September 13, 2004 - The State Department today released a fact sheet reminding travelers who enter the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (27 nations participating, including western European nations and Japan) that beginning October 26, 2004, they will be required to present a machine-readable passport in order to enter the U.S. without a visa. Individuals without machine-readable passports will be required to obtain US visas in order to enter the U.S. after October 26, 2004.

The State Department also reminded Visa Waiver Program participants that, beginning September 30, 2004, they will be required to "enroll" in the US-VISIT program and submit biometric identifiers (photograph and index fingerprints) at entry. In other words, when Visa Waiver Program participants arrive at a U.S. port of entry, they will be photographed and fingerprinted, beginning September 30, 2004.

FACT SHEET

BAL Comment: The requirement for machine-readable passports is separate from another statutory requirement that the passports of Visa Waiver Program participants be "biometrically enabled." This latter requirement was postponed for one year by legislation signed by the President last month.