Executive Order Affects Visa Processes and Entry to the U.S.

February 27, 2017

The provisions of the Executive Order (EO) are currently not in effect based on a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) that was executed on February 3rd, and upheld on February 9th by a federal appeals court.

The White House has indicated that they plan to issue a new, revised Executive Order instead of continuing the legal challenge of the one currently under a TRO.

Updates

Check the NAFSA: Association of International Educators resource page on Executive Actions for the most recent information. This is an excellent resource that is regularly updated as new guidance becomes available.

For alerts, resources, and related news, please check our Immigration Alerts and Resources page.

Key Provisions of the Executive Order

See the full text of the Order.

Note: The Executive Order is currently not being enforced because of a nationwide Temporary Restraining Order barring its implementation.

Key provisions are:

  • 90-day​ ​suspension​ ​of​ visa processing and ​entry​ ​to​ ​the​ ​U.S.​ ​of​ ​nonimmigrants​ ​and​ ​immigrants​ ​from 7​ ​designated​ ​countries: ​Iran,​ ​Iraq,​ ​Libya,​ ​Somalia,​ ​Sudan,​ ​Syria and​ ​Yemen.

    * U.S. Permanent Residents and Dual Nationals of other countries: The wording of the EO seemed to indicate that Permanent Residents and Dual Nationals would be subject to the travel ban, but there have been updates since then.

    January 29: the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that U.S. Permanent Residents are able to travel to the U.S. but will undergo security review upon arrival

    February 1: Government officials clarified for ABC news that individuals with a passport from an unrestricted country and valid U.S. visa are allowed to travel to the U.S. presenting that passport

  • 120-day suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program that admits and resettles refugees from around the world.

  • Indefinite suspension of the processing of refugee applications from Syria.

  • Suspension of the Visa Interview Waiver Process.  Suspending the waiver of visa interviews is expected to lead to backlogs in visa appointments and issuance worldwide.

  • Review of all visa policies and processes including Visa Reciprocity