other appropriate sections within the post. For those cases not locally susceptible of resolution, there is also an established procedure for seeking guidance from the Department by means of advisory opinions. The advisory opinion provides a central authority for correctness and uniformity of interpretation of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the regulations thereunder.

In order to understand the separate nonimmigrant visa issuance process more fully, I will now discuss in some detail each category of nonimmigrant visa classifications authorized under section 101(a)(15) of the act. I will cover the purpose, requirements, and processing, associated with each category as well as some of the special problems associated with nonimmigrant visas.

The first category is Foreign Government Officials A-1, A-2, A-3. Purpose: The A-1 classification is accorded only following receipt of a written communication from the appropriate Foreign Office indicating to the satisfaction of the consular officer that the purpose for which the alien is seeking entry into the United States is to perform official duties on behalf of the requesting government. The alien's diplomatic passport will accompany the note and be examined for validity, etc., by the consular officer who is responsible for a security check prior to having the visa stamped in the passport. The duration of the visa and the number of entries is based on reciprocity between the United States and the requesting government.

An application for nonimmigrant visa is executed either by the requesting or issuing office in connection with issuance of visa and filed by the issuing post. A-1 visas are usually issued within 2 days following receipt of the passport and request. Socialist bloc country visas take longer since they must be submitted to the Department of State for a security advisory opinion prior to the issuance of visa.

The A-2 visa is issued following essentially the same pattern as for the A-1. The alien's passport is usually official rather than diplomatic and, therefore, the type of visa accorded is marked official rather than diplomatic.

The A-3 visa is issued only after the A-1 or A-2 visa has been issued the principal. The alien's foreign office frequently forwards a diplomatic note to the U.S. mission but the normal practice is for the domestic to apply personally with or without his employer. The applicant executes an application and is interviewed by a consular officer who determines whether there is a bona fide employer/employee relationship and whether the alien is a domestic by either background or experience. Absence of either requirement would result in a refusal of the application. An applicant for A-3 classification should not be under the age of 17. All grounds of ineligibility under the INA except section 212 (a) (28) apply to A-3 visa applicants.

Instead of proceeding with the rest of the categories, I shall now discuss some of the problems associated with the "A" category as outlined later in my statement.

Mr. EILBERG. We now go to page 35.

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Yes, sir. I believe what I will do is directly go to the "A" visa category.

Concerning the "A" visa category, it is not infrequent that a diplomat in A-1 status will request that the same classification be accorded to someone whose status as an A-1 may be questionable. An example

is that of an ambassador who would like to take his brother or his niece to the United States in A-1 status in order that they may study for a few years while he is stationed in Washington. If his brother or niece are members of another household and/or are independent, they would not qualify as members of his immediate family and should obtain an appropriate nonimmigrant visa other than A-1. Because of the wide range of government officials and employees who may be classified as A-2-which, incidentally, does not confer diplomatic immunity-there are some incidents of misuse or abuse of this category by officials of some governments. Foreign officers and enlisted military personnel, civil servants, and other nondiplomatic governmental employees may receive this category of visa. Aliens who are low-level employees of a foreign government may obtain documentation as A-2's to enter the United States on a temporary assignment not connected with that country's diplomatic mission here. Some aliens have taken advantage of this status to remain illegally in the United States once their official mission has been accomplished.

Some countries have attempted to staff what would appear to be commercial enterprise, such as banks, travel agencies, and even gift shops, with persons documented as A-2. Students from several Middle Eastern countries have in the past been documented under the A-2 classifications. This policy is now under review at the highest levels of the Department and will be decided shortly. It is difficult for a consular officer to question what a foreign government considers to be its sovereign right to determine what is or is not an official position. Nevertheless, we make every possible effort to prevent the unwarranted use of this visa category.

There is abuse of A-3 visa classification because of the delicacy of refusing a visa to an applicant who is sponsored by a diplomat in A-1 or official in A-2 status. The diplomats hold strongly that it is their privilege to bring anyone they wish to their home and that it is highly improper for the U.S. consul to question this point. Frequently, diplomats request A-3 visas for their own relatives or as a favor to a friend. Applicants for A-3 visas sometimes give false information regarding their qualifications as domestics to the U.S. consul. If they succeed in obtaining a visa, they are immediately in a position to request a derivative visa for their own entire family.

There are no precise statistics, but it is generally known that many spouses of A-1, A-2, and A-3 aliens are working in private jobs not encompassed by the education, cultural, and health fields, which are the only ones that may be authorized. These aliens work in jobs ranging from professional to menial labor. However, so long as their A-category spouse maintains his or her status with the foreign mission, the dependent also is entitled to his derivative status and is, therefore, not subject to deportation or other corrective action by the Immigration Service.

Mr. EILBERG. Would you hold it there for a moment?
Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Sure.

Mr. EILBERG. While your statement describes in great detail the processing procedures for the "A" visa, I am not clear why the same procedures are not followed for all of the subcategories of the "A" visa. In other words, should not the foreign office also submit a diplomatic note for all A-3 aliens?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. My understanding of the law is that there is no specific requirement in the statute of that type of practice. However, I have not given my personal attention to whether or not it would be desirable to have that kind of requirement.

Mr. Scully might want to comment on that.

Mr. SCULLY. I think very often, Mr. Chairman, if he is abroad that that does occur.

In other words, if he is trying to make the arrangements for the travel of his domestics in connection with his own entry, very often that will occur precisely in the way you are suggesting. Once he is here, then very often rather than go back to his foreign office at home, his embassy here would send a note to the Department informing the Department that Mr. X, the ambassador, or the political consular, or whatever his position may be, that he has hired a specified alien and is requesting that the appropriate visa be issued. Now, when we receive such notes we then communicate with the consular office in the country where the alien will apply, and inform that office that we have received the note, and that the alien is classifiable A-3. If he is eligible to receive a visa generally under the applicable provisions, the visa would be issued. I don't know whether anyone can guarantee that occurs 100 percent of the time.

Mr. ARIAS. I think we can say that usually either a note is received at our Embassy or here in Washington.

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Without impugning the integrity of any of the foreign embassies, I will suggest that as a matter of enforcement-which is what we are really concerned with the problem still remains that these notes, even though they may form the basis of granting the visa-these notes may be very easily secured. And, it would seem to me a diplomatic representative of any one country could very easily get a note from his own government saying he wants such and such.

Mr. Chairman, the way the statute is worded, appears to reserve to us the right to question the authenticity of that type of request. Mr. EILBERG. Is there any limit to the number that may be included in the A-3 categories as far as any note is concerned?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. You mean how many they can request? Mr. EILBERG. Yes.

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. To my knowledge, there is no specific restriction. I think this is one factor that we take into account in monitoring the situation. But we have not set that

Mr. SHAMWELL. Could I clarify a point? In order for a A-3, who is a domestic servant of an ambassador or other diplomat, to enjoy immunity under our domestic law, Mr. Chairman, that person's name must be on file with the Office of Protocol. So, once a person arrives, his embassy has to notify the Office of Protocol that this person is in the status of domestic servant of a diplomat. And, he fills out the forms that all the diplomats and nondiplomatic staff members fill out with the Office of Protocol.

Mr. COHEN. You have indicated you take account and monitor the issuance of these notes from the various embassies. Where have you found the abuse?

If you monitor it effectively, where do you find the abuse? Which embassies, in other words?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Which specific embassies?

Let me suggest that to single out any one country in a public hearing would not be prudent. I would prefer, if you want to get into that kind of detail, to do so in executive session. There are instances where certain countries have attempted to abuse the “A” visas as we outlined.

There are some countries that attempt to staff particular commercial establishments and so forth, and we feel-or at least the impression is left that the visa is used as a means of bringing in people to create domestic help.

Mr. COHEN. The reason I inquired about that and certainly I do not want to put you in an embarrassing position-but you are aware of the chairman's letter to Mr. Kissinger in terms of his concern about the use of A-2.

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Yes, sir, I am.

Mr. COHEN. You made the statement that this policy is now under review by high Government officials. I assume that is Kissinger himself?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. You assume correctly.

Mr. COHEN. And I just was wondering what factors you are supplying the Secretary in terms of your monitoring activities in the past to point to those areas and those embassies who have indulged in this abuse?

What are you doing in essence?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Well, we don't elevate every visa problem to the Office of the Secretary. We try to handle it at our level if we possibly can. We feel that while there is an area of abuse in this particular issuance, I don't think it has gone to the point where it needs that type of attention at the moment. We want to report to you, but on the other hand, it is not a situation where we are throwing up our hands and saying

Mr. COHEN. But evidently it has somehow arisen to that level of concern in the State Department and is under review by the Secretary?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Yes; the A-2 visas. I am not talking about every other category here. Definitely, the A-2 visas, for the reasons we have already explored with the chairman, the staff, and with the committee counsel.

Mr. EILBERG. We would like to state for the record that I am not satisfied with the response. It has been well over 2 weeks since we have written to the Secretary. We have just written to the Attorney General for the legal recourses that are available to us. There is a letter addressed to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and that was delivered to him. You have a copy of that.

And quite frankly, we intend to push that quite vigorously, and I wish you would convey that back. This is a clear violation, and we intend to do something about it. We are exploring, quite frankly, what legal recourses are available to us in order to make the Department understand. We are quite serious about the misuse of the A-2's. Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. I will communicate your concerns to the highest levels of the Department.

Mr. EILBERG. I think we had better clarify another point. I don't seek to embarrass you, but on the question of executive sessions, counsel has advised me that executive sessions are appropriate only

if there is testimony which will defame someone, or which will affect national security. Now, I don't think indicating the countries in response to this question affects our national security, and I don't think, frankly, that you can make that judgment here in the context of what we are talking about. So, we are going to press you on where the abuses occur regardless of which country they might be. But we are here to know what the problems are and try to help solve them. Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Yes, sir.

Mr. COHEN. Perhaps, Mr. Chairman, we could go about it negatively and ask the question in regard to countries other than Saudia Arabia. Do Kuwait and Qatar abuse the A-2 visas?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Not to my knowledge.

First, let me say that as to Qatar, the practice was stopped some time ago. The only countries that we have a problem with respect to A-2 visas are Saudia Arabia and Kuwait. And as I indicated to the chairman and also to the committee's counsel, this situation is under review. There are other considerations to be allowed for in that practice.

I am not suggesting that the practice is consistent with the law; everyone knows it is not. On the other hand, there are other considerations. Saudia Arabia is, I think, a moderating influence in the Middle East. We have many other things going on with them. A precipitous cessation of A-2 visas may cause us more problems than those we solve. I think everyone knows about our concern for the need to follow the laws Congress has written. However, the practice has been one of many years' standing, and there are a number of factors that have to be allowed for in terms of what decisions we make.

Mr. EILBERG. Mr. Walentynowicz, on page 8 of your statement you say, "In all of these instances, care must be taken to insure that the policy of Congress as expressed by the Immigration and Nationality Act is not made subordinate to the competing interest and pressures created by the desires to accommodate the needs of foreign countries."

What are we going to do here?

Are we going to follow the INA, or are we going to accommodate the needs of foreign countries?

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. I read the statement. You know what the position is

Mr. EILBERG. Yes; but you just said that if this practice continues, you will have some difficulty with discontinuing the practice.

Mr. WALENTYNOWICZ. Well, the point is this. In terms of this particular problem, I don't think that there is any question that we feel that the views of Congress should be complied with. The problem is how do we go about accomplishing that end given the circumstances here; that is, the fact that these practices have existed for such a long time and so forth.

Therefore, how do we solve that with the minimum of, let us say, adverse reaction. And that, I think, is what we are trying to accomplish. We are not trying to frustrate the Congress; rather, we want to support them. We have discovered that the law is not being carried out in this area. Now we want to carry it out, but in such a way that we cause a minimum of friction, and that is the issue as we see it.

1