After the attacks on the US on the 11th September 2001 the US immigration forces have toughened up entry procedures which will have had a direct effect upon foreign yacht crew and marine service staff.
US immigration official, Jack Garofano, at a recent business luncheon organised by the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, tried to allay fears that the 30 day rule limiting the time an individual could stay in the US would be a hard and fast rule.
Garofano stated that the change from the ´automatic´ six-month visa will be replaced. He stressed however that it should not worry visitors such as yachtcrew as each person will have the opportunity to explain to an immigration officer the purpose of their visit and why they will need more than the 30 days. He also added that anyone who had previously had long-term visas should have no problems under the proposed rule changes.
At the lunch several yacht captains offered examples of recent problems that crews of foreign flagged vessels visiting the US were facing when they entered the country or attempted to travel outside the US and then return to their vessel in a US port.
At the meeting a committee was formed to look into such problems and to report back to Garofano to identify the issues and to develop some solutions.
If anyone has any comments or questions contact one of the committee, Greg Mullen, publisher of Dockwalk newspaper at dockwalk@bellsouth.net