I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5875 
To establish a visa waiver program for the United States Virgin Islands. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 31, 2012 
Mrs. CHRISTENSEN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To establish a visa waiver program for the United States 
Virgin Islands. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Virgin Islands Visa 
Waiver Act of 2012’’. 
SEC. 2. VIRGIN ISLANDS VISA WAIVER PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 212(l) of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(l)) is amended— 
(1) by amending the subsection heading to read 
as follows: ‘‘GUAM, NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS, 
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AND VIRGIN ISLANDS VISA WAIVER PROGRAMS.—’’; 
and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(7) VIRGIN
ISLANDS
VISA
WAIVER
PRO-
GRAM.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The requirement of 
subsection (a)(7)(B)(i) may be waived by the 
Secretary of Homeland Security, in the case of 
an alien who is a national of a country de-
scribed in subparagraph (B) and who is apply-
ing for admission as a nonimmigrant visitor for 
business or pleasure and solely for entry into 
and stay in the United States Virgin Islands for 
a period not to exceed 30 days, if the Secretary 
of Homeland Security, after consultation with 
the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of 
State, the Governor of the United States Virgin 
Islands, determines that such a waiver does not 
represent a threat to the welfare, safety, or se-
curity of the United States or its territories and 
commonwealths. 
‘‘(B) COUNTRIES.—A country described in 
this subparagraph is a country that— 
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‘‘(i) is a member or an associate mem-
ber 
of 
the 
Caribbean 
Community 
(CARICOM); and 
‘‘(ii) is listed in the regulations de-
scribed in subparagraph (D). 
‘‘(C) ALIEN WAIVER OF RIGHTS.—An alien 
may not be provided a waiver under this para-
graph unless the alien has waived any right— 
‘‘(i) to review or appeal under this Act 
an immigration officer’s determination as 
to the admissibility of the alien at the port 
of entry into the United States Virgin Is-
lands; or 
‘‘(ii) to contest, other than on the 
basis of an application for withholding of 
removal under section 241(b)(3) of this 
Act or under the Convention Against Tor-
ture, or an application for asylum if per-
mitted under section 208, any action for 
removal of the alien. 
‘‘(D) REGULATIONS.—All necessary regu-
lations to implement this paragraph shall be 
promulgated by the Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity, in consultation with the Secretary of the 
Interior and the Secretary of State, on or be-
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fore the 60th day after the date of enactment 
of the Virgin Islands Visa Waiver Act of 2012. 
The promulgation of such regulations shall be 
considered a foreign affairs function for pur-
poses of section 553(a) of title 5, United States 
Code. At a minimum, such regulations should 
include, but not necessarily be limited to— 
‘‘(i) a listing of all member or asso-
ciate member countries of the Caribbean 
Community (CARICOM) whose nationals 
may obtain the waiver provided by this 
paragraph, except that such regulations 
shall not provide for a listing of any coun-
try if the Secretary of Homeland Security 
determines that such country’s inclusion 
on such list would represent a threat to the 
welfare, safety, or security of the United 
States or its territories and common-
wealths; and 
‘‘(ii) any bonding requirements for na-
tionals of some or all of those countries 
who may present an increased risk of 
overstays or other potential problems, if 
different from such requirements otherwise 
provided by law for nonimmigrant visitors. 
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