US
Eases Visa Restrictions
M. Ghazanfar Ali Khan, Arab News
RIYADH,
4 May 2005 — US Ambassador James C. Oberwetter
says changes in the US visa process would ease
travel between the States and Saudi Arabia.
The
ambassador’s comments come in the wake of the
Saudi-US Summit and before a high-profile, 63-member
Saudi business mission leaves for the US next week.
“Last
week’s visit by Crown Prince Abdullah to the
United States has given a major boost to the
bilateral relations,” said Oberwetter. “I am
very satisfied with the outcome of the royal
visit,” he said, referring to the joint
communique issued
after the talks held by Crown Prince Abdullah and
the US President George W. Bush.
He
also gave details of the Saudi
commercial delegation
scheduled to visit the United States from May 7-19.
The delegates will hold business talks in several
cities including Washington, New York, Atlanta,
Chicago and Houston.
Oberwetter
said once the new system was in place, it will
ensure long-term stays for Saudi businessmen or
tourists in the US with multiple-entry visas. “It
will also reduce the time lag for processing visa
applications and interviews,” he said, without
detailing the proposed system.
However,
American diplomats in Bahrain told a press
conference recently that a new computer database
would streamline the visa process around the globe
with the number of applicants in a given country
determining the time of the wait, which in some
cases could take as little as a day.
|
Saudi
applicants currently wait weeks or months
for approval after interview. At present,
all nonimmigrant visa applicants regardless
of their status are required to submit their
applications in person at the US Embassy or
consulate.
Although,
Washington no longer makes public visa
issuance and refusal statistics available,
sources say that quite a substantial number
of Arabs including Saudi nationals applying
for visas are turned down. |
The
Impact of
U.S. Visa Policies:
Implications for
America's Economy
--
An Initial Inquiry
By National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce
[Click
Here] |
Saudi-American
contacts suffered because of the stringent visa
measures announced after Sept. 11 attacks. Thousands
of Saudi students — including 3,500 on government
scholarships — were enrolled at American
universities before Sept. 11, but many of them
returned to the Kingdom after they were caught in
the backlash of the attack.
Reprinted
with permission of Arab
News.
