The Donald Trump administration has proposed an innovation for travelers entering the United States under a visa-free regime: they must necessarily report their activity on social networks over the past five years.
This is reported by CBS News with reference to the US Department of Homeland Security.
Currently, citizens of 42 countries can enter the US without a visa - mainly EU countries, as well as Great Britain, Israel, Australia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and Chile. Ukraine is not included in this list. However, even for these countries, an online application through the ESTA system is required before traveling.
The White House proposes to update the ESTA process and make it available for mobile devices. In addition, the US Customs and Border Protection reported that applicants may be required to provide an expanded package of data - not only about themselves, but also about their immediate relatives.
Among the new requirements are the mandatory provision of five years of social media history, email addresses used by applicants over the past decade, and contact information for family members, including phone numbers and residential addresses.
The service explained that these changes are necessary to comply with Trump's order to prevent foreigners, who may pose a threat to national or public security, from entering the United States.
However, critics emphasize that such rules could scare away tourists and hit the tourism industry, especially on the eve of the 2026 World Cup, which the United States will host together with Canada and Mexico.
The proposal is currently awaiting consideration by the White House budget office.
For the first time, Denmark has included the United States on the list of countries that pose a potential threat to the security of the kingdom.
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