DHS Eliminates List of Countries Whose Nationals are Subject to Special Registration Requirements
April 28, 2011 - Today, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a federal register notice removing all countries that had previously been designated for inclusion in the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS). See 76 Fed. Reg. 23830 (April 28, 2011). The DHS notice eliminated the special registration requirement for nonimmigrants from Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Citizens and nationals of these countries are no longer subject to the NSEERS registration requirements.
In 2002, the Department of Justice created NSEERS as one of many security measures instituted in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 as a way to record the arrival and departure information for nonimmigrants from countries designated by federal register notice by the Attorney General in consultation with the Secretary of State, as well as individuals who met certain pre-defined criteria that the Attorney General or the Secretary of State believed warranted additional monitoring of that individual's presence in the U.S. Nonimmigrants subject to special registration requirements have been required to provide fingerprints, a photograph, and any additional information required by DHS at the time of admission to the United States. Nonimmigrants subject to NSEERS regulations could also be required to appear at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office to provide additional information or documentation confirming compliance with the conditions of their status and admission. Upon departure from the United States, such nonimmigrants were required to depart through specific ports to record their departure.
With the implementation of new automated systems that capture the same data, DHS has determined that the NSEERS requirements are redundant and do not provide additional security. Such systems include the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology Program (US-VISIT), which requires most non-U.S. citizens seeking admission to provide finger scans and a digital photograph upon entry, and the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS), which requires commercial air carriers and vessels to transmit passenger and crew manifests electronically to Customs and Border Protection prior to arrival to or departure from the United States.