CBP Reminder : Machine Readable Passports Required for VWP Travelers
Posted Jun 17, 2005
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On June 7, 2005, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a reminder that all persons seeking to enter the United States on or after June 26, 2005 through the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) must carry machine-readable passports. If a traveler does not have a machine-readable passport (MRP), s/he must have a valid visa issued by the U.S. consulate to be able to enter the United States. In most cases, this would be a tourist (B-2) visa.
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Which Countries' Nationals Will Need the MRP?
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VWP countries are currently : Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Persons who have the machine-readable passports from these countries may enter the United States as visitors for up to 90 days without a visa.
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Background on MRP
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Regular readers of MurthyDotCom and the MurthyBulletin may recall our September 17, 2004 article, VWP Travelers : Be Aware of New Rules, on this subject. This requirement actually went into effect on October 26, 2004, but there was concern that many countries would not be in a position to comply and this would adversely affect travel and tourism to the United States. So there was a bit of leniency initially. Now, the CBP has announced that they intend to enforce the MRP requirement as of June 26, 2005.
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Penalties for Entering Without the MRP
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Full enforcement of the requirement means that transportation carriers will be fined $3,300 per violation for transporting a VWP visitor to the United States without the proper MRP or other documents. If a VWP visitor arrives at the U.S. border without the MRP, that person, in all probability, will be denied entry. S/He will be returned to the home country to obtain either the required visa or an MRP.
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Conclusion
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A person should not rely upon a one-time entry or parole granted in discretionary or humanitarian circumstances without the proper passport. Any friends, relatives, or colleagues with travel plans to the United States, based upon the VWP, should be alerted to this potential travel problem.