Recent reports have indicated that some technical experts from the People’s Republic of China have had difficulty obtaining and in some cases been denied entry visas to the United States for attendance at meetings of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) or the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). In response to these concerns, ANSI and its U.S. National Committee to the IEC have developed a resource for individuals who are applying for "B-type" (non-immigrant business or pleasure) visas.
The document was developed by ANSI and its U.S. National Committee to the IEC in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives - Part 1, Section 4.2.1.2, which states that all national bodies wishing to host meetings "shall first ascertain that there are no restrictions imposed by its country to the entry of representatives of any P-member of the technical committee or subcommittee for the purpose of attending the meeting."
All U.S.-administered Secretariats of IEC or ISO Technical Committees (TCs) and Subcommittees (SCs) are requested to provide their delegates from the People's Republic of China with a copy of the document, United States Visa System: Information for Experts from the People's Republic of China Attending Meetings of the ISO and IEC Held in the United States. The text is available for download via the ANSI Online website (click here).
The subject document provides readers with a better understanding of the process, care and time needed for Chinese experts or business guests to make a successful visa application. Links to various Embassy or Consulate resources that will simplify the job of communicating correct and useful information related to obtaining a visa are also included. This resource will also assist meeting sponsors and committee leaders in their communication with potential meeting participants from outside the U.S. on visa processing requirements.
ANSI and its USNC/IEC are committed to efforts that will ensure the active participation of delegates from all interested nations at any IEC, ISO or JTC 1 meeting hosted in the U.S. As appropriate, a representative of either the ANSI ISO Team (ISOT) or the USNC/IEC will prepare official invitations for foreign delegates* planning to attend IEC, ISO or JTC 1 meetings hosted in the U.S. Procedures are outlined in Section 4 of the attached document. Letters should be requested approximately six months prior to the meeting date to allow sufficient time for visa processing.
*NOTE: In addition to the People’s Republic of China, delegates from Turkey and the Russian Federation often require invitation letters; others may require official invitations as well. For assistance with invitation letters, please contact:
ISO and JTC 1
Karen Ptak
Program Manager – ISO Team
kptak@ansi.org
212.642.4975
IEC
Debbie Negron
IEC Meeting Registration Coordinator
dnegron@ansi.org
212.642.4936