FACT SHEET: Ron Johnson Passes Law to Help Keep Terrorists Out of the U.S.

Here are the facts on the bill Ron Johnson passed into law to help keep terrorists out of the U.S., the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act:

  • The U.S. visa waiver program is designed to allow safe, legitimate travel into the United States from 38 countries. In the wake of recent attacks, concern grew that terrorists could travel to the U.S. through these partner countries.
  • On Dec. 18, Congress passed Ron’s bill, which made reforms to the visa waiver program to help keep terrorists out of the U.S.
  • Because of this bill, security measures in the visa waiver program will be enhanced. This includes preventing travelers who are nationals of – or have visited in the past five years – Iraq, Syria, and other terrorist hotspots, from using the Visa Waiver Program.  Instead such travelers must seek a visa for entry into the United States, which requires an interview.
  • The bill also requires strong intelligence and information sharing from Visa Waiver Program countries and closes gaps in the global travel system.