VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHWD #0174/01 0571148
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 261146Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY WINDHOEK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0233
INFO RUEHWD/AMEMBASSY WINDHOEK

UNCLAS WINDHOEK 000174 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS CMGT CASC KFRD WA
SUBJECT: CERTIFICATION OF CONSULAR MANAGEMENT CONTROLS - NAMIBIA 
 
¶1.  Post completed its review on February 26, 2010. 
 
 
 
¶2.  DCM Matthew Harrington, FE-OC, along with ACO/Consular Chief 
Charles Jarrett, certifies successful 
 
     completion of the review and that Post is in full compliance. 
 
 
 
¶3.  Certification comments follow for specific areas cited in 
reftel: 
 
 
 
¶A.  Inventory of Accountable Consular Items: On February 26, 2010, 
ACO and DCM performed a coehensive physical inventory of 
accountable consular supplies.  The results of the inventory were 
documented in the Accountable Items (AI) module.  Post is using the 
Accountable Items module (AI) to maintain its inventory of 
accountable consular items for visa foils, CRBAs, passport books 
and foils. The physical number of items on hand reconciles with 
inventory records. 
 
 
 
¶B.  Guidance: The Consular Officer is familiar with and has ready 
access to the basic references and instructions needed to perform 
consular functions, including 7 and 9 FAM, 7 FAH-1 and CA Web.  The 
Consular Officer has access to classified systems and checks 
classified e-mail daily. 
 
 
 
¶C.  Consular Shared Tables (CST) Management: 
 
      - Only the ACO/Consular Chief and back-up ACO/Consular 
Officer (Frank DeParis) have adjudicatory 
 
       and management roles. 
 
     - Both Consular Chief and back-up officer have separate user 
IDs and Passwords for ACRS. 
 
     - All active users of consular systems and applications are 
stationed at post and have a current need 
 
       for their particular role(s); users are authorized system 
access only at the appropriate level.  All other 
 
       user roles present in CST or ACRS have been deleted or 
disabled. 
 
     - User passwords are periodically reset and are randomly 
chosen by the individual so that no one else, 
 
       including the system and CST administrators, knows the 
individual's password. 
 
 
 
¶D.  Physical Access: Access is generally limited to consular 
section employees.  A half-door is kept closed during working hours 
and the full door is closed/locked whenever employees leave the 
section; only consular section employees know the section's door 
combination.  LES are not present outside of office hours unless a 
cleared American is present, and controlled items are secured and 
accounted for daily.  Unique space constraints prevent post's sole 
American officer from always working within the section (see below, 
part O. Oversight of Processing) 
 
 
 
¶E.  Access to Personally Identifiable Information (PII): Procedures 
are in place, both in system protocols and workflow management, to 
assure that collection of PII is performed appropriately and that 
such information is appropriately protected.  For example, when ACS 
applications are passed from one employee to another or left in the 
officer's inbox, they are kept in unmarked file folders to prevent 
occasional outside visitors to the section from reading social 
security numbers or other sensitive data.  Access to consular 
systems containing PII, including PIERs, NIV and ACS, is restricted 
to employees with a legitimate need to see such information and 
records are only accessed in connection with official duties.  Post 
has noted no breaches or incidents involving loss, theft, 
unauthorized access or compromise of PII. 
 
¶F.  Control, Reconciliation, and Destruction of Accountable Items: 
Accountable Items (AI) is used to track and reconcile daily usage 
of passports, passport foils, CRBAs, and visa foils.  Post has 
noted no instances of missing controlled items in the past twelve 
months.  Post properly destroys or returns to the Department for 
destruction any spoiled, unusable or obsolete controlled items. 
Post records witnessed destruction in AI for passport books, 
passport cards, CRBAs and visa foils.  Post retains paper copies of 
destruction logs for all destroyed items, which are signed by both 
the ACO and back-up ACO. 
 
 
 
¶G.  Cash Accountability: The ACO, back-up ACO, consular cashier, 
and alternate cashiers have been formally designated using the 
model letters found under tools on the Consular Fees page on CAWeb. 
All are familiar with the instructions in Consular Management 
Handbook chapter 7 FAH-1 H-700.  The Daily Accounting Sheets for 
the last 12 months have been reviewed and signed by both the ACO 
and FMO, and are on file in the ACO records. 
 
 
 
¶H.  Periodic comparison of MRV fees and NIV applications:  Post 
does not employ offsite fee collectors.  All fees are taken within 
the section by designated consular cashiers. The ACRS End-of-Day 
report is reviewed and reconciled daily by the ACO against on-hand 
receipts for the day's transactions. The Daily Accounting Sheet is 
also reconciled by comparison of the End-of-Day Report with OF-158 
receipts issued for both local currency and U.S. dollars by the 
Class B Cashier. Transaction receipts are reviewed and signed by 
the officer for each service provided and MRV receipts are attached 
to the DS-156. 
 
 
 
¶I.  Referral System: Per the guidance provided in 09 State 68314 
and 09 State 115658, the Worldwide Visa Referral Policy (WVRP) has 
been implemented at post and replaces all individualized, 
post-specific referral policies: 
 
- The Consular Chief conducted two training sessions on WVRP for 
all Mission agency and section heads under COM authority currently 
at post, as well as for any designates they desired to be 
authorized for referral submission. 
 
- The Consular Chief also added a WVRP briefing to the 
arrival/intake procedures for all direct-hire Americans arriving at 
post. 
 
- Only American Officers under COM Authority who have been briefed 
on WVRP and have signed the acknowledgement form are permitted to 
make referrals, and all referrals are signed by both the referring 
officer and agency or section head as appropriate. 
 
- Referral information is captured in the NIV system and scanned 
into the NIV system with the application form and all supporting 
documents.  Referrals are rarely received at post, but each 
submission (Class A or B) is thoroughly reviewed before being 
accepted by the Consular Chief.  No unofficial or informal 
referrals are accepted. 
 
 
 
¶J.  Training: American and locally employed staff are adequately 
trained for their responsibilities: 
 
- The section's sole LES has been accepted recently for training at 
FSI, taking PC122 Workshop for Senior American Citizen Services LES 
and PC 542 Fraud Prevention Workshop for Foreign Service Nationals. 
This is her first training at FSI. 
 
- All ACOs have taken the on-line distance learning courses 
 PC-400 
Consular Management Controls, 
 PC-417 
Accounting for Consular Fees Training for the ACO, and the on-line 
user training for the Automated Cash Register System (ACRS). 
 
- All cashiers have taken 
 PC-419 
Collecting Consular Fees: Training for the Consular Cashier. 
 
- All employees with access to PIERS have taken 
 PC 441 
Passport Data Security Awareness. 
 
¶K.  Standards of Employee Conduct: All consular employees are 
familiar with the standards of ethical conduct expected of them. 
Post operations are regularly reviewed and supervised by the 
Consular Chief to ensure no influences leading to a perception of 
impropriety are being brought to bear on the visa or passport 
process. 
 
¶L.  Namecheck and Clearance Reviews: All namecheck returns are 
reviewed by the interviewing officer and consistent standards are 
applied in determining when a hit is close enough to warrant 
further action.  When insufficient information is present to rule 
out a potential match to a namecheck hit, that hit it treated as if 
it were a match.  The Consular Chief has completed specialized 
namecheck training - PC126A - Advanced Consular Namechecking and 
Identity Recognition Techniques Overview. 
 
¶M.  Visa Lookout Accountability (VLA): All issuing officers at post 
fully understand VLA provisions and requirements, as well as the 
consequences for failing to comply with VLA procedures.  The DCM 
regularly reviews the issuances of the Consular Chief, and the 
Consular Chief reviews issuances by the back-up officer to verify 
that VLA requirements were met. 
 
¶N.  Intake, Interview, and Screening:  Post is in compliance with 
the Department's instructions on visa intake, interview, and 
document review procedures.  Screening of applications does not 
encroach on adjudication, and only ensures that all required 
application materials are provided.  The consular officer 
interviews all NIV applicants who have paid the appropriate fees 
and have a completed application. 
 
 
 
¶O.  Oversight of processing:  Adequate supervision of processing is 
exercised by American officers.  The 
 
Consular Section is extremely small and there is no space for the 
Consular Chief to have an office within the section; instead, the 
Consular Chief's office is located in the CAA.  Continuous 
line-of-sight is therefore not practical.  The Consular Chief 
compensates for this by working from an interview window in the 
section when possible, walking through the section often, and 
checking-in with consular employees regularly throughout the day. 
Accountable Items are accounted for as they are used and reconciled 
before consular employees leave the Embassy each day.  Printed 
visas, passports, and CRBAs are reviewed by the officer before 
distribution.  Post's need for DNA testing or a Panel Physician is 
extremely rare.  Post is aware of guidance in 9 FAM 42.44, in the 
event that DNA collection is necessary. 
 
 
 
¶P.  Biometric Collection: Fingerprinting for biometric purposes is 
being done only by consular officers. 
 
 
 
¶Q.  Photo Standards:  Post ensures that NIV and passport photos are 
recent and meet applicable standards.  With implementation of the 
DS-160, applicants will begin uploading their own photos.  Post has 
linked the "Photo Standards Guide" from travel.state.gov to the 
website and has also added detailed instructions for filling out 
visa applications, to ensure quality in photo submissions. 
 
 
 
¶R.  Visa Adjudication Oversight:  NIV refusals and issuances, 
including those of the Consular Chief, are being reviewed by 
supervisors.  Comments are entered into the system for each 
adjudication.  All visa applicants for whom a personal appearance 
is required are being interviewed.  Post has no written 
re-application process for previously refused applicants and in no 
way bars re-application. 
 
¶S.  Files: Consular files are being managed in accordance with the 
Record Disposition Schedule and visa files in particular are being 
maintained per instructions.  All consular personnel understand 
that visa records are to be safeguarded in accordance with INA 
Section 222(f).  NIV records are filed chronologically per 
instructions. 
 
¶T.  Passports and CRBAs: Procedures and controls are in place to 
ensure the accuracy and integrity of U.S. passport, CRBA, and other 
nationality determinations: 
 
- Post conducts passport name checks for all passport services, 
including extra visa pages.  Before signing application forms, the 
Consular Chief notes in the signature box whether a CLASS check has 
been completed. 
 
- The Consular Chief audits passport cases adjudicated at post to 
ensure that biographic information, annotations, endorsements and 
limitations are entered accurately and according to guidelines. 
 
- Post returns all defective or spoiled passport books to the 
Department for destruction, as required. 
 
 
 
¶U.  Fraud Prevention Programs: The sole Consular Officer also 
serves as Fraud Prevention Manager.  Incidents of fraud are low and 
fraud investigations have, thus far, been limited to occasional 
document verifications.  Field investigations have not been 
necessary for any NIV cases; post does not process IV or DV cases. 
 
¶V.  Wilberforce Act: Post is in compliance with the Wilberforce 
Act.  All consular personnel understand their responsibilities 
under the Wilberforce Act.  Post has sufficient copies of the 
brochures on hand, located in the interview windows, and hands them 
out to relevant applicants as required. 
 
¶W.  Oversight of Applicant Service Centers (ASCs):  Post does not 
employ an ASC. 
 
¶X.  Consular Agents: Post does not supervise any Consular Agents. 
 
MATHIEU 
MATHIEU