President Donald Trump‘s government of the United States is set to implement a new policy that will compel visa-exempt foreign travellers to submit their social media history before entering the country.
According to an official notice published on Tuesday in the Federal Register, the proposed rule will apply to visitors from 42 visa-waiver nations, including the United Kingdom, France, Australia and Japan, who currently do not need a visa to enter the US.
Naijaonpoint reports that at present, travellers from these nations only need to apply for the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA), which requires the provision of basic personal information.
However, the new proposal seeks to make the disclosure of social media accounts and activity from the past five years a “mandatory” requirement for ESTA applicants.
The notice states that visitors would be required to provide “social media histories from the last five years,” marking a significant expansion of the data the US demands from visa-free entrants.
Beyond social media information, the Trump administration also intends to collect what it describes as “high-value data fields.”
These include:
- Phone numbers used in the last five years
- Email addresses used in the past ten years
- Personal details of family members
- Biometric information
Members of the public have been given 60 days to comment on the proposed rule before it is finalised.
The policy forms part of the administration’s broader, years-long crackdown on migration and border security. The Trump government has repeatedly tightened entry requirements in the name of national security and vetting integrity.
The US, alongside Mexico and Canada, is set to jointly host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, an event expected to draw millions of visitors from around the world.
The latest proposal is likely to affect large numbers of football fans planning to travel for the global tournament, Naijaonpoint reports.
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