U.S. plan would require social media accounts from visa waiver travelers

U.S. Customs and Border Protection on December 11 posted a Federal Register notice proposing that travelers entering under the Visa Waiver Program who use the Electronic System for Travel Authorization provide substantially more personal information than is currently required. The filing says the change would take effect on February 8 and it opens a 60 day public comment period before the proposal could be finalized.

Under the proposal applicants from the 42 Visa Waiver Program countries would be required to provide all social media handles they have used over the past five years. Reporting on the notice indicates the agency is also seeking expanded contact data and more detailed information about immediate family members including names, birth dates, places of birth, current and recent places of residence and phone numbers. Some accounts of the filing describe relatives residence and phone data stretching back five years.

Coverage of the filing diverges on the proposed look back for email addresses and phone numbers. The New York Times and CBS News report that the notice would require email addresses used over the past ten years. Other outlets describe the change as adding high value data elements including phone numbers and email addresses covering the prior five years. The Federal Register notice is the controlling administrative text and will determine the exact time frames if the rule is adopted.

Today applicants using ESTA pay a $40 fee and supply an email address, home address, phone number and an emergency contact. Authorizations are currently valid for two years. Separately, the administration has explored a broader set of immigration proposals that include a proposed $250 visa integrity fee in other filings, though press accounts indicate visitors arriving under the Visa Waiver Program are expected to be exempt from that fee.

The proposed expansion comes after the government already required social media information from non Visa Waiver visa applicants under policies adopted in the first Trump administration and retained by the Biden administration. Industry commentary has said social media disclosure on ESTA has been optional since about 2016. The new filing is part of a longer running effort by policymakers to broaden vetting and to reshape how the United States screens foreign visitors.

Critics from travel industry groups, privacy organizations, and affected foreign governments warned that mandatory social media disclosure and deeper family data collection could deter travel and harm tourism revenue, a concern intensified as the United States prepares to co host the 2026 World Cup. Immigration advocates and free speech groups raised additional concerns that broader scrutiny of social accounts could chill expression and complicate adjudications of immigration benefits.

Supporters of the measure frame it as strengthening screening and national security by giving authorities more context about applicants. The Federal Register notice establishes the procedure for public comment and review. The debate over the proposal is likely to focus on the balance between security objectives and privacy, and on whether the expanded requirements will produce meaningful vetting improvements while avoiding unintended harms to travel and civic freedom.