Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Maura Harty, Remarks at a Breakfast with the American Chamber of Commerce


Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs
Maura Harty
Remarks at a
Breakfast with the American Chamber of Commerce
Moscow, Russia

February 3, 2006
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It is a pleasure for me to be here today and to have the opportunity to meet you and discuss some of the efforts of the Department of State, to support the business relationship between the United States and Russia by facilitating legitimate travel.  With over 800 member firms, The American Chamber Of Commerce in Russia has played a key role in the efforts to support business and investment between our two nations, with considerable success.  I understand, for example, that the export of U.S. goods to Russia in 2005 were $4.2 Billion, Up 43 Percent from the previous Year.  The efforts of the Amcham underscore the importance of maintaining and expanding a vibrant commercial relationship with Russia to the benefit of both of our nations.

Before I talk to you about some of the specific initiatives we have undertaken to support this relationship, I would like to give you some background in The Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs.  Our staff of 7,800 speaks 65 different languages and works at 211 “Branch Offices” Around The World – Namely Our Embassies and Consulates – and at 19 Domestic Agencies.  We bring in over $1.3 billion in revenues every year and in fact expect that we will reach $2.2 billion by FY2007.  So if the Bureau ff Consular Affairs were a business, It would be what we Americans would sometimes characterize as The State Department’s Only “Fortune 1,000 Company.”

Our mission is to protect the lives and interests of American Citizens Overseas (A Population Of 4 Million Residents and Travelers who take 60 Million Trips Abroad Annually) and to strengthen U.S. National security by controlling access to The United States through the issuance of U.S. passports and visas.

It is this First responsibility that drives our efforts on behalf of American Citizens Who Travel to, or reside in, Russia to Conduct Business.  One of the reasons I am visiting Russia is to meet with my Ministry Of Foreign Affairs Counterpart.  I plan to raise the difficulties Some American business people experience related to their Russian work Visas.  We will continue to pursue treatment for Americans that is commensurate with what we provide to Russian Citizens, namely expanding beyond one year the validity period for work visas, and ending the exit visa requirement.

With regard to our role in Border Security and immigration policies, I hope that when you Leave Today you go away with at least this message:  As we have Implemented Policies and Procedures Over the past four years to Substantially Improve The Border Security Of The United States, The State Department has also maintained Its fundamental commitment to protecting the openness of The United States to legitimate Visitors.

I think it is Important to Underscore that the context for our Efforts With Regard to Visa Procedures is, Quite Simply, September 11th.  In The Immediate Aftermath Of That Terrible Day, When So Many Americans, and Citizens From 90 Other Nations Lost Their Lives, The U.S. Government moved quickly to address our Nation’s Border Security needs and to make The U.S. Safe and Secure For American Citizens and Our Foreign Visitors.  Russia is A Nation that Has Suffered The Scourge Of Terrorism, and I am confident that the Russian citizens here today can also appreciate that we had to act swiftly and decisively to protect the American people, as well as our visitors from all over the world.

But We Never Lost Sight Of The Other Compelling National Security Issues Attendant to Our Decisions.  For Example, We Know That The U.S. Travel and Tourism Industry Boosts Our Economy By Some $93.7 Billion Each Year.  We Know That The 4,000 Fantastic Institutions Of Higher Learning In The U.S. – and Their Surrounding Communities – Gain $13 Billion Each Year From Foreign Students.  We Know That For Our Business and Trading Partners, The Best Advertisement For America is America, and That There is Absolutely No Replacement For The Face-To-Face Contacts You Have During Visits to The United States.  Whether you are negotiating a business agreement in Omaha, Nebraska, Or Visiting The New York Stock Exchange, the understanding fostered by these Interactions is Priceless.

These Are The Compelling Interests Behind Our Policy Of “Secure Borders and Open Doors.”  Our challenge over the past few years with regard to the international business community has been to maintain the security of the United States while encouraging visitors and business people to come to the u.s. to forge partnerships, to develop market opportunities and to learn more about the American free enterprise system.

On January 17, Secretary Of State Condoleezza Rice and Department Of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff Announced a joint initiative to guide our future efforts to enhance Border Security and facilitate Travel.  Their “Joint Vision” Consists Of Three Main Parts.  The first involves renewing America’s welcome to foreign travelers with improved technology and efficiency.  This Includes Further Improvements to Business and Temporary Worker Visa Processing and Creating “Model Ports Of Entry” that foster a more welcoming environment for foreign visitors.  Second, we are developing secure, travel documents for the 21st century, including our electronic passports and a secure, inexpensive, credit card-sized alternative to the u.s. passport for use while traveling in the western hemisphere.  Third, this initiative calls for better interagency (and international) coordination and information sharing to enable smarter screening of international travelers.  Smarter screening means greater advancement in the protection of all travelers – as well as greater efficiencies.
We have been seeking greater efficiency and transparency for some time now.  For example, over the past three years that I have had this job, we have dedicated significant additional resources to processing visas, creating more than 515 new consular positions since September 2001.

We invested heavily in automating outdated procedures to streamline the visa applicationp process and the Namecheck procedures that are a part of it.  As a result, currently, 97 percent of all qualified applicants get the visa within just a few days.  A couple of years ago, Scientists and Others Involved In Sensitive Technology Fields Might Have Waited 75 Days or even longer to receive a visa.  We now have that Processing Time down to less than two weeks for the Great Majority – and are working hard to seek continued progress in this area.  

We have made efforts to increase the transparency of the visa process to benefit the U.S. business community by instructing our consular sections to display prominently processing times and other key visa data on their websites.  We are convinced that having more information about the process helps visa applicants be better prepared when they come for an interview.

We are currently developing a more sophisticated electronic application process that will allow applicants to submit biographic information in advance so that we can begin our necessary screening before the applicant even appears for an interview, saving the applicant a bit more time.

We are also exploring ways to make it more convenient for Business travelers to seek visa appointments at posts overseas.  For those Employment-Based visa recipients residing temporarily In The U.S., This will help them Plan their visa application process before they even leave the United States.

In Washington, we recently expanded our Business Visa Center, which assists U.S-based companies and convention organizers by explaining the visa process when they invite employees or business clients and partners to the United States.  The business visa center also communicates information effectively between U.S. businesses and U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide.  Our embassy in Moscow’s public information unit and our consulates in St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok can also provide information to explain the visa process.

The Embassy in Moscow is currently able to accommodate most visa applicants within ten calendar days.  And if an Amcham member needs one sooner you all know that contacting the embassy at Consulmo@State.Gov will get you what you need sooner.  If you have an urgent need to travel, we want to meet it.

Worldwide, As well as here in Russia, I think our metrics are overwhelmingly – and irrefutably – positive.  I already mentioned that we have reduced the processing time for name checks from weeks, months – or sometimes longer – to a predictable timeframe.  And we strive to get that wait time even lower. And the number of Business and Visitor visas issued to Russians increased by 19 percent during the past year.

I hope this trend continues.  I know that there is still a widely held perception that changes in visa processing discourage Foreign travelers from choosing to visit the United States.  As the saying goes, bad news goes around the world seven times before good news even gets up and has breakfast.  This is why we will continue to meet with you and your colleagues In the business and academic communities, not only to dispel outdated misperceptions about visa processing, but to take into account your welcome suggestions about how we can better support legitimate travelers.

I look forward to continuing our dialogue as we look at ways to achieve our common goal of facilitating legitimate business travel to the U.S. while strengthening the security of international travel.  And now I am happy to take your questions.