Visa Waiver Travelers to Face Additional Security Screenings

From MorganLewis.com, 11/03/2014

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will tighten screening measures on travelers who use the Visa Waiver Program in response to concerns over Islamist militants who hold U.S. or European passports.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced[1] on November 3 that it is putting in place additional security measures for travelers to the United States who use the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). Visa Waiver is available to citizens of principally Western European countries and enables such citizens to travel to the United States as visitors without first securing a visa from a U.S. consulate abroad. Under these new measures, those seeking to travel to the United States from countries in the VWP will be required to provide additional data fields of information in the travel application submitted via the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). The new information sought includes additional passport data, contact information, and other potential names or aliases. These additional security measures are a response to growing concerns that foreign fighters who joined Islamist militants in Syria and Iraq may seek to travel to the United States. According to CBP, many of these individuals may possess valid European and U.S. passports or travel documents and pose a potential threat for committing terrorist attacks in Europe or the United States.

What does this mean for travelers?

Travelers who use the Visa Waiver Program to enter the United States as visitors will need to submit additional pretravel clearance information via the ESTA system. ESTA is an automated system that determines the eligibility of visitors to travel to the United States under the VWP. The additional questions that VWP travelers will be required to answer encompass the following:

• Other names/aliases or other citizenships
• Parents’ name(s)
• National identification number (if applicable)
• Contact information (email, phone, points of contact)
• Employment information (if applicable)
• City of birth

Individuals with a current and valid ESTA clearance do not need to reapply. However, upon the expiration of that ESTA clearance or expiration of the individual’s VWP-country passport, a new ESTA clearance with the new data fields will be required for any future travel under the VWP.

As a result of these new clearance questions, it is possible that individuals who have passports from more than one country will require manual adjudication of ESTA clearance requests, leading to delay of ESTA processing. Similarly, an individual’s answers to the questions may, in some instances, lead to denial of ESTA clearance, which will require that those individuals apply for a visa at a U.S. consulate before they are eligible to travel to the United States as a visitor.

What should you do?

Travelers who use the VWP should apply for ESTA clearance at the earliest opportunity and should be prepared for an increased possibility that there will be a delay or a denial of ESTA clearance. In the event that ESTA clearance is denied, the individual will be required to apply for an actual visa at a U.S. consulate.

Chile Joins Visa Waiver Program

From Fragomen.com, 03/03/2014

Chile has become a member of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), the Department of Homeland Security has announced. Beginning on May 1, 2014, eligible Chilean e-passport holders may use the VWP to make short trips for business or tourism, without the need to obtain a visa, provided that they meet program requirements. 

The Visa Waiver Program allows foreign nationals from designated countries to enter the United States for business or tourism for up to 90 days without the need to obtain a B-1/B-2 visitor visa from a U.S. consulate. Chile joins 37 other VWP members: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.

Traveling Under the Visa Waiver Program 

Like all other VWP travelers, Chilean citizens must register and obtain approval to travel from the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) in order to make visa-free visits to the United States. They must also carry an e-passport, which the Chilean government began issuing in September 2013. An e-passport is embedded with an integrated computer chip containing the traveler’s biographic data. 

ESTA approval should be sought at least 72 hours before travel. If approved, the traveler’s ESTA registration will be valid for two years or until the expiration of his or her passport, whichever is earlier. The authorization may be used for multiple trips to the United States during the validity period. Foreign nationals who are denied ESTA registration must apply for a B-1/B-2 visa in order to visit the United States for business or tourism. 

What This Means for Employers and Foreign Nationals

Chile’s participation in the Visa Waiver Program is welcome news for employers and eligible foreign nationals. It will streamline travel for many, since it will allow eligible Chileans to avoid the processing delays of the B-1 visa application procedure when making short business trips to the United States. 

Taiwan added to Visa Waiver Program list

From the Department of State, 10/02/2012: 

On October 2, 2012, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Napolitano announced the designation of Taiwan into the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). Eligible Taiwan passport holders can travel on the VWP beginning November 1, 2012. However, potential Taiwanese travelers may apply for travel authorization approval through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization beginning immediately.

For additional information on the Visa Waiver Program visit Travel.State.Gov's Visa Waiver Program.