Rep. Tulsi Gabbard Votes to Make Visa Waiver Program More Secure

Press Release

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard voted in favor yesterday of H.R.158, the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act. The congresswoman has repeatedly called for a temporary suspension of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) for specific countries with a high number of citizens identified as ISIS foreign fighters and introduced legislation over a year ago to do just that. H.R.158 requires dual-citizens of VWP countries and Iraq, Syria, or other state-sponsors of terrorism, as well as those who have visited Iraq and Syria since 2011, from entering the U.S. through the VWP and to instead go through the regular visa application process, which provides for more security screening measures. In addition, it requires all travelers from VWP countries to have an e-passport with relevant biographic and biometric information to make it harder for people travel under a false identity, and requires VWP countries to certify that their ports of entry can validate these e-passports.

"I have long called for a serious reforms to our Visa Waiver Program, and I am pleased that leaders in both parties have grown to recognize the important necessity of addressing and fixing the vulnerabilities that exist within the program," said Rep. Tulsi Gabbard. "Following last month's tragic attacks in Paris, many European leaders have raised concerns over their own ability to collect critical intelligence information and monitor European passport holders who travel freely in and out of Syria through open borders with Turkey, and then throughout Europe among countries that make up the borderless Schengen zone. As the U.S. looks to develop long term changes that can better identify those coming in to our country that present a threat to our national security, this legislation will help to address some of the security gaps that exist through this program. However, more must be done to address the gaping hole in Turkey's border with Syria, which still allows European foreign fighters to travel in and out of Syria to fight alongside ISIS, without a trace."

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