DHS to extend US-VISIT to Visa Waiver Program Nations

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said that, by September 30, 2004, it will extend the US-VISIT requirements to aliens arriving in the United States from visa waiver program (VWP) nations. This means that mariners and other non-immigrants from those nations (mostly Western Europe, but including Japan, Australia, among others) will have their photographs and fingerprints taken upon arrival. DHS has also asked Congress to pass legislation that would extend for two years the deadline for VWP nations to have machine-readable passports that include biometric identifiers and for DHS to have readers for these biometric passports at all ports of entry. If approved by Congress, this will slow down the transition from the old manual processing system for foreign mariners and other aliens entering the United States to the planned new electronic system. DHS also issued a Fact Sheet on the US-VISIT program. (HK Law).