The Visa Waiver Program (VWP), administered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in consultation with the State Department, permits citizens of 40 countries to travel to the United States for business or tourism for stays of up to 90 days without a visa. In return, those 40 countries must permit U.S. citizens and nationals to travel to their countries for a similar length of time without a visa for business or tourism purposes.
Flexibility for Visa Waiver Entrants. Visa Waiver Program (VWP) entrants are generally not eligible to extend their stay or change their status. However, under current regulations, if an emergency (such as COVID-19) prevents the departure of a VWP entrant, USCIS at its discretion may grant up to 30 days to allow for satisfactory departure. Please see 8 CFR 217.3(a). For those VWP entrants already granted satisfactory departure and unable to depart within this 30-day period because of COVID-19-related issues, USCIS has the authority to temporarily provide additional 30-day periods of satisfactory departure. To request a satisfactory departure from USCIS, a VWP entrant should call the USCIS Contact Center.
Recently, however, there have been several reports of inconsistencies that have been received in USCIS’s adjudication of satisfactory departure requests for an additional 30-day period of stay, in addition to the Visa Waiver Program’s (VWP) 90-day admission period. On one occasion, a USCIS officer noted that the policy for additional 30-day periods had ended. USCIS has provided the information below to reiterate the policy.
USCIS has confirmed the following:
- Under current rules, USCIS has the discretion to grant an initial period of up to 30 days to allow for satisfactory departure if an emergency- such as COVID-19, but not limited to COVID-19 – prevents the departure of a VWP entrant.
- For additional 30-day periods of satisfactory departure after an initial 30-day grant, the reason for the request must be COVID-19-related.
- USCIS has confirmed that VWP entrants may request multiple 30-day periods of satisfactory departure through the USCIS Contact Center.
Disclaimer
This article, under no circumstances, acts as legal advice; therefore, for any immigration questions, please contact your Attorney or the Ahluwalia Law Offices, P.C. (Team ALO).
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