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I am a Syrian citizen who obtained a visa to travel to the US one week before the travel ban was implemented. Since then I have successfully entered and left the US twice (last time being March 2019). My visa (B1/B2) has expired and I am planning to apply for a new one.

Am I now affected by the travel ban placed on Syrians travelling to the US?

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    (Oh poo, forgot about the dupehammer. This might arguably be a non-dupe because of the fact that there is a previous visa. Reopening).
    – hmakholm left over Monica
    Commented Jun 16, 2019 at 21:11

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The rules around the travel ban do not care about previous visa, but at the need to travel and your connections in the US.

The ban was put in place because of serious difficulty for US authorities to work with authorities in countries like Syria to establish the truth behind claims made by visa applicants; many of the affected countries refuse to cooperate altogether and for others there was serious doubt about the accuracy of information provided to the US State Department by those countries.

That said, as a previous visa holder you might well find it easier to get an exemption. Best thing to do is approach a US consulate and just ask what your options are. If your previous visits generated a viable need to travel and people in the US who can vouch for you, that makes it a lot easier to get such an exemption (in fact those are just about the only reasons the law gives for granting one).

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    downvoter care to comment?
    – Mark Mayo
    Commented Jun 18, 2019 at 3:48
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    @MarkMayo probably someone disillusioned that it's not a 'muslim ban'...
    – jwenting
    Commented Jun 18, 2019 at 3:48
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    "The rules around the travel ban do not care about previous visa" But it does. The ban does not apply to someone who had a valid US visa on the effective date of the order, nor to someone who was admitted to the US after the effective date of the order. Both of those are true for the OP.
    – user102008
    Commented Jun 29, 2019 at 18:42
  • @user102008 Would you have a pointer to those rules?
    – lambshaanxy
    Commented Jul 26, 2019 at 0:45
  • @jpatokal: Read Executive Order 13780, section 3.
    – user102008
    Commented Jul 26, 2019 at 2:12

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