February 21, 2002

Argentina is Removed from the Visa Waiver Program

On February 20, 2002, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it would invoke an emergency termination provision to immediately publish an interim rule to officially remove Argentina from the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). That rule will be published this week in the Federal Register, and will be effective immediately on publication. As such, all Argentine visitors coming to the United States on or after the date of publication are required to obtain a non-immigrant visa issued by a U.S. Consulate or Embassy abroad, prior to arrival in the United States. This rule does not affect nationals of Argentina already in the United States under the VWP. Those individuals may remain in the U.S. for the period of time authorized on their date of admission. This announcement follows Argentina's recent economic collapse that has led to a 20 percent unemployment rate and economic uncertainty. With the removal of Argentina, the following 28 countries remain in the Visa Waiver Program: 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, The United Kingdom, and Uruguay.