State Department Expands Validity of NIEs to 12 Months and Multiple Entries

Today the Department of State updated their website to indicate that National Interest Exceptions (NIEs) previously granted by U.S. embassies and consulates overseas will no longer be valid for 30 days for a single entry but, rather and unless otherwise indicated, existing NIEs will be valid for 12 months from the date of approval and for multiple entries, as long as they are used for the purpose under which they were granted.

We have also heard reports from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that NIEs granted by that agency will not benefit from this same expansion and will continue to be valid for a single entry to the U.S. within 30 days of issuance, but this has yet to be officially confirmed by the agency.

We expect that additional guidance regarding how individuals will demonstrate their continued eligibility to use previously granted NIEs (including how they will document that their travel is for the same purpose that the initial NIE was granted) will be forthcoming and D&S will continue to provide updates as they become available.

Department of State Introduces More Restrictive NIE Criteria

The Department of State has announced that it has rescinded the National Interest Exception (NIE) criteria under Presidential Proclamation 10143 as related to the Schengen Area, United Kingdom, and Ireland travel bans. The State Department instead, announced a new, more restrictive list of NIE eligibility criteria, focused mainly on individuals providing vital support of critical infrastructure.

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Overview of Exemption and Exceptions to Trump Administration's Travel Bans

In the Spring and Summer of 2020, President Trump issued a series Executive Proclamations restricting the entry of certain individuals to the United States. This first set of proclamations, issued between February and March of 2020 banned the entry of anyone who had been in a country with a high rate of COVID-19 cases within the 14 days preceding their entry to the U.S. These countries include, China, Iran, the Schengen Region of Europe, The United Kingdom, The Republic of Ireland, and Brazil. These Proclamations are generally referred to as the “Public Health Travel Ban”.

Further, on April 22, 2020, President Trump issued a Proclamation preventing certain immigrant visa applicants from obtaining immigrant visas to enter the United States and which called for the review of nonimmigrant programs with a view toward enacting additional restrictions. Subsequently, on June 22, 2020, the President expanded the scope of this Proclamation to certain nonimmigrant visa categories, effectively banning the entry of individuals on H-1B, H-2B, J-1, and L-1 visas, as well as their dependent family members, from entering the U.S. until December 31, 2020. The purported premise for these travel bans was to protect the U.S. labor market during a period of severe economic contraction following the COVID-19 outbreak. The travel ban is generally referred to as the “Labor Market Travel Ban.”

The text of both travel bans listed numerous individuals who were exempted from the temporary travel restrictions, as outlined below:

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