On March 6, 2017, the White House announced a new executive
order impacting nationals and citizens of six countries: IRAN, LIBYA, SOMALIA,
SUDAN, SYRIA, AND YEMEN, effective as of 12:01 AM EDT on March 16, 2017.
The Executive Order (EO) excludes Iraq from the original
list of countries, although travelers from Iraq may experience longer delays in
visa issuance.
This EO affects only those from the 6 countries who are
currently outside the U.S. and do not have a valid U.S. visa. For foreign
nationals from one of the six restricted countries who are currently in the
United States, traveling internationally is highly inadvisable under current
circumstances. Please consult with an OISS advisor if you have any questions.
Foreign nationals who are not from one of these
countries planning to travel outside of the U.S. should make sure they have the
necessary travel documents and a valid visa. Always check with OISS whenever in
doubt. Please refer to our recent travel email for more information about preparing
to leave the U.S.
This new EO DOES NOT APPLY to:
• Lawful permanent residents of the United States
(“green card” holders);
• Any foreign national who has a document OTHER than a
visa, valid on March 16, 2017 (or issued thereafter), that permits him or her
to travel to the United States and seek entry or admission (e.g., an Advance
Parole document);
• Any dual national of a designated country when
traveling on a passport issued by a non-designated country;
• Any foreign national traveling on designated
diplomatic visas; OR
• Any foreign national who has been granted asylum,
any refugee who has already been admitted to the United States, or any
individual who has been granted withholding of removal, advance parole, or
protection under the Convention Against Torture. Waivers of the travel ban may
be available on a case-by-case basis.
The Legal Education Department at Pennsylvania State
University has created a helpful summary of the new Executive Order, you can read
it here.
Know your Rights at the Airport (Credit: American
Civil Liberties Union):
We are aware that some of you might be worried about what
your experience might be at the port of entry when interacting with a customs
officer. We would like to remind you to be honest and courteous to the
officer at the port of entry, and to have your documents ready when you’re
asked for them. If you have any doubts, below are some specific
guidelines about what customs officers have the authority to do:
Q. If I am entering the U.S. with valid travel papers,
can law enforcement officers stop and search me?
A. Generally, customs officers may stop, detain, and
search any person or item at the border. This is true even if there is nothing
suspicious about you or your luggage. The government believes this authority to
search without individualized suspicion extends to searches of electronic
devices such as laptops and cell phones, but that is a contested legal issue.
Officers, however, may not select you for a personal search or secondary
inspection based on your religion, race, national origin, gender, ethnicity, or
political beliefs.
Q. Can law enforcement officers ask questions about my
immigration status?
A. Customs officers have the authority to ask your immigration
status when you are entering or returning to the United States or leaving the
country. They have the power to determine whether non-U.S. citizens and lawful
permanent residents have the right to enter the country. If you are a U.S.
citizen and you have presented a valid passport, you do not have to answer
officers’ questions, although refusing to answer routine questions about the
nature and purpose of your travel could result in delay and/or further
inspection. If you are a lawful permanent resident, we recommend you answer
officers’ questions. If you are a non-citizen visa holder, you may be denied
entry into the United States if you refuse to answer officers’ questions.
Officers, however, may not select you for questioning based on your religion,
race, national origin, gender, ethnicity, or political beliefs. If you are told
you cannot enter the country and you fear you might be persecuted or tortured
if you are sent back to the country from which you traveled, you may tell the
customs officer about your fear and ask for asylum.
Q. Do I have to provide my laptop passwords or unlock my
mobile phone for law enforcement officers? Can law enforcement officers search
my electronic devices or make copies of the files?
A. Officers have sometimes asked travelers to provide
their laptop passwords or unlock their mobile phones. Whether you have a right
to decline to provide this information is a contested legal issue. The extent
to which officers have the authority to search or copy files in your electronic
devices without any reasonable suspicion that the devices contain evidence of
wrongdoing is also a contested issue. U.S. citizens cannot be denied entry to
the United States for refusing to provide passwords or unlock devices, but
refusal to do so might lead to delay, lengthy questioning, and/or officers
seizing your device for further inspection. For lawful permanent residents and
non-citizen visa holders, refusing to cooperate might also lead to officers
denying your entry into the country. If an officer searches and/or confiscates
your laptop or cell phone, write down his or her name and get a receipt for
your property.
Q. What if I wear a religious head covering and I am
selected by airport security officials for additional screening?
A. You have the right to wear your religious head
covering. You should assert your right to wear your religious head covering if
asked to remove it before going through airport security screening. If an alarm
goes off, however, airport security officers may request additional screening.
They may then conduct a pat-down of your religious head covering or ask you to
remove it. You have the right to request that the pat-down or removal be
conducted by a person of your gender and that it occurs in a private area. If
you do not want the TSA officer to touch your religious head covering, you must
refuse and say that you would prefer to pat down your own religious head
covering. You will then be taken aside and a TSA officer will supervise you as
you pat down your religious head covering. After the pat-down, the TSA officer
may rub your hands with a small cotton cloth and place it in a machine to test
for chemical residue. If you pass this chemical residue test, you should be
allowed to proceed to your flight. If the TSA officer insists on the
removal of your religious head covering, you have a right to ask that it be
done in a private area. Officers may not conduct additional screening
based solely on your race, national origin, religion, gender, ethnicity, or
political beliefs.
For a complete run-down of what your rights are at airports
and other ports of entry in the U.S. you can visit the ACLU
website.
OISS will continue to monitor the situation and any updates
(as well as this e-mail) will be posted on our blog. If you have
any questions or concerns in the coming days, please do not hesitate to contact
our office at any time. If you aren’t sure what to do, we would recommend
that you seek the counsel of an immigration lawyer, there is currently free
legal assistance available for issues related to the executive order.
E-mail us back to let us know if you need recommendations.
Office of
International Students and Scholars
Tulane
University
6901
Willow Street
New
Orleans, LA 70118
(504) 865-5208
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