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America's Immigration and Naturalization Service plans to enforce fresh visa rules for foreign students and proposes a 30-day limit on the time businessmen and tourists stay in the US.
According to American media organizations, a foreigner who wishes to study in America must obtain a student visa before enrolling in class. Previously, a student could request a visa and begin coursework while his/her application was processed.
The INS proposes that people who want to switch from a business/tourist visa to a student visa return to their native country to apply. A person can now switch visas while in America. The INS says it will speed up decisions on such requests, issuing them within 30 days.
The INS also wants to reduce from six months to 30 days the time a businessmen or tourist may stay in America. Visitors would have to show compelling reasons for an extension, such as the need for medical treatment or a delay in completing a business deal. The maximum length of a visa extension would be reduced from one year to six months. The INS will make it more difficult to extend a stay.
About 10 million people received US tourist visas in 2000; three-quarters of them stayed less than a month. Another 2.5 million people traveled to America on business and stayed an average 13 days.
'These new rules strike the appropriate balance between INS' mission to ensure that our nation's immigration laws are followed and stop illegal immigration and our desire to welcome legitimate visitors to the United States,' INS Commissioner James Ziglar said.
Under another proposed rule, the INS wants people who get final deportation orders to surrender within 30 days. Those who do not will be denied any chance to appeal or seek asylum.
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