releases: https://costello.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/house-passes-bill-strengthen-security-visa-waiver-program
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://costello.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/house-passes-bill-strengthen-security-visa-waiver-program | House Passes Bill to Strengthen the Security of the Visa Waiver Program | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Republican | House | PA | Ryan Costello | C001106 | costello.house.gov | legacy | Washington, DC Today, with the support of Congressman Ryan Costello (PA-06), the House of Representatives passed H.R. 158: the Visa Waiver Program (WVP) Improvement Act by a large bipartisan vote of 407-19. In the wake of recent terror attacks, the House has renewed its focus on homeland security measures to better protect our homeland from weaknesses exposed in our immigration, refugee, and visa systems. Passage of the bill comes on the heels of recommendations made by the House Task Force on Combatting Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel. Currently, the VWP allows individuals from 38 countries, including France and Belgium, to travel to the U.S. for stays of 90 days or less. H.R. 158 addresses key vulnerabilities in the VWP by implementing more rigorous background checks for foreign travelers and more reoccurring examinations of the program and its effectiveness. In addition, H.R. 158 grants the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) the authority to suspend a country from VWP participation if it fails to share terrorism and foreign traveler data, and disqualifies an individual if they have traveled to Iraq and Syria within the past 5 years. This is in an effort to prevent foreign fighters from entering the U.S. Following passage of the bill, Congressman Costello released the following statement: The threat of an attack by ISIS on our nation is real and keeping America safe is my top priority as a Member of Congress. It is imperative that we take the necessary precautions to protect our homeland and prevent our enemies from entering our borders through the VWP to inflict harm on our citizens. The reforms we passed this evening are responsible and commonsense security measures needed to ensure we are properly using the tools we have at our disposal to keep terrorists out of America and keep our nation safe. In addition to H.R. 158, the House recently passed H.R. 4038: the American Security Against Foreign Enemies (SAFE) Act to suspend the Syrian and Iraqi refugee admissions into the United States until certain conditions are met. For the past year, the House Committee on Homeland Security has been investigating the counterterrorism challenges associated with a number of security weaknesses that have allowed terrorists and foreign fighters to cross borders or penetrate refugee populations. The House-passed pieces of legislation directly address these deficiencies. Background on the Visa Waiver Program The VWP was created in 1986 and allows nationals from participating countries to travel to the U.S. for up to 90 days for business or tourism without obtaining a U.S. visa, by presenting a valid passport, and by meeting certain other requirements. Currently, there are 38 countries that participate in the VWP. View the list of the nations included in the VWP here. To be designated as a VWP country, the country must participate in security reviews every other year and meet several key conditions, such as offering reciprocal visa-free travel for U.S. citizens and meeting a host of information-sharing and security requirements. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |