Caribbean nationals will no longer require a visa to enter the US Virgin Islands after the US House Judiciary Committee approved The Virgin Islands Visa Waiver Act.
The amendment to the Act applies only to the U.S. Virgin Islands and does not allow entry into other parts of the United States.
Congresswoman Stacey Plaskett who first presented the ACT to congress, released the following statement after the Act (H.R. 5460) was approved by the House Judiciary Committee in a bipartisan vote of 24-14:
“The Virgin Islands Visa Waiver Act would allow the Department of Homeland Security to consider approving non-immigrant visitor visa waivers for entry into the U.S. Virgin Islands for up to 45 days (primarily for residents of neighbouring Caribbean countries). Such a non-immigrant visitor visa waiver program is already being utilized successfully in both Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands for nationals of other countries.
“This legislation would extend this same program to the U.S. Virgin Islands. This limited visa waiver program would better enable the Virgin Islands to compete economically with other islands and nations in the Caribbean community. A nationwide U.S. Visa Waiver Program already allows nationals of certain countries to travel to the United States for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa. This bill would apply solely to the U.S. Virgin Islands, and because the Virgin Islands is outside the U.S. customs zone by law, it would not allow entry into any other part of the United States”.
Congresswoman Stacey E. Plaskett is a native of the US Virgin Islands.
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