U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib is lobbying against Israel's inclusion in the Visa Waiver Program.
The Michigan Democrat is arguing that Israel's "discriminatory policies make it ineligible for inclusion."
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U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, (L), at the Capitol in Washington, DC, May 11, 2022
(Photo: AP)
The Visa Waiver Program allows foreign citizens to enter the U.S. for 90 days without applying for a visa.
Israel has long sought to be part of that program but has not hit the required benchmarks.
The letter sent by Tlaib says Israel practices "flagrant discrimination against Palestinian, Middle Eastern and North African, Muslim and pro-Palestinian American citizens at its points of entry."
The congressional letter was addressed to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas.
It has been co-signed by several other members of Congress, including Congresswoman Betty McCollum and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez.
The letter goes on to argue that new Israeli procedures published in February "represent a clear Israeli intention to restrict the entry of certain American travelers seeking entry into the occupied West Bank."
The Department of Homeland Security is saying that Israel will have to meet all the requirements for the program to be in participation, but said the issue is not of high priority.
Back in January, the Interior Ministry said it was working on a media campaign that would teach Israelis how to properly fill out an application for a U.S. visa as the Jewish nation tries to secure a spot on the Visa Waiver Program.
According to the ministry, 150,000 Israelis apply for U.S. visas on average each year, but 6-7% of them end up being rejected, mostly due to administrative-technical reasons.
The campaign — led by Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked and the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem — aims to more than halve the rejection rate to meet the U.S.'s 3% threshold by 2023.
The U.S. says that a relatively large number of visa applications are rejected due to technicalities, such as an out-of-date passport picture or a damaged passport.
Other frequent issues include submitting visa applications for children under 14 without the pertinent parental documents, as well as failing to submit a fingerprint or show up to a personal interview with the consul.