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White House directs agencies to tighten B-1/B-2 and Visa Waiver Program enforcement

  1. Original Date Announced

    April 22, 2019

    On April 22, 2019, President Trump signed a Memorandum on Combating High Nonimmigrant Overstay Rates directing the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security to find effective ways to combat B-1/B-2 visa and Visa Waiver Program (VWP) overstays. The memorandum directed the Secretary of State to engage with countries with visa overstay rates higher than 10 percent to address this problem. The Secretaries of State and Homeland Security were tasked with making recommendations within 120 days of the memorandum on actions to limit overstays. [ID #752]

    Presidential Memorandum on Combating High Nonimmigrant Overstay Rates
  2. Effective Date

    April 22, 2019
  3.  
  4. Biden Administration Action: Other

    September 29, 2023

    2023.09.29 ICE updates guidance for use of INTERPOL Red Notices during law enforcement actions

    On September 29, 2023, ICE announced new agency-wide guidance about the use of Red Notices and Wanted Person Diffusions during law enforcement actions. ICE Directive 15006.1 requires enhanced training, deeper scrutiny, and consistent adherence to agency directives to mitigate potential abuse of these types of notices and diffusions. Some sources indicate that the Trump administration used INTERPOL Red Notices as a tool in combating B-1/B-2 visa and Visa Waiver Program (VWP) overstays.

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Current Status

Fully in Effect

Most Recent Action

September 29, 2023 Action: Other 2023.09.29 ICE updates guidance for use of INTERPOL Red Notices during law enforcement actions
September 29, 2023
Acted on by Biden Administration

Original Trump Policy Status

Status: Final/Actual
Trump Administration Action: Presidential Orders
Agencies Affected: ICE DOS DHS

Commentary

  • 2019.04.23 USA Today on Visa Overstay Directive

    USA Today article notes that the April 22, 2019 presidential directive ordering DHS and the State Department to target countries with visa overstay rates higher than 10 percent will primarily target smaller African and Asian countries rather than countries producing the largest numbers of total visa overstays.

    Go to article
  • 2020.09.03 Politico Commentary re Red Notices

    Politico published an article describing ways in which ICE has increasingly been using INTERPOL Red Notices “to manufacture immigration violations." This includes arresting and detaining individuals against whom a Red Notice has been issued even if they have applied for asylum. The article asserts that this use of Red Notices is part of the Trump administration's efforts to crack down on visa overstays.

    Go to article

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