U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta has re-introduced legislation to make overstaying a visa a criminal offense rather than a civil offense as federal law currently holds.
According to an emailed news release from Barletta’s office, under the bill — H.R. 643, the Visa Overstay Enforcement Act — a first instance of staying in the United States beyond a visa’s expiration date would be a misdemeanor, while subsequent infractions would be felonies.
The bill for the first time brings penalties for visa overstays into line with existing law for unlawfully crossing the U.S. border. This is the third time Barletta, R-Hazleton, has introduced the legislation, having authored it in the two previous Congresses.
“The 9/11 Commission Report taught us that many times, valid travel documents are terrorists’ best weapons. And terrorists want two things most of all: to be able to get into this country, and to be able to stay here,” Barletta said in the release. “Almost half of the illegal immigrants present in this country came here legally only to have their visa expire — and then never left. It’s why I have always said, if your state is home to an international airport, then you effectively live in a border state.”
The Visa Overstay Enforcement Act:
• Criminalizes the overstaying of a visa.
• Makes the first offense a misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.
• Makes subsequent offenses felonies, punishable by up to two years in jail, a fine of up to $250,000, or both.
• Places restrictions on future reentry by those convicted of visa overstays.
• First-time offenders may not re-enter the country for five years, or be granted a new visa for 10 years.
• Those with multiple visa overstay convictions may not be readmitted into the U.S. for life.
• Allows for case-by-case exceptions for individuals who overstay a visa for medical necessity, public safety or national security.
• Provides multiple notices of a visa overstay offense by requiring the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of State to disclose the penalties to visa applicants both upon application and then upon admission.
“We know that several of the hijackers on Sept. 11, 2001, had overstayed their visas for months before the attack,” Barletta said. “It’s time that we made this serious violation of our immigration laws more than just a civil slap on the wrist.”
