Revised Executive Order on Travel

in Executive Order
March 6th, 2017

President Trump signed a new Executive Order entitled “Protecting the Nation from Terrorist Entry into the United States.”

The new order, which revokes and replaces Executive Order 13769, halts all refugee admissions for at least 120 days and bans travel for 90 days for nationals of six of the seven countries in the prior EO. It restricts travel for nationals of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Yemen beginning at 12:01am March 16, 2017 as Iraq has been removed from the original list of countries.

Based on a preliminary reading of the new Executive Order and a DHS FAQ and Fact Sheet, the new entry bar will not apply to:

  • lawful U.S. permanent residents (“green card holders”) from those six countries;
  • persons from one of those six countries with a valid visa obtained on or before January 27, 2017;
  • persons from one of those six countries with a valid travel document other than a visa (for example, advance parole), valid as of the date of the EO or issued thereafter;
  • dual nationals of those six countries when traveling on a passport of a non-designated country (for example, a dual Iranian Canadian citizen seeking to enter the U.S. on a Canadian passport);
  • persons from one of those six countries on diplomatic visas, NATO, or U.N.-specific visas; and,
  • foreign nationals granted asylum, refugees already admitted to the U.S., granted withholding of removal, advance parole, or protection under the Convention Against Torture.

The EO allows for consular officers or the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”), in their discretion, to issue a visa or permit entry, on a case-by-case basis, for individuals affected by this order if the foreign national demonstrates that denying entry would cause undue hardship, his/her entry would not pose a threat to national security, and would be in the national interest. The specifics of how to seek or request this waiver is unclear from the text of the EO, but the EO lists several examples of circumstances, including returning students or temporary workers outside the U.S. on the effective date of the order, foreign nationals seeking to visit or reside with a spouse, child, or parent who is a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or non-immigrant, persons needing urgent medical care, landed Canadian immigrants applying for U.S. visas in Canada, or U.S. government-sponsored exchange visitors.

Additional countries may be added for restrictions or limitations based on input from the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, or the Secretary of Homeland Security.

As of the effective date of the EO, all refugee admissions under the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program are suspended for at least 120 days, with admissions resuming only after the Secretary of State, Secretary of Homeland Security and the Director of National Intelligence have determined that additional procedures for screening refugees described in the order are adequate.

Reduces the number of refugees in Fiscal Year 2017 from 110,00 to 50,000, with exceptions for admitting refugees to conform with international agreements or other limited circumstances.

Directs the Secretary of State to examine existing law to determine the extent to which state and local governments “may have greater involvement” in determining the placement or resettlement of refugees in their jurisdiction.

In the first 20 days, DHS will perform a global, country-by-country review of the identity and security information that each country provides to the U.S. Government to support U.S. visa and other immigration benefit determinations. Countries will then have 50 days to comply with requests from the U.S. Government to update or improve the quality of the information they provide.

Suspends Visa Interview Waiver Program, requiring individuals from all countries who seek to renew their nonimmigrant visas to undergo in-person interviews.