INS Advises on Visa Waiver Pilot Program Extended by 30 Days

Dear Sir or Madam:

On September 26 we sent you a letter to advise you that the Visa Waiver Pilot Program (VWPP) under section 217 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1187) will expire on September 30, 1994 unless Congress takes action before then to either extend the pilot program or to make it permanent.

As you know, carriers who have singed agreements with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to participate in the Visa Waiver Pilot Program, have been transporting visitors who are nationals of 22 designated countries (Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Brunel, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, San Marino, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Kingdom) without these visitors' first obtaining nonimmigrant visitors' visas at American embassies and consulates.

Since the VWPP has been in place for the past six years, we cannot expect that nationals or citizens of the VWPP countries will know that the program has not been extended. As a result, we anticipate that many nationals of VWPP countries will appear for check-in at airports throughout the world without first obtaining nonimmigrant visitors' visas at American embassies or consulates. Therefore, we are planning to put into place a contingency plan for the month of October, should there be no action taken by Congress to extend the program.

During the month of October, we will admit for 90 days all eligible VWPP country nationals as nonimmigrant visitors for business or for pleasure (class of admission B1 or B2) with a waiver of the nonimmigrant visa requirement under section 212(d)(4) of the INA. The INS will also waive the fee and the application form (I-193).

In order to accommodate the traveling public, we will consider the month of October to be a grace period. That is to say, that carriers who have a signed VWPP agreement with the INS will not be fined (under section 273 of the INA) for transporting to the United States visitors without nonimmigrant visitors' visas who would otherwise have been eligible under the Visa Waiver Pilot Program.

We trust that this will assure that travelers with plans to visit the United States will not be disappointed. We look forward to working with you on this issue. For any further clarification, the following individuals of my staff may be contacted:

Y. Peggy Wong, Chief Inspector, 202/616-7492

Patrice L. Ward, Assistant Chief Inspector, 202/514- 0964

Soraya Griffin, Inspections Assistant, 202/514-1795.

Michael D. Cronin

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