Now more than ever it is critical for researchers, scientists, and postdoctorates coming to the United States to learn immigration regulations to avoid unknowingly and unwittingly violating the law. Statutes passed during the 1990s can, in some cases, bar some violators from returning to this country for several years.
Non-US researchers, especially those from Muslim countries, can expect INS and State Department officials to carry out even tougher screening procedures at airports, consular posts, and border stations. Foreign scientists also may have to endure background checks that hold up their visa issuance. Some leaders even want to bar any foreign national from working with dangerous biological materials while in the United States.
Is the country closing its borders? Hardly, but the government will continue to scrutinize immigrants in its attempts to fight terrorism. Though the country has suffered no documented instances of terrorist attacks since Sept. 11, lawmakers remain understandably ...
