II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2091 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to stimulate international 

tourism to the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 29, 2015 

Mr. SCHUMER (for himself, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. HELLER, Mr. LEE, Mr. 

COONS, Mr. BLUNT, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. KIRK, Mr. FRANKEN, Mr. 

GARDNER, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. SCHATZ, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. 

PETERS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to stimulate 

international tourism to the United States, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Jobs Originated 

5 through Launching Travel Act of 2015’’ or the ‘‘JOLT 

6 Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ENCOURAGING CANADIAN TOURISM TO THE 

2 UNITED STATES. 

3 Section 214 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

4 (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(s) CANADIAN RETIREES.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland 

8 Security may admit an alien as a visitor for pleasure 

9 (as described in section 101(a)(15)(B)) for a period 

10 not to exceed 240 days if the alien demonstrates, to 

11 the satisfaction of the Secretary, that the alien— 

12 ‘‘(A) is a citizen of Canada; 

13 ‘‘(B) is at least 50 years of age; 

14 ‘‘(C) maintains a residence in Canada; 

15 ‘‘(D)(i) owns a residence in the United 

16 States; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) has signed a rental agreement for ac18 commodations in the United States for the du19 ration of the alien’s stay in the United States; 

20 ‘‘(E) is not inadmissible under section 212; 

21 ‘‘(F) is not described in any ground of de22 portability under section 237; 

23 ‘‘(G) will not engage in employment or 

24 labor for hire in the United States; and 

25 ‘‘(H) will not seek any form of assistance 

26 or benefit described in section 403(a) of the 


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1 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 

2 Reconciliation Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1613(a)). 

3 ‘‘(2) SPOUSE.—The spouse of an alien de4 scribed in paragraph (1) may be admitted under the 

5 same terms as the principal alien if the spouse satis6 fies the requirements under paragraph (1) (other 

7 than subparagraph (D)). 

8 ‘‘(3) IMMIGRANT INTENT.—In determining eli9 gibility for admission under this subsection, mainte10 nance of a residence in the United States shall not 

11 be considered evidence of intent by the alien to 

12 abandon the alien’s residence in Canada. 

13 ‘‘(4) PERIOD OF ADMISSION.—During any sin14 gle 365-day period, an alien described in section 

15 101(a)(15)(B) may be admitted pursuant to this 

16 subsection for a period not to exceed 240 days, be17 ginning on the date of admission. Periods of time 

18 spent outside the United States during such 240-day 

19 period shall not toll the expiration of such 240-day 

20 period.’’. 

21 SEC. 3. SECURE TRAVEL PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM EN22 HANCED SECURITY AND REFORM. 

23 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 217(c)(1) of the Immi24 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1187(c)(1)) is 

25 amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE; DEFINI2 TIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.—The 

4 Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation 

5 with the Secretary of State, may designate any 

6 country as a program country if that country 

7 meets the requirements under paragraph (2). 

8 ‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

9 ‘‘(i) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL

10 COMMITTEES.—The term ‘appropriate 

11 Congressional Committees’ means— 

12 ‘‘(I) the Committee on Foreign 

13 Relations of the Senate; 

14 ‘‘(II) the Committee on Home15 land Security and Governmental Af16 fairs of the Senate; 

17 ‘‘(III) the Committee on the Ju18 diciary of the Senate; 

19 ‘‘(IV) the Committee on Foreign 

20 Affairs of the House of Representa21 tives; 

22 ‘‘(V) the Committee on Home23 land Security of the House of Rep24 resentatives; and 


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1 ‘‘(VI) the Committee on the Ju2 diciary of the House of Representa3 tives. 

4 ‘‘(ii) OVERSTAY RATE.— 

5 ‘‘(I) INITIAL DESIGNATION.—The 

6 term ‘overstay rate’ means, with re7 spect to a country being considered 

8 for designation in the program, the 

9 ratio of— 

10 ‘‘(aa) the number of nation11 als of that country who were ad12 mitted to the United States on 

13 the basis of a nonimmigrant visa 

14 under section 101(a)(15)(B) 

15 whose periods of authorized stay 

16 ended during a fiscal year but 

17 who remained unlawfully in the 

18 United States beyond such peri19 ods; to 

20 ‘‘(bb) the number of nation21 als of that country who were ad22 mitted to the United States on 

23 the basis of a nonimmigrant visa 

24 under section 101(a)(15)(B) 


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1 whose periods of authorized stay 

2 ended during that fiscal year. 

3 ‘‘(II) CONTINUING DESIGNA4 TION.—The term ‘overstay rate’ 

5 means, for each fiscal year after ini6 tial designation under this section 

7 with respect to a country, the ratio 

8 of— 

9 ‘‘(aa) the number of nation10 als of that country who were ad11 mitted to the United States 

12 under this section or on the basis 

13 of a nonimmigrant visa under 

14 section 101(a)(15)(B) whose pe15 riods of authorized stay ended 

16 during a fiscal year but who re17 mained unlawfully in the United 

18 States beyond such periods; to 

19 ‘‘(bb) the number of nation20 als of that country who were ad21 mitted to the United States 

22 under this section or on the basis 

23 of a nonimmigrant visa under 

24 section 101(a)(15)(B) whose peVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:08 Sep 30, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2091.IS S2091

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1 riods of authorized stay ended 

2 during that fiscal year. 

3 ‘‘(III) COMPUTATION OF OVER4 STAY RATE.—In determining the over5 stay rate for a country, the Secretary 

6 of Homeland Security may utilize in7 formation from any available data8 bases to ensure the accuracy of such 

9 rate. 

10 ‘‘(iii) PROGRAM COUNTRY.—The term 

11 ‘program country’ means a country des12 ignated as a program country under sub13 paragraph (A).’’. 

14 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

15 Section 217 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

16 U.S.C. 1187) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ each place 

18 the term appears (except in subsection (c)(11)(B)) 

19 and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Security’’; 

20 and 

21 (2) in subsection (c)— 

22 (A) in paragraph (2)(C)(iii), by striking 

23 ‘‘Committee on the Judiciary and the Com24 mittee on International Relations of the House 

25 of Representatives and the Committee on the 


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1 Judiciary and the Committee on Foreign Rela2 tions of the Senate’’ and inserting ‘‘appropriate 

3 congressional committees’’; 

4 (B) in paragraph (5)(A)(i)(III), by striking 

5 ‘‘Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on 

6 Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Home7 land Security, of the House of Representatives 

8 and the Committee on the Judiciary, the Com9 mittee on Foreign Relations, and the Com10 mittee on Homeland Security and Govern11 mental Affairs of the Senate’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘appropriate congressional committees’’; and 

13 (C) in paragraph (7), by striking subpara14 graph (E). 

15 (c) DESIGNATION OF PROGRAM COUNTRIES BASED

16 ON OVERSTAY RATES.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 217(c)(2)(A) of the 

18 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

19 1187(c)(2)(A)) is amended to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(A) GENERAL NUMERICAL LIMITA21 TIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(i) LOW NONIMMIGRANT VISA RE23 FUSAL RATE.—The percentage of nationals 

24 of that country refused nonimmigrant visas 

25 under section 101(a)(15)(B) during the 


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1 previous full fiscal year was not more than 

2 3 percent of the total number of nationals 

3 of that country who were granted or re4 fused nonimmigrant visas under such sec5 tion during such year. 

6 ‘‘(ii) LOW NONIMMIGRANT OVERSTAY

7 RATE.—The overstay rate for that country 

8 was not more than 3 percent during the 

9 previous fiscal year.’’. 

10 (2) QUALIFICATION CRITERIA.—Section 

11 217(c)(3) of such Act is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(3) QUALIFICATION CRITERIA.—After designa13 tion as a program country under section 217(c)(2), 

14 a country may not continue to be designated as a 

15 program country unless the Secretary of Homeland 

16 Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, 

17 determines, in accordance with paragraph (5), that 

18 the designation will be continued.’’. 

19 (3) INITIAL PERIOD.—Section 217(c) of such 

20 Act, as amended by this section, is further amended 

21 by striking paragraph (4). 

22 (4) CONTINUING DESIGNATION.—Section 

23 217(c)(5)(A)(i)(II) of such Act is amended to read 

24 as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(II) shall determine, 

2 based upon the evaluation in 

3 subclause (I), whether any 

4 such designation under sub5 section (d) or (f), or proba6 tion under subsection (f), 

7 ought to be continued or ter8 minated;’’. 

9 (5) REPORT.—Section 217(c)(5)(A)(i) of such 

10 Act, as amended by paragraph (4), is further 

11 amended— 

12 (A) in subclause (III), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

13 the end; 

14 (B) in subclause (IV), by striking the pe15 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

16 (C) by adding after subclause (IV) the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(V) shall submit to Congress a 

19 report regarding the security param20 eters described in paragraph (9).’’. 

21 (6) COMPUTATION OF VISA REFUSAL RATES; 

22 JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Section 217(c)(6) of such Act is 

23 amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(6) COMPUTATION OF VISA REFUSAL RATES

25 AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) COMPUTATION OF VISA REFUSAL

2 RATES.—For purposes of determining the eligi3 bility of a country to be designated as a pro4 gram country, the calculation of visa refusal 

5 rates shall not include any visa refusals which 

6 incorporate any procedures based on, or are 

7 otherwise based on, race, sex, or disability, un8 less otherwise specifically authorized by law or 

9 regulation. 

10 ‘‘(B) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—No court shall 

11 have jurisdiction under this section to review 

12 any visa refusal, the Secretary of State’s com13 putation of a visa refusal rate, the Secretary of 

14 Homeland Security’s computation of an over15 stay rate, or the designation or nondesignation 

16 of a country as a program country.’’. 

17 (7) VISA WAIVER INFORMATION.—Section 

18 217(c)(7) of such Act is amended— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘(A) WAIVER INFORMA20 TION.—’’; and 

21 (B) by striking subparagraphs (B) through 

22 (E). 

23 (8) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—Section 217(c)(8) of 

24 such Act is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(8) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of 

2 Homeland Security, in consultation with the Sec3 retary of State, may waive the application of para4 graph (2)(A)(i) for a country if— 

5 ‘‘(A) the country meets all other require6 ments under paragraph (2); 

7 ‘‘(B) the Secretary of Homeland Security 

8 determines that the totality of the country’s se9 curity risk mitigation measures provide assur10 ance that the country’s participation in the pro11 gram would not compromise the law enforce12 ment, security interests, or enforcement of the 

13 immigration laws; 

14 ‘‘(C) there has been a general downward 

15 trend in the percentage of nationals of the 

16 country who have been refused visas for non17 immigrants described in section 101(a)(15)(B); 

18 ‘‘(D)(i) the country consistently cooperated 

19 with the Government of the United States on 

20 counterterrorism initiatives, information shar21 ing, preventing terrorist travel, and extradition 

22 to the United States of individuals (including 

23 the country’s own nationals) who commit 

24 crimes that violate United States law before the 


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1 date of its designation as a program country; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary of Homeland Security 

4 and the Secretary of State assess that the co5 operation described in clause (i) is likely to con6 tinue; and 

7 ‘‘(E) the percentage of nationals of the 

8 country who have been refused a visa for non9 immigrants described in section 101(a)(15)(B) 

10 during the previous full fiscal year was not 

11 more than 10 percent of the total number of 

12 nationals of that country who were granted or 

13 refused such nonimmigrant visas.’’. 

14 (d) TERMINATION OF DESIGNATION; PROBATION.— 

15 Section 217(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

16 U.S.C. 1187(f)) is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(f) TERMINATION OF DESIGNATION; PROBATION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

19 ‘‘(A) PROBATIONARY PERIOD.—The term 

20 ‘probationary period’ means the fiscal year in 

21 which a probationary country is placed in pro22 bationary status under this subsection. 

23 ‘‘(B) PROGRAM COUNTRY.—The term ‘pro24 gram country’ has the meaning given that term 

25 in subsection (c)(1)(B). 


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1 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION, NOTICE, AND INITIAL

2 PROBATIONARY PERIOD.— 

3 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATION OF PROBATIONARY

4 STATUS AND NOTICE OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—As 

5 part of each program country’s periodic evalua6 tion required under subsection (c)(5)(A), the 

7 Secretary of Homeland Security shall determine 

8 whether a program country is in compliance 

9 with the program requirements under subpara10 graphs (A)(ii) through (F) of subsection (c)(2). 

11 ‘‘(B) INITIAL PROBATIONARY PERIOD.—If 

12 the Secretary of Homeland Security determines 

13 that a program country is not in compliance 

14 with the program requirements under subpara15 graphs (A)(ii) through (F) of subsection (c)(2), 

16 the Secretary shall place the program country 

17 in probationary status for the fiscal year fol18 lowing the fiscal year in which the periodic eval19 uation is completed. 

20 ‘‘(3) ACTIONS AT THE END OF THE INITIAL

21 PROBATIONARY PERIOD.—At the end of the initial 

22 probationary period of a country under paragraph 

23 (2)(B), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

24 take one of the following actions: 


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1 ‘‘(A) COMPLIANCE DURING INITIAL PROBA2 TIONARY PERIOD.—If the Secretary determines 

3 that all instances of noncompliance with the 

4 program requirements under subparagraphs 

5 (A)(ii) through (F) of subsection (c)(2) that 

6 were identified in the latest periodic evaluation 

7 have been remedied by the end of the initial 

8 probationary period, the Secretary shall end the 

9 country’s probationary period. 

10 ‘‘(B) NONCOMPLIANCE DURING INITIAL

11 PROBATIONARY PERIOD.—If the Secretary de12 termines that any instance of noncompliance 

13 with the program requirements under subpara14 graphs (A)(ii) through (F) of subsection (c)(2) 

15 that were identified in the latest periodic eval16 uation has not been remedied by the end of the 

17 initial probationary period— 

18 ‘‘(i) the Secretary may terminate the 

19 country’s participation in the program; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) on an annual basis, the Secretary 

21 may continue the country’s probationary 

22 status if the Secretary, in consultation 

23 with the Secretary of State, determines 

24 that the country’s continued participation 


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1 in the program is in the national interest 

2 of the United States. 

3 ‘‘(4) ACTIONS AT THE END OF ADDITIONAL

4 PROBATIONARY PERIODS.—At the end of all proba5 tionary periods granted to a country pursuant to 

6 paragraph (3)(B)(ii), the Secretary shall take one of 

7 the following actions: 

8 ‘‘(A) COMPLIANCE DURING ADDITIONAL

9 PERIOD.—The Secretary shall end the country’s 

10 probationary status if the Secretary determines 

11 during the latest periodic evaluation required by 

12 subsection (c)(5)(A) that the country is in com13 pliance with the program requirements under 

14 subparagraphs (A)(ii) through (F) of subsection 

15 (c)(2). 

16 ‘‘(B) NONCOMPLIANCE DURING ADDI17 TIONAL PERIODS.—The Secretary shall termi18 nate the country’s participation in the program 

19 if the Secretary determines during the latest 

20 periodic evaluation required by subsection 

21 (c)(5)(A) that the program country continues to 

22 be in non-compliance with the program require23 ments under subparagraphs (A)(ii) through (F) 

24 of subsection (c)(2). 


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1 ‘‘(5) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The termination of a 

2 country’s participation in the program under para3 graph (3)(B) or (4)(B) shall take effect on the first 

4 day of the first fiscal year following the fiscal year 

5 in which the Secretary determines that such partici6 pation shall be terminated. Until such date, nation7 als of the country shall remain eligible for a waiver 

8 under subsection (a). 

9 ‘‘(6) TREATMENT OF NATIONALS AFTER TERMI10 NATION.—For purposes of this subsection and sub11 section (d)— 

12 ‘‘(A) nationals of a country whose designa13 tion is terminated under paragraph (3) or (4) 

14 shall remain eligible for a waiver under sub15 section (a) until the effective date of such ter16 mination; and 

17 ‘‘(B) a waiver under this section that is 

18 provided to such a national for a period de19 scribed in subsection (a)(1) shall not, by such 

20 termination, be deemed to have been rescinded 

21 or otherwise rendered invalid, if the waiver is 

22 granted before such termination. 

23 ‘‘(7) CONSULTATIVE ROLE OF THE SECRETARY

24 OF STATE.—In this subsection, references to sub25 paragraphs (A)(ii) through (F) of subsection (c)(2) 


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1 and subsection (c)(5)(A) carry with them the con2 sultative role of the Secretary of State as provided 

3 in those provisions.’’. 

4 (e) REVIEW OF OVERSTAY TRACKING METHOD5 OLOGY.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the 

6 enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

7 United States shall conduct a review of the methods used 

8 by the Secretary of Homeland Security— 

9 (1) to track aliens entering and exiting the 

10 United States; and 

11 (2) to detect any such alien who stays longer 

12 than such alien’s period of authorized admission. 

13 (f) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON NONIMMIGRANT OVER14 STAY RATES.—It is the sense of Congress that the Sec15 retary of Homeland Security— 

16 (1) has not complied with the requirements 

17 under section 2 of Public Law 105–173 (8 U.S.C. 

18 1376) relating to the collection of data and the sub19 mission of reports to Congress on nonimmigrant visa 

20 overstay rates; and 

21 (2) should collect such data and submit such 

22 reports as are required under that section. 

23 (g) EVALUATION OF ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR

24 TRAVEL AUTHORIZATION.—Not later than 90 days after 

25 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 


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1 Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of 

2 State, shall submit to Congress an evaluation of the auto3 mated electronic travel authorization system (commonly 

4 referred to as the ‘‘Electronic System for Travel Author5 ization’’) under section 217(h)(3) of the Immigration and 

6 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1187(h)(3)), which shall in7 clude— 

8 (1) an evaluation of the security risks of aliens 

9 who enter the United States without an approved 

10 Electronic System for Travel Authorization 

11 verification; and 

12 (2) an evaluation of any improvements needed 

13 to strengthen the Electronic System for Travel Au14 thorization, including technological enhancements to 

15 ensure efficient, accurate, and comprehensive vetting 

16 of aliens seeking to travel to the United States 

17 against all relevant United States Government data18 bases. 

19 (h) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON PRIORITY FOR REVIEW

20 OF PROGRAM COUNTRIES.—It is the sense of Congress 

21 that the Secretary of Homeland Security, in the process 

22 of conducting evaluations of countries participating in the 

23 secure travel partnership program under section 217 of 

24 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1187), 

25 should prioritize the reviews of countries in which cirVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:08 Sep 30, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2091.IS S2091

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1 cumstances indicate that such a review is necessary or de2 sirable. 

3 SEC. 4. VISA PROCESSING. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 

6 shall— 

7 (1) require United States diplomatic and con8 sular missions to conduct visa interviews for non9 immigrant visa applications determined to require a 

10 consular interview— 

11 (A) in an expeditious manner; 

12 (B) consistent with national security re13 quirements; and 

14 (C) in recognition of resource allocation 

15 considerations, such as the need to ensure pro16 vision of consular services to citizens of the 

17 United States; and 

18 (2) set a goal of interviewing 90 percent of all 

19 nonimmigrant visa applicants not later than 10 days 

20 after receiving their application, subject to the condi21 tions described in paragraph (1). 

22 (b) REPORTS.— 

23 (1) SEMIANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 

24 210 days after the implementation of subsection (a), 

25 and not later than 30 days after June 30 and after 


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1 December 31 of each subsequent year, the Secretary 

2 of State shall submit a report to the appropriate 

3 congressional committees that provides— 

4 (A) data substantiating the efforts of the 

5 Secretary of State to meet the requirements 

6 and goals described in subsection (a); 

7 (B) any factors that have negatively im8 pacted the efforts of the Secretary to meet such 

9 requirements and goals; and 

10 (C) any measures that the Secretary plans 

11 to implement to meet such requirements and 

12 goals. 

13 (2) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The Secretary of State 

14 shall annually submit a strategic plan to the appro15 priate congressional committees that describes the 

16 resources needed to carry out subsection (a), includ17 ing a 10-year forecast of demand for nonimmigrant 

18 visas in the key high-growth markets, including— 

19 (A) a description of the methodology used 

20 to make such forecasts that— 

21 (i) describes the internal and external 

22 studies utilized to prepare such forecasts; 

23 and 

24 (ii) indicates whether such method25 ology utilizes the Department of ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:08 Sep 30, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2091.IS S2091

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1 merce’s analysis of visitor arrival projec2 tions; 

3 (B) a comparison of the Department of 

4 State’s nonimmigrant visa demand projections 

5 and the Department of Commerce’s visitor ar6 rival projections by country; and 

7 (C) a description of the practices and pro8 cedures currently used by each United States 

9 diplomatic and consular mission to manage 

10 nonimmigrant visa workload. 

11 (3) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT12 TEES.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate con13 gressional committees’’ means— 

14 (A) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

15 Senate; 

16 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

17 the Senate; 

18 (C) the Committee on Appropriations of 

19 the Senate; 

20 (D) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

21 House of Representatives; 

22 (E) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

23 the House of Representatives; and 

24 (F) the Committee on Appropriations of 

25 the House of Representatives. 


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1 (c) SAVINGS PROVISION.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in subsection (a) 

3 may be construed to affect a consular officer’s au4 thority— 

5 (A) to deny a visa application under sec6 tion 221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality 

7 Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(g)); or 

8 (B) to initiate any necessary or appro9 priate security-related check or clearance. 

10 (2) SECURITY CHECKS.—The completion of a 

11 security-related check or clearance shall not be sub12 ject to the time limits set out in subsection (a). 

13 SEC. 5. INTERVIEWS OF VISA APPLICANTS. 

14 Section 222 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

15 (8 U.S.C. 1202) is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(i)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (3), the Sec18 retary of State— 

19 ‘‘(A) shall develop and conduct a pilot program 

20 for processing visas for nonimmigrants described in 

21 section 101(a)(15)(B), using secure remote 

22 videoconferencing technology as a method for con23 ducting visa interviews of applicants; and 

24 ‘‘(B) in consultation with other Federal agen25 cies that use such secure communications, shall help 


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1 ensure the security of the videoconferencing trans2 mission and encryption conducted under subpara3 graph (A). 

4 ‘‘(2) Not later than 90 days after the termination of 

5 the pilot program authorized under paragraph (1), the 

6 Secretary of State shall submit a report to the Committee 

7 on the Judiciary, the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

8 and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, and 

9 the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on For10 eign Affairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the 

11 House of Representatives that contains— 

12 ‘‘(A) a detailed description of the results of 

13 such program, including an assessment of the effi14 cacy, efficiency, and security of the remote 

15 videoconferencing technology as a method for con16 ducting visa interviews of applicants; and 

17 ‘‘(B) recommendations for whether such pro18 gram should be continued, broadened, or modified. 

19 ‘‘(3) The pilot program authorized under paragraph 

20 (1) may not be conducted if the Secretary of State deter21 mines that such program— 

22 ‘‘(A) poses an undue security risk; and 

23 ‘‘(B) cannot be conducted in a manner con24 sistent with maintaining security controls. 


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1 ‘‘(4) If the Secretary of State makes a determination 

2 under paragraph (3), the Secretary shall submit a report 

3 to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, the Com4 mittee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, the Committee 

5 on Appropriations of the Senate, the Committee on For6 eign Affairs of the House of Representatives, the Com7 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives, 

8 and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 

9 Representatives that describes the reasons for such deter10 mination. 

11 ‘‘(5) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘in 

12 person interview’ includes interviews conducted using re13 mote video technology.’’. 

14 SEC. 6. VISA AND TRUSTED TRAVELER APPLICATION CO15 ORDINATION. 

16 To the maximum extent possible, the Secretary of 

17 State shall seek to coordinate enrollment and interview 

18 processes for individuals eligible for both a United States 

19 visa and enrollment in the Global Entry program operated 

20 by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, including pro21 viding space for U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

22 interviews and unified application fees. 


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26 

•S 2091 IS

1 SEC. 7. ELECTRONIC PASSPORT REQUIREMENT FOR SE2 CURE TRAVEL PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 217 of the Immigration 

4 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1187), as amended in sec5 tion 3, is further amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘visa waiver program’’ each 

7 place it appears (including within any headings of 

8 such section) and inserting ‘‘secure travel partner9 ship program’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (a), by amending paragraph 

11 (3) to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(3) ELECTRONIC PASSPORT.—On or after the 

13 date of enactment of the Jobs Originated through 

14 Launching Travel Act of 2015, the alien at the time 

15 of application is in possession of a valid, unexpired 

16 electronic passport that incorporates biometric and 

17 document authentication identifiers that comply with 

18 internationally accepted practices.’’; and 

19 (3) in subsection (c)(2), by amending subpara20 graph (B) to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(B) ELECTRONIC PASSPORT PROGRAM.— 

22 The government of the country certifies that it 

23 issues to its citizens electronic passports that 

24 satisfy the internationally accepted standards 

25 for electronic passports.’’. 


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27 

•S 2091 IS

1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 212(a)(7)(B)(iv) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

3 (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(7)(B)(iv)) is amended by amending the 

4 heading to read as follows: ‘‘SECURE TRAVEL PARTNER5 SHIP PROGRAM.’’. 

Æ 


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