America wants tourists from Spain and other countries to adopt their social media

Proposed changes to the Visa Waiver System (ESTA) also include providing personal and family data, from phone numbers to biometric information.

The United States is asking travelers from Spain and other friendly countries to hand over their social media information

The proposed changes to the Visa Waiver System (ESTA) also include the provision of personal and family data, from telephone numbers to biometric information.

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New York Correspondent

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Tourists visiting the United States with the ESTA Visa Waiver Program (abbreviation in English for Electronic Travel Authorization System) must submit to North American authorities their social media accounts used in the past five years, as well as relevant personal data.

Esta helps countries of up to 50 years around the world, whose citizens do not need a visa to visit the United States. But they must fill out a digital form with their information and pay the fee before going to the leading authority in the world.

Countries with this visa exemption include most Europeans - including Spain - and other US allies such as Israel, Australia, Japan, South Korea or Qatar.

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The social media release is included in a proposal released this week by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and will have a 60-day public comment period for approval.

“CBP is adding social media as a required element of the ESTA application,” the proposed changes state.“This element will require applicants to provide their social media accounts from the last five years.”

Since 2016, ESTA has a box where applicants can enter information about social networks.But it is optional and so far it has not affected the travel authorization in any way.

The changes to ESTA go beyond information on social networks.Another proposal requires the content of new "high value" personal data when filling ESTA.To date, data such as the applicant's passport, date of birth, address and other personal information were required.

Data measurement

Starting from the last week, the following lists can also be requested: Phone numbers used in the last five years, including digital numbers;Email addresses for the past ten years, including work;the IP address and metadata of the photos provided;

CBP explained in its proposal that the proposed changes to the STA are to comply with one of the first executive orders signed by Donald Trump after returning to the White House, which is to 'protect the United States from foreign terrorists and other threats to national security and public safety'.

The changes are consistent with those approved in recent years for all types of visa applications, including social media information requirements established in 2019 in the run-up to Trump's presidency.

It is also consistent with Trump's strict immigration policies and increased social media scrutiny of certain types of visas. The State Department has required student visa applicants to open their social networks since last June, following anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian protests in recent years and amid Trump's war on elite universities. It will also begin to be mandatory for those on the most common H-1B work visa.

These changes, and those that may soon come to the ESTA system, have been criticized in the United States as a way to limit the expression of criticism against the government of the world's leading power.They can have an impact on the tourism sector.Forecasts for 2025 indicate a 7% decline in the number of tourists to the United States, the first decline since the Covid-19 pandemic.

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