Rule2023-16412
Hungary Electronic System for Travel Authorization Validity Period
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
August 2, 2023
Effective
August 1, 2023
Issuing agencies
Homeland Security Department
Abstract
This document announces that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is reducing Hungary's Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) travel authorization validity period for travel by citizens or nationals of Hungary under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to the United States from two years from the date of issuance to one year and also limiting the validity of an ESTA for citizens or nationals of Hungary to a single use for ESTA applications received after the date of publication of this document. DHS is making these changes based on the Government of Hungary's inability to satisfy a number of VWP requirements.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 147 (Wednesday, August 2, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 147 (Wednesday, August 2, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 50759-50760]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-16412]
========================================================================
Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 88 , No. 147 / Wednesday, August 2, 2023 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 50759]]
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
8 CFR Part 217
Hungary Electronic System for Travel Authorization Validity
Period
AGENCY: Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans; DHS.
ACTION: Announcement of ESTA validity period.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This document announces that the U.S. Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) is reducing Hungary's Electronic System for Travel
Authorization (ESTA) travel authorization validity period for travel by
citizens or nationals of Hungary under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to
the United States from two years from the date of issuance to one year
and also limiting the validity of an ESTA for citizens or nationals of
Hungary to a single use for ESTA applications received after the date
of publication of this document. DHS is making these changes based on
the Government of Hungary's inability to satisfy a number of VWP
requirements.
DATES: This announcement is effective on August 1, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anjum Agarwala, Visa Waiver Program
Office, Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans, Department of Homeland
Security, 2707 Martin Luther King Jr Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20528.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
A. The Visa Waiver Program
Pursuant to section 217 of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA), 8 U.S.C. 1187, the Secretary of Homeland Security (the
Secretary),\1\ in consultation with the Secretary of State, may
designate certain countries for participation in the Visa Waiver
Program (VWP) if certain requirements are met. Those requirements
include, among others:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The Secretary of Homeland Security has delegated this
authority to the Under Secretary for Strategy, Policy, and Plans
pursuant to DHS Delegation 23000, Delegation to the Under Secretary
for Strategy, Policy, and Plans, Sec. II.L.4.
(1) a rate of nonimmigrant visitor visa refusals for citizens or
nationals of the country below the statutorily established
threshold;
(2) certification by the government seeking designation for VWP
participation that it issues machine-readable passports that comply
with internationally accepted standards;
(3) a determination by the Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of State, that the country's designation would not
negatively affect U.S. law enforcement and security interests;
(4) an agreement to report, or make available through INTERPOL
or other designated means authorized by the Secretary, information
about the theft or loss of passports to the U.S. government within
the designated timeframe;
(5) the country's government's acceptance for repatriation of
any citizen, former citizen, or national not later than three weeks
after the issuance of a final order of removal; and
(6) an agreement with the United States to share information
regarding whether citizens and nationals of the country traveling to
the United States represent a threat to the security or welfare of
the United States or its citizens.
See INA section 217(c)(2)(A)-(F), 8 U.S.C. 1187(c)(2)(A)-(F).
The INA also sets forth requirements for countries' continued VWP
eligibility and, where appropriate, probation, suspension, or
termination of program countries. See INA section 217(c)-(f), 8 U.S.C.
1187(c)-(f).
Citizens and nationals of VWP countries may apply for admission to
the United States at U.S. ports of entry as nonimmigrant visitors for
business or pleasure for a period of ninety days or less without first
obtaining a nonimmigrant visa, provided they are otherwise eligible for
admission under applicable statutory and regulatory requirements. To
travel to the United States under the VWP, a noncitizen must, without
limitation:
(1) be seeking entry as a visitor for business or pleasure for
ninety days or less;
(2) be a citizen or national of a VWP country;
(3) present a valid unexpired electronic and machine-readable
passport that meets program requirements and is issued by a
designated VWP country to the air or vessel carrier before
departure;
(4) execute the required immigration forms;
(5) if arriving at a port of entry into the U.S. by air or sea,
arrive on an authorized carrier;
(6) not represent a threat to the welfare, health, safety or
security of the United States;
(7) not have failed to comply with the conditions of any
previous admission as a nonimmigrant visitor;
(8) possess a round-trip transportation ticket;
(9) obtain an approved travel authorization via Electronic
System for Travel Authorization (ESTA);
(10) waive the right to review or appeal a decision regarding
admissibility at the port of entry or to contest, other than on the
basis of an application for asylum, any action for removal; and
(11) meet other program requirements.
See INA section 217(a)-(b); 8 U.S.C. 1187(a)-(b). See also 8 CFR part
217.
Hungary was designated for participation in the VWP on November 17,
2008. See 73 FR 67711.
B. ESTA Validity Period
Typically, pursuant to DHS regulations, a travel authorization
issued under ESTA is valid for a period of two years from the date of
issuance. See 8 CFR 217.5(d)(1). However, the Secretary, in
consultation with the Secretary of State, may decrease the ESTA travel
authorization validity period for a designated VWP country. See 8 CFR
217.5(d)(3).\2\ DHS publishes notice of any changes to ESTA travel
authorization validity periods in the Federal Register. See 8 CFR
217.5(d)(3).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ As noted above, this authority is delegated to the Under
Secretary for Strategy, Policy, and Plans.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
II. Reduction of Hungary's ESTA Validity Period
DHS conducts the statutorily required review of each VWP country at
least once every two years to evaluate the effects that continuing the
country's designation in the program will have on U.S. national
security, law enforcement, and immigration enforcement interests. See
INA section 217(c)(5)(A), 8 U.S.C. 1187(c)(5)(A).
In April 2017, DHS learned that individuals had fraudulently
procured legitimate Hungarian passports by falsely assuming the
identities of citizens who naturalized through a ``simplified
process.'' This simplified naturalization process, created in 2011,
extends citizenship to ethnic Hungarians living outside Hungary and
waives the standard naturalization
[[Page 50760]]
requirement for an applicant to be a Hungarian resident for five years.
This simplified process also eliminated identity management protocols
that are conditions of the Government of Hungary's standard
naturalization procedure, including the collection of fingerprints and
a facial image of the applicant. Without complete biometric data,
including an image of the recently-naturalized citizen from the
simplified naturalization process, the Government of Hungary's passport
application process became susceptible to imposter fraud. Additionally,
the Government of Hungary identified corrupt officials who sold
Hungarian passports.
In October 2017, the Secretary notified the Government of Hungary
by letter that it had been placed on provisional VWP status (pursuant
to which Hungary is subject to an annual assessment, rather than an
assessment every two years) due to its noncooperation with earlier U.S.
Government requests for information and collaboration in the
investigation of passport fraud. The letter outlined steps necessary
for Hungary to return to normalized status as a participating country
in the VWP.
Despite engagement by U.S. ambassadors and DHS up to the Secretary
level since 2017, the Government of Hungary has made only limited
progress in addressing vulnerabilities created by its ``simplified''
naturalization process. Its failure to address the large volume of
identities that continue to be at risk of being exploited for mala fide
purposes and its lack of investigative cooperation with U.S. law
enforcement presents an elevated level of risk to the national
security, law enforcement, and immigration enforcement interests of the
United States.
DHS is publishing this document announcing that effective August 1,
2023, DHS is decreasing Hungary's ESTA validity period for travel to
the United States from two years from the date of issuance to one year
and limiting the validity of an ESTA for citizens or nationals of
Hungary to a single use for ESTA applications received after the
effective date of this document. This will have the dual effect of (1)
sending a public signal regarding Hungary's non-compliance with VWP
requirements, and (2) in the case of those with regular travel to the
United States, creating an opportunity to obtain updated application
and travel history information of Hungarian VWP travelers for vetting
purposes. This is necessary due to Hungary's inability to fully satisfy
its obligations under the VWP. Should Hungary's non-compliance with VWP
requirements continue, DHS, in consultation with State, may make
further adjustments to Hungary's VWP designation at any time, including
suspension or termination from the program.
Robert Silvers,
Under Secretary for Strategy, Policy, and Plans Department of Homeland
Security.
[FR Doc. 2023-16412 Filed 8-1-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P
</pre></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on August 2, 2023.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.