US Customs and Border Protection proposed requiring people who apply through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization to provide social-media information covering the previous five years. The plan would affect eligible visitors from roughly 40 Visa Waiver Program countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and several European states.
ESTA permits approved travellers to make short US visits without obtaining a conventional visa. Authorisation generally covers trips of up to 90 days and can be used for multiple entries during a two-year period. Applicants already submit passport, birth and criminal-history information and pay a one-off fee.
A social-media question has appeared on the form since 2016, but answering it was optional. Under the new proposal, applicants would be required to provide the requested history. The Federal Register notice did not fully explain which records would have to be disclosed or how officials would evaluate people who did not maintain accounts.
The same draft contemplated collecting additional personal data. Reports on the notice said it would seek telephone numbers used during the preceding five years, email addresses from as far back as ten years, and more details about close relatives. Those family fields could include names, birth dates, addresses, phone numbers and birthplaces.
The Department of Homeland Security and CBP published the proposal for a 60-day public consultation. A CBP spokesperson emphasised that the notice did not itself change entry requirements and represented an opening stage in considering policy options. The consultation period meant mandatory disclosure was not yet in force on the event date.
President Donald Trump linked tighter screening to national security and said he was not worried that the measure might reduce tourism. His administration had already expanded review of online activity for some student and skilled-worker visa applicants, including instructions that certain applicants make their accounts publicly viewable.
Civil-liberties and immigration specialists raised separate concerns. The Electronic Frontier Foundation warned of potential harm to digital rights, while the law firm Fragomen said more extensive vetting could slow ESTA decisions. Tourism analysts also noted that the United States expected major visitor numbers for the 2026 men's World Cup and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The proposal therefore sat at the intersection of border security, privacy and travel administration. Any practical effect on visitors would depend on the final language after consultation, implementation guidance and the government's explanation of how social-media data would be verified and used.
The notice also arrived amid declining international visitor spending and reduced travel from Canada. Those trends did not prove the proposal caused any loss, because it had not taken effect. They did, however, sharpen questions about whether additional disclosure and processing would discourage otherwise eligible visitors.
