What is the Visa Security Program?
The Visa Security Program (VSP) is the ICE program responsible for the assignment of DHS officers to overseas visa issuing locations to enhance homeland security. The VSP mission is to enhance national security and public safety by preventing terrorists, criminals and other ineligible applicants from receiving U.S. visas, and by maximizing the visa process as a counterterrorism tool. The visa process is the first line of defense in a series of layers constituting U.S. border security efforts. Other layers include transportation screening, maritime security, port of entry inspections, domestic investigations, intelligence, detention and removal efforts and others. By integrating the law enforcement capability of DHS into the visa process through the Visa Security Program, we can maximize the visa process as a law enforcement and counterterrorism tool. That is, we can identify and mitigate threats to U.S. security before they reach the United States, and generate law enforcement benefits
