The Bush administration said it intends
work with the next Congress to make it possible for more countries
to participate in the Visa Waiver Program.
The VWP permits
travelers from qualifying nations to enter the U.S. and visit for
up to 90 days without a visa. The participating nations reciprocate
by extending the same privilege to visiting U.S.
citizens.
Twenty-seven
countries are already part of the program, and a number of
countries have expressed an interest in participating.
Poland and South
Korea, for example, have long sought admission to the
program.
Countries are
often stymied by a VWP regulation limiting participation to
countries that have a visa-denial rate of less than 3%.
Because the
criteria for participating in the VWP are set by Congress, the
Department of Homeland Security has begun to reach out to
Democratic and Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill to consider
changes that it believes would bolster the security and efficiency
of the program while enabling more countries to join.
"We envision a
secure travel-authorization system that will allow us to receive
data about travelers from countries before they get on the plane,"
DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a statement.
The system would
mirror one already in use in Australia.
"Countries that
are willing to assist the U.S. in doing effective checks on
travelers could be put on track to enter the program soon,"
Chertoff said. "For countries seeking admission to the Visa Waiver
Program, this would be an opportunity to set a standard that will
be applied to the program generally. We want to welcome people who
are interested in working or traveling in the U.S., provided they
abide by the terms of their admission and also, importantly,
provided they don't furnish a security threat."
The objective
would be to "shift the focus more on security and data-sharing,"
while providing flexibility on other requirements, said DHS
spokesman Jarrod Agen.
The DHS has
proposed:
" Developing an electronic authorization
program. VWP travelers would provide information on their travel
plans in advance. Then travelers would be granted authorization
electronically to travel to the U.S.
" Working with countries to conduct
background checks on travelers. The DHS said such assistance should
be a routine part of any VWP relationship.
" Asking VWP countries to report lost and
stolen passport data for both blank and issued passports and to do
so as promptly as possible.
" Seeking cooperation in the repatriation
of illegal aliens. The DHS said VWP countries should agree to
accept their citizens promptly when those citizens are caught
violating U.S. law.
The DHS said it
would also seek additional security enhancements, such as urging
VWP candidates to take steps to improve the security and
interoperability of electronically enhanced travel documents and
asking VWP countries to permit U.S. air marshals to board
international flights.
"I want to stress
that the U.S. will equally accept the burden of new security
measures and will not require citizens of Visa Waiver countries to
adopt measures that we are unwilling to undertake ourselves,"
Chertoff said.
Agen said that
changes proposed by the DHS would not lower VWP
standards.
"The purpose of
this is to have a net gain on security," he said. "It is a shift
from pre-9/11 thinking on the Visa Waiver Program to post-9/11
thinking, where we are getting more data, data we can use to
prevent a terrorist from coming in. That is the goal
here."
To contact reporter Michael Milligan, send e-mail to [email protected].