Visa bond proposal could require tourists to post up to $15,000 deposit

The U.S. State Department is proposing that applicants for tourist and business visas be required to post a bond of up to $15,000 to enter the country, which could make the process unaffordable for some.

In a notice posted on the Federal Register’s website and scheduled to be published on Tuesday, the State Department said it would kick off a 12-month pilot program for people from countries with high overstay rates and deficient internal document security controls to be required to post bonds of $5,000, $10,000 or $15,000, when applying for a visa.

The proposal comes as President Donald Trump and his administration work to tighten requirements for visa applicants.

The department announced last week that several applicants looking to renew their visas would have to submit to an additional in-person interview, which was never required in the past.

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Additionally, the department proposed that applicants for the Visa Diversity Lottery have a valid passport from their country.

The bond notice was previewed on the Federal Register website on Monday and said the pilot program will not take effect within 15 days of its publication. The notice also said the program is necessary to ensure the U.S. government is not financially liable if a visitor does not comply with the visitor’s visa terms.

“Aliens applying for visas as temporary visitors for business or pleasure and who are nationals of countries identified by the department as having high visa overstay rates, where screening and vetting information is deemed deficient, or offering citizenship by investment, if the alien obtained citizenship with no residency requirement, may be subject to the pilot program,” the notice read.

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Once the program takes effect, the countries affected will be listed.

The notice also notes that the bond could be waived based on individual circumstances.

Citizens of countries enrolled in the Visa Waiver Program, which provides for business travel or tourism for up to 90 days, will not be required to pay the bond.

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