DOS Cable Disseminates Questionnaire for Minor Visa 93 Beneficiaries
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO ALL DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR POSTS
SPECIAL EMBASSY PROGRAM
AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE
AMEMBASSY KABUL
AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
UNCLAS STATE 189805
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS, PREF
SUBJECT: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR MINOR VISA 93 BENEFICIARIES
REF: STATE 142072
1. This telegram has been cleared by SEP.
2. Please note: Consular officers interviewing minor (less than 18 years of age) children who are Visa 93 beneficiaries travelling alone to the U.S. without a parent, must complete the questionnaire provided below and attach the responses to the refugee biographic data form. This is not required if the minor beneficiary is travelling with a parent. The questionnaire must be submitted along with the biographic data form in order for the case to be processed. The questionnaire can be located at www.wrapsnet.org. Justification for this required action follows:
3. The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration's (PRM) Office of Admissions has responsibility for ensuring appropriate placement of minor refugees resettled in the U.S. through the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program. We work with resettlement agencies to determine the best living situation for minors. In the recent past, PRM has become aware of several cases in which children were destined to be reunited with parents under visa 93 procedures. Upon arrival, however, it was learned that the parent had died or was unfit to care for the child. In one case, the father of four children died one year before his children arrived in the U.S. Once authorities discovered that the father was dead, the children were placed in U.S. foster care, although their mother was alive and well in Vietnam. The case was reported to INS who undertook deportation proceedings because the children were actually ineligible to enter the U.S. after the parent/petitioner had died. In an effort to ensure children are resettled under appropriate circumstances, PRM has developed a questionnaire to assist consular officers in gathering information that will be used to clarify parental oversight and to facilitate resettlement planning for the children. Resettlement workers will refer to the consular officers' responses when conducting a visit to the home of a petitioning parent to determine appropriate placement. Verification of answers by the visiting worker to the questionnaire will also help in minimizing instances of fraud or ineligibility.
4. Consular officers should include responses to the following questions:
-- What is known about the parent(s)?
-- How long has it been since the last contact between the minor and the parent (petitioner) in the U.S.?
-- Why was the minor separated from the parent?
-- Who is the primary caregiver for the minor (at the time of consular officer interview)?
-- How long has this caregiver been responsible for the minor?
-- What authority designated responsibility for the minor to the caregiver?
-- Is there any other information in the minor's background that would be useful to know when determining resettlement appropriate services for the child?
5. The Department acknowledges the fact that consular officers are very busy. However, your assistance is vital to ensuring appropriate resettlement in the U.S. for minors.