US House of Representatives Votes to Tighten Controls on Visa-Free Travelers Tuesday Dec 08,2015

 

The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Tuesday Dec 08,2015 to impose restrictions making it more difficult for visitors to Iraq, Syria and countries listed as supporting terrorism to travel visa-free to the United States.

The US House of Representatives voted 407 to 19 in support of the Visa Waiver Program Improvement Act of 2015, a bill backed by the White House in the aftermath of the deadly attacks in Paris that were conducted by extremists who could have traveled to America without a visa.

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is available to citizens of 38 countries, largely US allies and relatively stable developed democracies.

Many are in Europe, including France and Belgium, the home countries of several of the Paris attackers.

Created in 1986 to help facilitate travel to the US, the program has been a boon to the American economy.