New US Requirements for Visa-Free Travelers: What You Need To Know
Eduardo Lopez
Published Dec 15, 2025
What Are the New Requirements?
The proposal comes from the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and would affect travelers who use the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).
ESTA is a program under the Visa Waiver Program, which allows people from specific countries to visit the US for up to 90 days for business or tourism without getting a traditional visa.
If this proposal is approved, travelers will need to provide the following information:
- Social media usernames they have used in the past five years (but NOT passwords or login details, and only publicly available information will be checked)
- Phone numbers used in the past five years
- Email addresses used in the past ten years
- Detailed family information, including birthplaces and phone numbers of relatives
These new rules are part of an executive order signed in January 2025, designed to increase national security and protect the US from foreign threats.
Which Countries Would Be Affected?
People from the 42 countries in the Visa Waiver Program would need to follow these new rules if they want to visit the US. These countries include:
- Andorra
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Brunei
- Chile
- South Korea
- Croatia
- Denmark
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Monaco
- Norway
- New Zealand
- Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
- Qatar
- United Kingdom
- Czech Republic
- San Marino
- Singapore
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Taiwan
What Does This Mean?
If you are from one of these countries and planning to travel to the United States without a visa, you may need to gather and provide more detailed personal information before your trip.
The US government says this is to help keep the country safe.
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