美國非移民簽證審批時間可能延長
White House and State Department officials said Thursday that a new executive order revoking an Obama-era guideline on processing times at consulates was made in the interest of "vetting" and national security.
It was not immediately clear how much much longer the process will take for the millions of tourist, student, and business visa seekers who apply to travel to the country every year.
The brief order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump a day earlier deletes part of a 2012 order that sought to expedite the processing time for non-immigrant visas, including those needed by students and tourists.
The original order issued by then-President Barack Obama called on the State Department to "ensure that 80 percent of nonimmigrant visa applicants are interviewed within 3 weeks of receipt of application."
The new order comes amid months of efforts by the Trump administration to wield executive powers over certain immigration policies and implement what officials refer to as "extreme vetting."
A White House spokesman told VOA the amendment "removes an arbitrary requirement."
"The president expects careful, accurate vetting of visa applicants, not a rushed process to accommodate an arbitrary deadline," assistant press secretary Michael Short said Thursday.
The administration recently expanded the visa application process to include social media handles used during the last five years, and additional biographical information for the last 15 years - meaning the consular officials can ask for a would-be visitor's Facebook profile, and a list of everywhere they've traveled for more than a decade.白宮和國務院官員星期四說，美國總統川普簽署了一項新的行政命令，取消了奧巴馬時代對美國駐外領館簽證申請受理時間的有關規定，以便盡職審查，保證國家安全。
目前還不清楚，對於每年數以百萬計申請旅遊，學生和商務簽證赴美的人，審批時間會增加多久。
川普總統一天前簽署的簡短政令刪除了2012年奧巴馬命令中有關加快受理學生和遊客等非移民簽證申請的規定。
奧巴馬總統當初發佈的命令要求國務院“確保80%的非移民簽證申請者在申請收到後三週內被安排面談”。
川普政府上臺幾個月來，一直努力對某些移民政策動用行政權力，實施官員們所說的 “極度審查”。
一位白宮官員星期四告訴美國之音，川普的命令“取消了一項武斷的要求”。
他說：“總統期待認真、準確地審查簽證申請人，不能爲了遵守一個武斷的截止日期而匆忙處理。”
川普行政當局最近擴寬了美國簽證申請流程，申請人過去五年使用的社交媒體以及過去15年來的其他個人信息也成爲審查對象。這意味着領事官員可以要求籤證申請者提供臉書個人資料以及十多年的旅行記錄。
