U.S. Companies Lost $30 Billion From Visa Delays, Study Finds
June 2 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. companies, including Boeing Co. and Motorola Inc., lost more than $30 billion since July 2002 because of government delays granting visas to business travelers from other countries, according to a study sponsored by eight trade associations.
The estimate includes revenue losses of $25.5 billion and indirect costs of $5.15 billion, according to the survey of 734 members of groups that include the Association for Manufacturing and Technology, the National Foreign Trade Council and the U.S.- China Business Council.
``It's a dramatic difference'' in the number of companies reporting their businesses affected by visa rules since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the U.S., said Charles Santangelo of the Santangelo Group Inc., which conducted the study for the associations.
The report, to be released today, cites examples that include Boeing Co. jets left sitting on a tarmac in Seattle because foreign buyers couldn't get visas for pilots to retrieve them, Motorola Inc. facing the loss of a $10 million contract to supply two-way radios to the Vietnamese government and Lucent Technologies Inc.'s problems getting visas for 14 Chinese employees needing to come to the U.S. for training.
Visa applicants from China, India and Russia had the greatest difficulties obtaining timely visa processing from U.S. authorities, according to the survey. Malaysia, Indonesia and Korea were ranked next in order.
New Restrictions
Before Congress imposed visa restrictions in response to the terrorist attacks, the problem of visa-related travel delays ``wasn't on the radar screen for businesses,'' Santangelo said.
The business groups said the government has not devoted enough money and planning to ensure that tightened security doesn't hinder U.S. business.
Maura Harty, the U.S. assistant secretary of State for consular affairs, last week reported a reduction over the past year in the amount of time that U.S. government agencies take to approve visas.
The government last year handled more than 7 million non- immigrant visas, Harty said. Of those applications, visa officers referred 2.2 percent back to Washington for further checks by various government agencies, she said. Responses for 80 percent are provided within three weeks, down from an average of two months last year, she said.
The government began a system last year of granting clearances allowing visa renewals for a one-year period, rather than requiring a new clearance for each trip, consular affairs spokeswoman Kelly Shannon said.
Santangelo said the survey found improvements. Seventy-three percent of the companies surveyed reported current or recent visa problems, with 60 percent saying the problems still persist and 13 percent saying they do not, he said.
The trade organizations issued a series of recommendations, including setting a goal of processing all visas within 48 hours, with a maximum limit of 30 days, and establishing a ``gold card'' program that facilitates visa applications for companies with ``well-established global operations.''
To contact the reporter on this story:
Paul Basken in Washington at pbasken@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Glenn Hall at ghall@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: June 2, 2004 00:07 EDT |
