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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 3:07 am
Time: 3:07 am
Results for visas
6 results foundAuthor: Seminara, David Title: No Coyote Needed: U.S. Visas Still an Easy Ticket in Developing Countries Summary: Mention the words “illegal immigrant” and most Americans conjure up images of desperate migrants sneaking across the Mexican border. There is another side to America’s immigration problem, however, that most know very little about — those who come with valid, temporary visas and do not return home. The Department of Homeland Security estimates that a “substantial” percentage of America’s illegal population is made up of visa overstays — their estimates ranged from 27 to 57 percent. Despite that fact that the law is written broadly enough that most foreigners from the developing world could be refused for a visitor’s visa as “intending immigrants,” non-immigrant visa issuance rates are still shockingly high. In this Backgrounder, the author, a former State Department official with experience interviewing tens of thousands of visa applicants from all over the world, explores some of the reasons why it remains relatively easy for all but the most destitute applicants to obtain nonimmigrant visas, despite the public perception that visa regulations have tightened since 9/11. Details: Washington, DC: Center for Immigration Studies, 2008. 15p. Source: Internet Resource: Backgrounder: Accessed March 10, 2011 at: http://www.cis.org/articles/2008/back208.pdf Year: 2008 Country: United States URL: http://www.cis.org/articles/2008/back208.pdf Shelf Number: 120923 Keywords: Illegal ImmigrantsImmigrationVisas |
Author: Inserra, David Title: The Visa Waiver Program: Enhancing Security, Promoting Prosperity Summary: The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is a valuable tool supporting U.S. tourism and trade, public diplomacy, and national security. The VWP allows residents of member countries to visit the U.S. without a visa for up to 90 days in exchange for security-cooperation and information-sharing arrangements and reciprocal travel privileges for U.S. residents. The VWP is extended only to U.S. allies and friends that meet certain security and immigration requirements. News of European passport holders joining the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), however, have created concerns about radicalized Western fighters abusing the VWP to engage in terrorism here in the U.S. While radicalized Britons or Germans are certainly of great concern to all nations threatened by Islamist terrorism, it is not a good reason to end the VWP. The VWP promotes security and the ISIS threat only emphasizes the importance of the VWP's intelligence-sharing requirements and adding appropriate nations to the program. Details: Washington, DC: Heritage Foundation, 2014. 3p. Source: Internet Resource: Issues Brief No. 4274: Accessed November 13, 2014 at: http://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2014/pdf/IB4273.pdf Year: 2014 Country: International URL: http://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2014/pdf/IB4273.pdf Shelf Number: 134085 Keywords: National SecurityPassportsVisas |
Author: Braud, Jeanine Title: U Visas for Immigrant Victims of Hate Crimes: A Practice Guide for Advocates Summary: Immigrants -- and LGBT immigrants in particular -- are especially vulnerable to hate crimes. If immigrant victims of hate crimes cooperate with authorities in the prosecution of their perpetrators, they may be eligible for U Visas. But many immigrant victims, advocates and certifying agencies are not aware that hate crimes can be qualifying crimes for U Visa purposes. While there are general U Visa practice manuals, this short guide is designed to assist advocates representing immigrant victims of hate crimes, including: (1) information about the U Visa, including qualifying (enumerated and non-enumerated) crimes; (2) a description of hate crimes and how they can constitute qualifying crimes for U Visa purposes; (3) best practices for representing immigrant victims of hate crimes, including how to identify non-enumerated hate crimes, obtain certification of such crimes, and draft a supporting declaration; and (4) sample U Visa forms and other advocacy resources. Details: Chicago, IL: National Immigrant Justice Center, 2014. 22p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 11, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2459315 Year: 2015 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2459315 Shelf Number: 138617 Keywords: Hate Crimes Immigrants Victims of Crime Visas |
Author: U.S. Government Accountability Office Title: Border Security: Actions Needed to Strengthen Performance Management and Planning for Expansion of DHS's Visa Security Program Summary: The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) manages the Visa Security Program (VSP), which provides an additional layer of review to the visa adjudication process; however, VSP agents are not consistently providing required training to consular officers. ICE implemented the Pre-Adjudicated Threat Recognition and Intelligence Operations Team (PATRIOT) in fiscal year 2014. PATRIOT screens 100 percent of nonimmigrant visa applications at VSP posts against U.S. databases, and U.S.-based analysts manually vet applications with potential matches to derogatory information. VSP agents at post then make recommendations to Department of State (State) consular officers on whether to refuse a visa. In fiscal year 2016, VSP screened over 2.1 million visa applications, and recommended over 8,000 visa refusals. In addition, VSP agents and VSP-funded locally employed staff dedicated approximately 43 percent of their work hours in fiscal year 2016 to non-VSP activities-such as assisting ICE investigations not directly related to visas. ICE increased the percentage of VSP posts providing quarterly training from 30 percent in fiscal year 2014 to 79 percent in fiscal year 2016. However, some trainings are not targeted to the specific post and do not address identified threats to the visa process, as required. Ensuring that VSP agents provide required training would help ensure consular officers have information that could assist them in adjudicating visas. ICE developed objectives and performance measures for VSP, but its measures are not outcome-based and limit the agency's ability to assess the effectiveness of VSP. As of fiscal year 2017, none of VSP's 19 established performance measures are outcome-based. For example, ICE measures its activities, such as number of visa refusals VSP agents recommended, rather than the outcomes of those recommendations. ICE officials stated that measuring VSP's outcomes is difficult due to the qualitative nature of the program's benefits; however, solely tracking activities, such as number of recommended refusals, does not allow ICE to evaluate VSP's effectiveness. Developing and implementing outcome-based performance measures, consistent with best practices for performance management, would help ICE determine whether VSP is achieving its objectives. ICE evaluated options for VSP expansion but its site selection process did not incorporate PATRIOT data or options for remote operations that, for example, use U.S.-based VSP agents. ICE has previously utilized PATRIOT to gather data to estimate program capacity, but ICE officials stated that they do not use PATRIOT to collect data on the potential number of ineligible visa applicants and workload for posts under consideration for VSP expansion. By incorporating PATRIOT data on posts under consideration into its site selection process, ICE could more effectively manage human capital and other resources. Further, ICE has implemented remote VSP operations in some posts, but does not consider such approaches during its annual site selection process. ICE documentation stated that ICE could successfully screen and vet applicants remotely through VSP, however the officials' preferred approach is to deploy agents to posts overseas. Incorporating remote options for VSP operations could help identify opportunities to further expand VSP and better utilize resources. Details: Washington, DC: GAO, 2018. 69p. Source: Internet Resource: GAO-18-314: Accessed April 4, 2018 at: https://www.gao.gov/assets/700/690865.pdf Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://www.gao.gov/assets/700/690732.pdf Shelf Number: 149678 Keywords: Border SecurityHomeland SecurityImmigration and Customs EnforcementImmigration EnforcementVisas |
Author: Morgan, Anthony Title: What are the Taxpayer Savings from Cancelling the Visas of Organised Crime Offenders? Summary: Abstract This study estimates the taxpayer savings from cancelling or refusing the visas of organised crime offenders. Using data from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and the Department of Home Affairs, the research produced a statistical model of the known lifetime offending by organised crime offenders in Australia and applied this to the 184 organised crime offenders whose visas were cancelled / refused between December 2014 and May 2018. The results show organised crime offenders are a prolific group. They show a level of activity, and persistence in offending, unlikely to be observed in any general population of offenders. Offending by outlaw motorcycle gang (OMCG) members is more serious than other organised crime offenders. Cancelling or refusing the visas of 184 organised crime offenders (139 of whom were OMCG members) is estimated to save the community $116 million as a result of the crimes prevented and savings to the prison system. Details: Canberra, Australia: Australian Institute of Criminology, 2018. 47p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed January 21, 2019 at: https://aic.gov.au/publications/sr/sr8 Year: 2018 Country: Australia URL: https://aic.gov.au/publications/sr/sr8 Shelf Number: 154331 Keywords: Cost-Benefit Criminal Groups Immigration Organized Crime Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Members Taxpayer Savings Visas |
Author: Australian Human Rights Commission Title: Risk Management in Immigration Detention Summary: This report examines risk management practices in immigration detention to determine whether they are compliant with Australia's international human rights obligations. It is based on information gathered during inspections of immigration detention facilities conducted during 2018. The report also draws on the Commission's previous work in monitoring conditions and treatment in immigration detention. Changes in the composition of the immigration detention population in recent years - specifically the increase in the number of people in detention who have had visas cancelled on character grounds - have led to a significant shift in how the risks that arise in immigration detention are assessed and managed. Detention, by its very nature, limits the human rights of those detained. In addition, some risk management practices can themselves further limit the enjoyment of human rights in a manner that is not necessary, reasonable or proportionate in the circumstances. The Commission acknowledges the assistance provided by the Department of Home Affairs (Home Affairs) and the Australian Border Force (ABF) in facilitating the Commission's detention inspections. The Commission is grateful to the staff of Home Affairs, the ABF and detention service providers who assisted the Commission team during the inspections. A draft of this report was shared with Home Affairs in advance of its publication, to provide an opportunity for Home Affairs to respond to the identified issues. Details: Sydney, Australia: Australian Human Rights Commission, 2019. 88p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 19, 2019 at: https://apo.org.au/sites/default/files/resource-files/2019/06/apo-nid242316-1366901.pdf Year: 2019 Country: Australia URL: https://apo.org.au/node/242316 Shelf Number: 156551 Keywords: Detention Centers Human Rights Abuses Illegal Immigration Immigration Detention Risk Management Visas |