Emegergency Letter

United States Department of State
Washington, D. C. 20520

March 18, 2022
Dominic Mancini Administrator
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
Office of Management and Budget
Dear Administrator Mancini,
The Department of State requests Office of Management and Budget (OMB) emergency
processing of the proposed amendment of the DS-156, Nonimmigrant Visa Application and the
DS-160, Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application (OMB Control Number 1405-0182) to revise
the forms to include within the pool of respondents, beneficiaries of parole from the Department
of Homeland Security, who need a boarding foil issued by the Department of State in order to
travel to the United States.
The Immigration and Nationality Act ("INA"), 8 U.S.C. § 1101 et seq., mandates
application and eligibility requirements for applicants seeking to obtain nonimmigrant visas.
INA section 221(a) [8 U.S.C. § 1201(a)] provides that a consular officer may issue a
nonimmigrant visa to an applicant who has made proper application therefor. INA section
222(c) [8 U.S.C. § 1202(c)] specifically requires that, "Every alien applying for a nonimmigrant
visa and for alien registration shall make application therefor in such form and manner as shall
be by regulations prescribed. In the application the alien shall state his full and true name ... and
such additional information necessary to the identification of the applicant, the determination of
his eligibility for a nonimmigrant visa, and the enforcement of the immigration and nationality
laws as may be by regulation prescribed." 22 CFR part 41 regulates the nonimmigrant visa
process. 22 CFR 41.103 regulates the filling of an application for a nonimmigrant visa.
Under INA section 212(d)(5) [8 U.S.C. 1182], the Secretary of Homeland Security may,
in his discretion, parole into the United States temporarily under certain conditions for urgent
humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit any noncitizen applying for admission to the
United States. Consular officers aide the Department of Homeland Security in carrying out this
function on a case-by-case basis by issuing boarding foils for Significant Public Benefit Parole
(SPBP) or Humanitarian Parole (HP) beneficiaries, after receiving an authorization memo from
uscrs and completing required processing steps, including completion of the DS-160 or DS156 by the beneficiary.
The withdrawal of U.S. forces in August 2021 followed by the Taliban's takeover of
Afghanistan and the subsequent evacuation has significantly increased the need to process
boarding foils for purposes of parole. While not all Afghan travelers will be SPBP or HP
beneficiaries and not all SPBP or HP beneficiaries are Afghans, the increased demand and the
pressing need to process beneficiaries as expeditiously as possible is paramount. If the
Department is unable to process boarding foils or the processing of boarding foils is slowed,
beneficiaries will be left in limbo in potentially dangerous situations or without access to the

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protection the parole benefit is designed provide. This is particularly the case for any Afghan
who is currently present in a third country with only temporary permission to remain.
In light of the above, the Department has determined that amending this collection to
include parole beneficiaries seeking a boarding foil is essential to the mission of the Department
of State and is needed prior to the expiration of time periods normally associated with a routine
submission for review under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act.
The use of normal clearance procedures will prevent the Department from obtaining this
information and would severely impact the Department's ability to aid the Department of
Homeland Security in exercising its parole authority.
Therefore, the Department of State requests emergency OMB approval for this collection
by March 15, 2022.

Sincerely,

eputy Assistant Secretary
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Department of State