WASHINGTON AP - The State Department is proposing requiring applicants for business and tourist visas to post a bond of up to 15,000 to apply to enter the United States, a move that may make the process unaffordable for many.
In a notice to be published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, the department said it would start a 12-month pilot program under which people from countries deemed to have high overstay rates and deficient internal document security controls could be required to post bonds of 5,000, 10,000 or 15,000 when they apply for a visa.
A preview of the notice, which was posted on the Federal Register website on Monday, said the pilot program would take effect within 15 days of its formal publication and is necessary to ensure that the U.S. government is not financially liable if a visitor does not comply with the terms of his or her visa.
"Aliens applying for visas as temporary visitors for business or pleasure and who are nationals of countries identified by the department as having high visa overstay rates, where screening and vetting information is deemed deficient, or offering citizenship by investment, if the alien obtained citizenship with no residency requirement, may be subject to the pilot program," the notice said.
The countries affected would be listed once the program takes effect, it said.