A NEW proposal by the US Government to interrogate the digital history of visitors from next year has rocked a market already struggling with its tourism appeal.
The terms of the proposition tabled by the by US Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland Security show that inbound travellers – including Australians – may soon have to turn over five years of social media history in order to enter.
Such an imposition on inbound travellers has never been applied to visa-exempt tourists using the ESTA system, and previously only impacted travellers from non visa-waiver nations.
Critics of the proposal – and previous iterations – believe the changes are an attempt by US President Donald Trump to clamp down on freedom of speech, however the government has consistently denied this.
The Trump administration has stated in the past that such moves are designed to enhance security at the US border.
Travel intention to the US has endured a challenging period in 2025, compounded by the slashing of Brand USA’s annual budget and the doubling of the ESTA fee to US$40.
In a bid to stem some of the bleeding, the Visit USA Act was recently introduced in Congress with the aim of restoring full funding for Brand USA.
The Bill is yet to pass the lower or upper houses.
