This bill would amend the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015 (H.R. 158 of 1/6/15), which passed into law as a provision in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 (*H.R. 2029 of 4/24/15) and requires citizens of VWP countries to obtain visas for entry to the U.S. if they have traveled to Iran, Iraq, Syria, or Sudan since 3/1/11.
Introduced following complaints that new rules unjustly discriminated against dual nationals of VWP-participating countries (see H.R. 4380 of 1/13/2016), this bill would make an exception for persons present in the listed countries who were there as employees of an international organization. It would also allow the State Dept. and Dept. of Homeland Security to grant national security waivers.
The day after this bill was introduced, the State Dept. announced that it would be waiving provisions of the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act on a case-by-case basis for journalists, representatives of international and regional organizations, humanitarian workers, and those who traveled to the listed countries for “legitimate business-related purposes.”
No cosponsors.
Last major action: 1/20/16 referred to Senate Comm. on the Judiciary.