SCIS shares information about new visa requirements

SCIS shares information about new visa requirementsMarch 17, 2003Matthew R. Snydermrsnyder@syr.edu

The Slutzker Center for International Services (SCIS) informs students and scholars that the United States Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services has announced new visa requirements for many immigrants traveling from Canada to the United States. Questions about the new rules should be directed to the SCIS at 443-2457. Information about the change is published here as a service to the University community:

Beginning March 17, all landed immigrants in Canada from the former British Commonwealth countries who used to be visa exempt, must present a valid U.S. non-immigrant visa in order to enter the United States. The only exceptions will be for landed immigrants from the few countries who are on the list for the Visa Waiver Program (WT) and who are entering the United States as a visitor only (not as a student) for less than 90 days.

This new requirement will not only affect such landed immigrants who are coming to a U.S. Port of Entry to apply for admission on or after March 17, 2003, but also any person currently in the United States in a valid non-immigrant status, such as an F-1 or H-1 who was admitted visa exempt, who departs the United States on or after March 17,2003 and seeks to return to the US to resume their F-1 or H-1 etc. status. These immigrants also will need a non-immigrant visa at the time they apply at a Port of Entry to return to the United States, even if they were only gone for one day.

The new requirement will apply to citizens of the following countries who have obtained landed immigrant status in Canada and were formerly exempt from U.S. visa requirements: Antigua and Barbuda; Australia; Bahamas; Bangladesh; Barbados; Belize; Botswana; Brunei; Cameroon; Cyprus; Dominica; Fiji; Gambia; Ghana; Grenada; Guyana; India; Ireland; Jamaica; Kenya; Kiribati; Lesotho; Malawi; Malaysia; Maldives; Malta; Mauritius; Mozambique; Namibia; Nauru; New Zealand; Nigeria; Pakistan; Papua New Guinea; Samoa; St. Kitts & Nevis; St. Lucia; St. Vincent & the Grenadines Seychelles; Sierra Leone; Singapore; Solomon Islands; South Africa; Sri Lanka; Swaziland; Tanzania; Tonga; Trinidad & Tobago; Tuvalu; Uganda; the United Kingdom, its colonies, territories and dependencies; Vanuatu; Zambia; and Zimbabwe.

Effective immediately, U.S. consular sections in Canada will accept non-immigrant visa applications from landed immigrants residing in Canada who are citizens of the countries listed above. It is anticipated that the U.S. consular sections in Canada will be very busy due to this new requirement, which may make it difficult for foreign nationals in the United States to obtain a U.S. visa appointment in Canada in a timely manner. For more information on this new requirement, visit the Web site of the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa, Canada at http://www.usembassycanada.gov