	Background

Each year, millions of visitors, foreign students, and immigrants come to  the United States. A visitor may enter on a legal temporary basis—that is,  with an authorized period of admission that expires on a specific date— either with a temporary visa (generally for tourism, business, or work) that  the Department of State issues or, in some cases, as a tourist or business  visitor who is allowed to enter without a visa. The latter category includes  Canadians and qualified visitors from 27 countries who enter under the  Visa Waiver Permanent program. A large majority of these visitors depart  on time, but others overstay. Visitor and Immigrant  Status Indicator Technology program (US-VISIT). Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

describe available data on the extent to which overstaying occurs,  identify any weaknesses that might limit the utility of DHS’s long-standing  overstay tracking system, and   provide some observations about the potential effect of overstays—as well  as limitations of the overstay tracking system—on domestic security. In examining these issues, our main information sources included   (1) relevant GAO and other reports, (2) interviews we conducted with  officials and staff at DHS and DOJ, and (3) a variety of data, including  printouts from DHS’s long-standing overstay tracking system (based on  Form I-94), data that DHS developed, at our request, from Operation  Tarmac (the sweep that identified overstays and other illegal immigrants  working at U.S. airports) and other similar operations, and facts about the  arrivals, departures, and overstay status of the September 11 hijackers and  others involved in terrorist-related activities. DHS’s Estimate May Understate the Extent of Overstaying

Significant numbers of visitors overstay their authorized periods of  admission. 2. 3. Missing departure forms. Because of these weaknesses, DHS has no accurate list of overstays to  send to consular officials or DHS inspectors. We have reported elsewhere that this first phase is operational but that  improvements are needed. While the design and implementation of US-VISIT face a number of  challenges, we believe that it might be useful to determine whether the  new program successfully avoids specific weaknesses associated with the  long-standing I-94 system. Together with other efforts, this might help  identify some difficult challenges in advance and enhance US-VISIT’s  chances for eventual success as an overstay tracking system. DHS  has ongoing efforts to identify illegal workers in jobs at various  infrastructures (for example, airport workers with security badges). 1. 2. Valid estimation of overstays is extremely  difficult, given current tracking system weaknesses. Homeland Security: Justice Department’s Project to Interview Aliens  after September 11, 2001. Transportation Security: Post-September 11th Initiatives and Long- Term Challenges.
Why GAO Did This Study

Each year, millions of visitors, foreign students, and immigrants come to the United States. Foreign visitors may enter on a legal temporary basis--that is, with an authorized period of admission that expires on a specific date--either (1) with temporary visas (generally for tourism, business, or work) or, in some cases, (2) as tourists or business visitors who are allowed to enter without visas. (The latter include Canadians and qualified visitors from 27 countries who enter under the visa waiver program.) The majority of visitors who are tracked depart on time, but others overstay--and since September 11, 2001, the question has arisen as to whether overstay issues might have an impact on domestic security. In this report, we (1) describe available data on the extent of overstaying, (2) report on weaknesses in the Department of Homeland Security's long-standing overstay tracking system, and (3) provide some observations on the impact that tracking system weaknesses and significant levels of overstaying may have on domestic security.

What GAO Found

Significant numbers of foreign visitors overstay their authorized periods of admission. Based in part on its long-standing I-94 system for tracking arrivals and departures, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) estimated the overstay population for January 2000 at 2.3 million. But this estimate (1) excludes an unknown number of long-term overstays from Mexico and Canada, and by definition (2) excludes short-term overstays from these and other countries. Because of unresolved weaknesses in DHS's long-standing tracking system (e.g., noncollection of some departure forms), there is no accurate list of overstays. Tracking system weaknesses make it difficult to monitor potentially suspicious aliens who enter the country legally--and limit immigration control options. Post-September 11 operations identified thousands of overstays and other illegal immigrant workers who (despite limited background checks) had obtained critical infrastructure jobs and security badges with access to, for example, airport tarmacs and U.S. military bases. As of April 2004, federal investigators had arrested more than 1,360 illegal workers, while the majority had eluded apprehension. Together with other improvements, better information on overstays might contribute to a layered national defense that is better able to counter threats from foreign terrorists. A more comprehensive system, US-VISIT, the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology, is being phased in. The design and implementation of US-VISIT, however, face a number of challenges. It is important that this new program avoid specific weaknesses associated with the long-standing system. Checking for these weaknesses might help identify difficult challenges in advance and--together with other efforts--enhance USVISIT's chances for eventual success as a tracking system.