[105th Congress Public Law 173]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]


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[DOCID: f:publ173.105]

Public Law 105-173
105th Congress

                                 An Act


 
 To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to modify and extend the 
  visa waiver pilot program, and to provide for the collection of data 
  with respect to the number of nonimmigrants who remain in the United 
  States after the expiration of the period of stay authorized by the 
         Attorney General. <<NOTE: Apr. 27, 1998 -  [S. 1178]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF VISA WAIVER PILOT PROGRAM.

    Section 217(f) of the Immigration and <<NOTE: 8 USC 1187.>>  
Nationality Act is amended by striking ``1998.'' and inserting 
``2000.''.

SEC. 2. DATA ON NONIMMIGRANT OVERSTAY <<NOTE: 8 USC 1376.>>  RATES.

    (a) Collection of Data.--Not later than the date that is 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall 
implement a program to collect data, for each fiscal year, regarding the 
total number of aliens within each of the classes of nonimmigrant aliens 
described in section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)) whose authorized period of stay in the United 
States terminated during the previous fiscal year, but who remained in 
the United States notwithstanding such termination.
    (b) Annual Report.--Not later than June 30, 1999, and not later than 
June 30 of each year thereafter, the Attorney General shall submit an 
annual report to the Congress providing numerical estimates, for each 
country for the preceding fiscal year, of the number of aliens from the 
country who are described in subsection (a).
SEC. 3. QUALIFICATIONS FOR DESIGNATION AS PILOT PROGRAM COUNTRY.

    Section 217(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1187(c)(2)), is amended to read as follows:
            ``(2) Qualifications.--Except as provided in subsection (g), 
        a country may not be designated as a pilot program country 
        unless the following requirements are met:
                    ``(A) Low nonimmigrant visa refusal rate.--Either--
                          ``(i) the average number of refusals of 
                      nonimmigrant visitor visas for nationals of that 
                      country during--
                                    ``(I) the two previous full fiscal 
                                years was less than 2.0 percent of the 
                                total number of nonimmigrant visitor 
                                visas for nationals of that country 
                                which were granted or refused during 
                                those years; and
                                    ``(II) either of such two previous 
                                full fiscal years was less than 2.5 
                                percent of the total number of 
                                nonimmigrant visitor visas for nationals 
                                of that country which were granted or 
                                refused during that year; or
                          ``(ii) such refusal rate for nationals of that 
                      country during the previous full fiscal year was 
                      less than 3.0 percent.
                    ``(B) Machine readable passport program.--The 
                government of the country certifies that it has or is in 
                the process of developing a program to issue machine-
                readable passports to its citizens.
                    ``(C) Law enforcement interests.--The Attorney 
                General determines that the United States law 
                enforcement interests would not be compromised by the 
                designation of the country.''.

    Approved April 27, 1998.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--S. 1178 (H.R. 2578):
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HOUSE REPORTS: No. 105-387 accompanying H.R. 2578 (Comm. on the 
Judiciary).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD:
                                                        Vol. 143 (1997):
                                    Sept. 26, considered and passed 
                                        Senate.
                                                        Vol. 144 (1998):
                                    Mar. 25, considered and passed 
                                        House, amended, in lieu of H.R. 
                                        2578.
                                    Apr. 1, Senate concurred in House 
                                        amendments.

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