DHS Ends Special Registration
April 28, 2011— The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will no longer register expatriates in the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS, or “special registration”), according to a notice that is expected to be published soon in the Federal Register. The announcement effectively ends the controversial security screening program, which had been in place for nationals of designated countries since 2002. DHS has determined that other existing security programs – including the US-VISIT entry-exit system – achieve the same results.
NSEERS obligated expatriates from numerous “countries of concern” to comply with special screening, reporting and departure requirements. The countries specifically designated for the program were Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen, though a national of any country could be subjected to special registration if he or she was determined to warrant heighted security monitoring.
When NSEERS was first introduced, men aged 16 and older who were nationals or citizens of designated countries were called in to appear at legacy Immigration and Naturalization Service offices for special registration; many were detained and deported. Call-in registration was suspended in 2003, but expatriates could still be flagged for special registration by a consular or border officer. Registrants were fingerprinted and photographed upon entry and were obligated to undergo exit procedures that required them to depart through designated NSEERS ports. They were also required to report any change in their U.S. address, employer or school within ten days of a change. These obligations will now cease.
The suspension of special registration is good news for travelers from the designated countries of concern and for their employers. Individuals who were subject to NSEERS faced lengthy inspections at U.S. ports of entry and had less flexibility when departing the United States, since they could leave only through specific ports and were subject to follow-up inspection on departure. These requirements were especially burdensome for frequent travelers.
But even though foreign nationals will no longer be subject to special registration, questions about past compliance with NSEERS could still arise. Expatriates who were specially registered in the past and are seeking immigration benefits – particularly adjustment of status to permanent residence and naturalization – may be asked to demonstrate that they complied with program requirements during the time that NSEERS was in effect. |
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