US Loosens Visa Requirements for Foreign Athletes
According to the US Citizenship and Immigration Bureau, foreign citizens who come to the United States to participate in professional sports (and the entertainment industry) will no longer be limited to a ten-year career. In a memo issued last week, the bureau stated that such foreigners would be able to renew their visa as long as they left the country after ten years and applied for a new visa.
This is especially welcome news to golf fans. The ranks of the LPGA and PGA are increasingly peopled by foreign nationals and golf is one sport where ten years is a rather short career.
The move can only be good for competition in golf and other sports, such as baseball and basketball, that feature prominent foreign players.
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It is indeed a very interesting bit of information. Considering the current economic climate and the various protectionist measures being taken by the US government, this indeed is a bit of positive news. What is interesting to note is that a lot of leagues and groups had been appealing to the immigration bureau to change its ruling that limited a professional athlete’s stay to ten years. However, I don’t think anyone has been asked to leave the country because their ten year time-frame had expired. This, despite the fact that the rule has been in place since 1990.
But, especially for a sport like golf, where the South Koreans dominate the LPGA circuit and names such as Yang, who won the Honda Classic last week and South African Immelman who won the Masters last year, it was a much needed step.
Apparently, some of these players could alternatively have applied for a visa called O-1, which is reserved for players with outstanding ability. Now that is an interesting visa and I wonder how many people actually managed to get hold of that.