The Trump administration has introduced new regulations mandating that visitors from 42 countries provide additional personal information before entering the United States. According to a notice from the Department of Homeland Security, travelers may soon be required to disclose details regarding their social media activity over the past five years.
As reported by CBS News, applicants will also need to list all email addresses they have used in the last decade and provide personal information about immediate family members, including their phone numbers and residential addresses.
Further, the proposal suggests that travelers could be asked to supply other forms of “high-value data,” such as DNA samples, as well as additional details about family members, including their birth dates and places of residence.
This proposal, posted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the Federal Register, impacts citizens from 42 countries that are part of the U.S. visa waiver program, which includes several European nations such as the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, as well as key allies like Australia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea.
The visa waiver program allows citizens from these countries to visit the U.S. for up to 90 days for purposes of tourism or business without obtaining a visa. However, travelers still need to apply online via the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) before their journey.
It is noteworthy that India is not part of the visa waiver program or the ESTA system, meaning Indian citizens will not be affected by these proposed changes.
CBP has indicated that applicants who opt not to answer the social media question or who do not have any social media accounts can still submit their ESTA applications without facing negative consequences.
These proposed measures are consistent with an executive order signed by President Trump earlier this year, which aims to restrict entry to individuals deemed to pose risks to national security or public safety.
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