The United States government has sanctioned a crackdown on
visitors with visa overstays.
Top on the list are Nigeria, Brazil, Venezuela, China and
Colombia.
They are regarded as countries with the most total overstays
that do not participate in the visa waiver programme.
The Trump Administration says it has a problem with such
immigrants and is now determined to step up enforcement to try to cut down on
the violations.
Consequently, the government is introducing a face scan for
all US citizens travelling abroad.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said this is aimed
mainly at better tracking visa overstays and also at tightening security.
The Nation quoted the agency as saying this is the only way
to successfully expand a programme that tracks non immigrant foreigners.
A report in May showed that more than 54 million visitors
checked in last year – and nearly 630,000 of them didn’t go back home.
John Wagner, Customs deputy executive assistant commissioner
in charge of the programme, confirmed that U.S. citizens departing on
international flights will submit to face scans.
The number of visa overstays was about 200,000 higher than
the previous 12-month period.
Jessica Vaughan, policy studies director at the Centre for
Immigration Studies, said those kinds of rates should force a rethink at the
State Department, which issues visas, and should spur immigration officials to
put more effort into deterring and deporting overstays in the U.S.
“The fact that more than 700,000 visits were overstayed last
year shows just how much we need to step up interior enforcement to create more
of a deterrent, not only by identifying and deporting overstays, but by
weakening the job magnet by cracking down on employers who hire illegal
workers,” she said.
By Wale Odunsi
