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1 1 (March 15, 2018)

handle is hein.crs/govchvt0001 and id is 1 raw text is: F ., ' riE -E-.$r h ,,,- i March 15, 2018 The Visa Waiver Program: Balancing Tourism and National Security The U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is intended to encourage travel to the United States by allowing citizens of more than three dozen countries to visit without obtaining visas from a U.S. consulate. The program was originally established in 1986. In recent years, some Members of Congress and the Trump Administration have expressed concern that potential terrorists holding passports from a VWP country might be able to enter the United States. Discussions over reform of the VWP are occurring at the same time as a recent dip in the number of visitors to the United States from VWP countries. The Visa Waiver Permanent Program Act (P.L. 106-396) allows citizens holding a passport from 38 developed nations in Europe, Asia, Oceania, and South America (see Figure 1) to visit the United States on trips of 90 days or less for business or tourism without first obtaining a visa. The VWP sets standards for travel documents, requires information sharing between member countries and the United States, mandates reporting of lost or stolen travel documents, and requires travelers to use e-passports, which include a digital chip containing biometric information and are relatively difficult to tamper with. Figure I. 38 Visa Waiver Program Countries Source: Graphic created by CRS using data from the U.S. Department of State-Bureau of Consular Affairs. Prior to boarding a plane or ship for the United States, all prospective VWP travelers must obtain pre-travel authorization through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). This is a web-based application run by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which determines the eligibility of the foreign national to enter under the VWP. An ESTA authorization is generally valid for multiple entries over a period of two years. Each VWP traveler who uses ESTA is charged a $14 fee. Of this, $10 is used to fund Brand USA a public-private entity to promote U.S. tourism and $4 goes to defray DHS's costs of screening VWP applicants. The VWP was established as a pilot program in 1986 and became permanent in 2000. It is the largest source of overseas visitors to the United States, other than visitors from neighboring Canada and Mexico (which accounted for half of total arrivals in the United States in 2016). Canadian nationals can travel visa-free to the United States, but Mexicans must obtain visas. Border crossing cards, often referred to as laser visas, are issued to Mexican citizens for short-term entry to the United States border zone for business or tourism. , T ael an ... , .m -zc0k-:O,,m' In 2015, the latest year for which data are available, the nation's tourism industries accounted for 2.7% of U.S. gross domestic product. Of the 7.6 million American jobs directly and indirectly supported by the domestic travel and tourism industry in 2016, 1.2 million were supported by international visitors, according to the Department of Commerce. The Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates foreign travelers accounted for 25% of tourist spending on lodging, 27% of tourists' food and beverage demand, and 24% of total passenger air transportation demand in 2015. In addition, international travelers spent about $244 billion in 2017 on passenger fares on U.S. air carriers and travel- related goods and services, which makes tourism the United States' single-largest services sector export. The U.S. travel and tourism sector has maintained an annual trade surplus $70.1 billion in 2017 with the world every year since 1989. Arrivals of foreign visitors increased over many years, with growth interrupted by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and by poor economic conditions in Europe and Japan in 2009. Between 2015 and 2017, however, the number of foreign residents arriving in the United States is estimated to have fallen from 77.5 million to 75 million, a drop of 3%, despite relatively strong economic growth around the world. This decline has occurred at a time when cross-border tourism is increasing globally. Figures from the World Bank show the United States' share of the 1.2 billion global tourism arrivals shrank to 6.1% in 2016 from 6.4% in 2015. V , Markets In FY2016, about 23 million people entered the United States under the VWP, accounting for roughly a third of all temporary visitors to the United States. Arrivals from many of the VWP countries responsible for the highest volumes of tourist visits declined significantly (see Figure 2). :-. :::::::::::.+ . .=== =============== ====== == .... ..... ...iiiiiiiii....... :-iiiiiiiii i!: . . ... 4<, p\w gnom ggmm mppm qq\ a , q 'S I 11LULANJILiN,

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