Wednesday, April 22, 2009
People living with HIV still refused entry to USA
Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is warning that gay men living with HIV remain banned from travelling to the USA unless they have specifically applied for a visa to do so. Despite the recent introduction of an online visa waiver system (ESTA), people with HIV still need to attend an interview at the American Embassy in London before they can travel legally.THT’s telephone helpline, THT Direct, has recently received calls from people living with HIV who have tried to enter the country by using the online ESTA system, which is an electronic version of the visa waiver process. In some cases, these people have reached the US border only to be refused entry by immigration control and turned back to the UK, incurring substantial travel costs.
Currently, people with HIV are permanently excluded from the United States except in exceptional circumstances. Following new legislation last year, the HIV entry ban is no longer law, but remains an administrative decision to be ruled on by the Department for Health and Human Services. THT continues to lobby for the complete lifting of the ban, which it includes as a priority in its policy document ’25 things the Government can do’.
People living with HIV who would like further information on their right to travel internationally can contact THT Direct on 0845 1221 200 from 10am to 10pm weekdays and from 12pm to 6pm weekends, or email info@tht.org.uk.
