US Entry Rules Tourists May Soon Need to Share 5 Years of Social Media History for ESTA Applicants
- A new proposal would require travelers from 42 Visa Waiver Program countries (e.g., UK, France, Japan) to provide five years of social media history, ten years of emails, and family details to enter the US.
- Analysts fear economic damage as the US is the only one of 184 economies expected to see a decline in visitor spending in 2025, with Canadian tourism already dropping nearly 37% in July 2025.
- Rights groups criticize the plan for potentially violating privacy and free speech, though the administration argues the measures are necessary to identify security threats and "wrong people".
The Trump administration has unveiled a strict new proposal that would require visitors from dozens of countries to disclose extensive personal history, including five years of social media activity, to enter the United States. Filed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the rule targets travelers from the 42 nations currently in the Visa Waiver Program, such as the UK, France, Japan, and Australia, who utilize the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) for short term visits. While a question regarding social media presence was added to ESTA forms in 2016 as an optional field, this new regulation would make the disclosure a mandatory condition of entry.
If enacted, the regulations would replace the current ESTA application with a significantly more invasive process. Applicants would be required to provide social media usernames from the past five years, telephone numbers used over the same period, and email addresses held in the last decade. Additionally, the proposal seeks comprehensive details about the applicant's family members, including their names, birthdates, birthplaces, and residential addresses. Authorities state this data collection aligns with a January executive order titled "Protecting the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats".
President Donald Trump has dismissed concerns that these added hurdles could deter visitors, stating, "We just want people to come over here, and safe," while emphasizing the need to filter out the "wrong people". State Department officials have indicated that screenings are intended to identify individuals who support designated terrorists or perpetrate unlawful violence. Legal experts suggest that border officials may utilize AI tools to scan these disclosed accounts for specific keywords, looking for anti American sentiment or support for antisemitic violence.
Industry analysts are raising alarms about the potential economic fallout, particularly as the US prepares to co host the FIFA World Cup in 2026 and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. The World Travel & Tourism Council recently noted that among 184 economies analyzed, the US was the only one expected to see a decline in international visitor spending in 2025. Data already shows a downward trend; for example, Canadian car trips to the US dropped by 36.9% in July 2025 compared to the previous year, contributing to a projected $5.7 billion loss in tourism revenue from that demographic alone.
Civil rights organizations have strongly condemned the plan, warning it could lead to self censorship and privacy violations. Sarah McLaughlin of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) argued that requiring visitors to surrender their digital history suggests that "American commitment to free speech is pretense, not practice". The Electronic Frontier Foundation also criticized the move, suggesting it could "exacerbate civil liberties harms," while immigration lawyers warn that applicants could face significant delays in ESTA approvals due to the increased volume of data processing.
Despite the broad scope of the proposal, some neighboring travelers remain largely unaffected. Immigration experts note that approximately 99.9% of Canadians would not be subject to the new social media disclosures because they do not participate in the Visa Waiver Program or use the ESTA system to enter the US. However, Canadians applying for specific visa categories, such as the K 1 fiancé(e) visa, would still face these stricter vetting protocols.
This proposal coincides with other measures to tighten borders and increase revenue from foreign visitors. The administration has reportedly begun demanding a new $250 fee for visitors not from visa exempt countries and has implemented a $100 surcharge for foreign visitors entering national parks. Currently, the social media disclosure rule is published in the Federal Register and is open for public comment for 60 days. A CBP spokesperson described the publication as "simply the first step," noting that nothing has immediately changed for travelers currently arriving in the United States.