ESTA) Yesterday the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 158 which poses amendments to the Visa Waiver Program (ESTA). The bill must now be passed by the U.S. Senate and then signed into law by President Obama, or if vetoed by him, voted by both houses of Congress to override the veto. The main takeaway is that the amendments are not law. With that said, it is still worth taking a look at what the proposals include. The ESTA program allows citizens from a list of designated countries which our government deems has sufficient security checks and measures, to enter the U.S. for up to 90 days for pleasure or for business (not for work however) without first applying for a visa at an U.S. consulate abroad. H.R. 158 proposes to make amendments to this program in the following ways:
- Applicant must have a machine-readable and electronic passport;
- Applicant's country of nationality ("program country") must be able to validate that passports meet certain security requirement, i.e., machine-readable and electronic;
- Applicant must not have been present in Iraq, Syria, or any country whose government has been designated as having repeatedly provided support of acts of international terrorism or in any other country or area of concern as determined by the U.S. government;
- Even if the Applicant is a national of an eligible program country, the Applicant must not also be a national of Iraq, Syria, or any country whose government has been designated as having repeatedly provided support of acts of international terrorism;
- An exception to the above is for Applicants who have been in the areas mentioned as military personnel or government employees who were present while performing their official duties.