International travelers heading to the US may soon have to provide five years of social media history to enter the country, following a proposal from US Customs and Border Protection.
the proposal Filed in the Federal Register Wednesday would require travelers to submit the information online by completing an Electronic Travel Authorization System application. This applies to travelers from visa waiver program countries who plan to stay in the US for up to 90 days, including those from the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Greece, Japan, and Australia.
Additionally, the proposal would add “high-value data fields” to the ESTA application, including email addresses used in the last 10 years, phone numbers used in the last five years, and information about travelers’ family members (and their phone numbers). Travelers will also need to include the IP addresses and metadata of any electronically submitted photographs, along with biometric information, including their face, fingerprints, iris or DNA.
CBP said it also plans to make selfies a mandatory part of the application, in addition to a photo of travelers’ passports.
The Federal Register filing comes with a 60-day comment period in which “the public and affected agencies” can weigh in.
Currently, travelers who are eligible for the visa waiver program simply need to provide an email address, their home address, their phone number, and an emergency contact, in addition to paying a $40 application fee (an increase this year from the previous cost of $21). The travel authorization will then be valid for two years.
Providing social media information has been an optional part of the application since 2016. according to the New York Times.
Xiao Wang, co-founder and CEO of Boundless, a visa and immigration assistance company, told the newspaper that he hopes the government will now consider the lack of information on social media as “a sign that the applicant is hiding something.”
A CBP spokesperson told the New York Times that the proposal was not a final rule but rather the “first step in starting a discussion to have new policy options to keep the American people safe.”
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Erik Hansen, senior vice president and head of government relations at the US Travel Association, told TPG that the group was “reviewing the proposed changes and working with the administration to ensure we can safely and efficiently welcome millions of visitors for the World Cup and other major global events.”
“Controls should keep travelers and our nation safe, but they should also keep America competitive,” Hansen added. “If we fail to offer an efficient, secure and modern screening process, international visitors will choose other destinations.”
Making travel more difficult for foreign visitors
This is not the first step the Trump administration has taken to target international visitors to the U.S. It follows a series of new rules that are affecting inbound travel.
Beginning January 1, 2026, non-US residents will be An additional fee of $100 is required. or buy a $250 annual pass to visit some of the most popular national parks at what the administration has called “America First pricing.” And earlier this year, the government implemented a $250 “visa integrity fee” for travelers to the U.S. on nonimmigrant visas, including tourists, business travelers and international students. according to CNBC. That rate could increase.
As we report in our Travel trends for 2026 According to the report, the American tourism industry has taken a big hit this year.
International travel to the United States, in particular, has been affected. In fact, inbound international travel is expected to decline this year for the first time since 2020, falling to just 85% of 2019 levels. according to data from the US Travel Association.. and the Estimate from the World Travel and Tourism Council Earlier this year, the United States was on track to lose $12.5 billion in international visitor spending by 2025.
However, the US Travel Association said things could change in 2026 thanks to big events like the FIFA World Cup.
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