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Presidential Memorandum

Implementing Immediate Heightened Screening and Vetting of Applications for Visas and Other Immigration Benefits, Ensuring Enforcement of All Laws for Entry Into the United States, and Increasing Transparency Among Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government and for the American People

This memorandum directs the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security, in consultation with the Attorney General, to immediately implement enhanced screening and vetting protocols for visa and immigration benefit applications. It mandates rigorous enforcement of all existing grounds of inadmissibility, requires new rules to supersede conflicting prior rules, and establishes detailed public reporting requirements on visa issuance, immigration status adjustments, and refugee program costs.

Federal Register Open PDF 82 FR 16279

Impact dates

  1. Report on long-term costs of Refugee Admissions Program due

  2. Report comparing refugee support costs in U.S. versus countries of first asylum due

  3. First DHS report on adjustments of immigration status due

  4. First monthly State Department visa report due; last day of every month thereafter

Key directives

  • Implement enhanced screening and vetting protocols for visas and all other immigration benefits 'as soon as practicable'
  • Rigorously enforce all existing grounds of inadmissibility and ensure subsequent compliance
  • Issue new rules, regulations, or guidance to enforce inadmissibility laws; such rules shall supersede any previous conflicting rules
  • Publish monthly visa reports beginning April 28, 2017, with disaggregated data by consular office, visa category, and country
  • Issue quarterly reports on adjustments of immigration status, first within 90 days, then every 90 days
  • Submit report on long-term costs of Refugee Admissions Program within 180 days with recommendations to curtail costs
  • Produce report within 180 days comparing cost of supporting refugees in U.S. versus countries of first asylum

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

  • Heightened screening and vetting protocols to be implemented 'as soon as practicable'
  • Rigorous enforcement of all existing grounds of inadmissibility directed immediately

Near term (90d)

  • First DHS report on adjustments of immigration status due within 90 days (by June 4, 2017)
  • Monthly State Department visa reports begin April 28, 2017
  • Subsequent DHS reports every 90 days thereafter

Long term

  • Refugee Admissions Program cost report due within 180 days (by September 2, 2017)
  • Refugee comparative cost report (countries of first asylum vs. U.S.) due within 180 days (by September 2, 2017)
  • Ongoing monthly visa reports and quarterly DHS reports indefinitely

Risks & tensions

  • Potential conflict with prior administration rules explicitly superseded; may create legal uncertainty
  • Tension between transparency mandates and national security protections in Section 5(c)
  • Cost reports on refugee program may signal policy shift toward reducing refugee admissions
  • 'As soon as practicable' leaves implementation timing discretionary and vague
  • State/local cost analysis could strain federal-state relations on refugee resettlement funding
Presidential Memorandum: Implementing Immediate Heightened Screening and Vetting of Applications for Visas and Other Immigration Benefits, Ensuring Enforcement of All Laws for Entry Into the United States, and Increasing Transparency Among Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government and for the American People · Executive Orders