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Border Security: Stronger Actions Needed to Assess and Mitigate Risks of the Visa Waiver Program

GAO-06-1090T Published: Sep 07, 2006. Publicly Released: Sep 07, 2006.
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Highlights

The Visa Waiver Program enables citizens of 27 countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. In fiscal year 2005, nearly 16 million people entered the country under the program. After the 9-11 terrorist attacks, the risk that aliens would exploit the program to enter the United States became more of a concern. This testimony discusses our recent report on the Visa Waiver Program. Specifically, it (1) describes the Visa Waiver Program's benefits and risks, (2) examines the U.S. government's process for assessing potential risks, and (3) assesses the actions taken to mitigate these risks. We met with U.S. embassy officials in six program countries and reviewed relevant procedures and reports on participating countries

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Border securityHomeland securityLaw enforcementPassportsProgram evaluationReporting requirementsRisk assessmentVisasWaiversVisa waivers