President Donald Trump is expected to sign an Executive Order this week relating to visa issuance, screening procedures, and refugees. The draft Executive Order is titled “Protecting the Nation from Terrorist Attacks by Foreign Nationals.” It should be noted that this is not the final version of the Executive Order and it has yet to be signed by Trump. However, we are sharing this Travel Alert because of the widespread anxiety from foreign nationals.
One of the provisions (Section 3) of the draft Executive Order, if implemented as written, would “suspend” the immigrant and nonimmigrant entry of nationals from certain designated countries for 30 days from the date of the order. Designated countries are tied to the Visa Waiver provisions of the 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act and if implemented without change, would include Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Additional countries could be included. There is a possibility that people who travel to these designated countries may also face travel restrictions.
The order also does not define what it means to be “from” a designated country. A broad interpretation could include passport holders, citizens, nationals, dual nationals, etc. Additionally, after 30 days, travel is not automatically reinstated. Instead, DHS would be required to report whether countries have provided information “needed … for the adjudication of any … benefit under the INA … to determine that the individual seeking the benefit is who the individual claims to be and is not a security or public-safety threat.” If not, the country would have 60 days to comply, or the travel ban would become indefinite.
In abundance of caution, we recommend that anyone from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen who might be affected by the Executive Order, postpone any international trips if they are already here, or try to return to the United States as soon as possible (tonight or early tomorrow) if they are outside of the country.
Updates
- DHS Fact Sheet
- DHS Statement On Compliance With Court Orders And The President’s Executive Orders
- Department Of Homeland Security Response To Recent Litigation
- State Department SUSPENDS visa issuance to nationals of the countries of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen effective immediately until further notification.
- On Friday, January 27, 2017, Trump signed the Executive Order, entitled “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.” (As of Sunday, January 29, 2017, the White House has not yet published the Executive Order on its website.)
In The News
- Judge Blocks Part of Trump’s Immigration Order
- Trump’s Order Blocks Immigrants at Airports, Stoking Fear Around Globe
- Google recalls 100 staff following Trump’s U.S. entry ban
We will keep you posted with any further developments.
