US could demand five-year social media history from tourists before allowing entry

Tourists from Europe and other regions may be required to provide a five-year history on social media before being allowed into the United States, according to a new proposal from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The new rule will affect visitors from countries that typically have relatively easy entry into the United States via the Electronic Travel Authorization (ESTA) system.

The new proposal cites an executive order issued by president Trump from January titled “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other Threats to the National Security and Public Safety.” In his first year in office, Trump has been hyper-focused on strengthening U.S. borders and curbing what he calls illegal immigration.

The US State Department will conduct reviews of the “online presence” of applicants and their families, and will require that privacy settings on social media profiles be made “public.” Applicants must list all social media they have used over the past five years, and if any information is omitted, it could result in denial of current and future visas. CBP did not say what information they were looking for or what could be disqualifying.

In addition to social media information, CBP may request an applicant’s phone numbers and email addresses used within the past five and 10 years respectively, as well as information about family members.

The new requirements are likely to increase ESTA waiting times and significantly increase the cost of implementing them. The CPB document indicates that an additional 5,598,115 hours of work would be needed annually, or about 3,000 full-time jobs plus all the costs that entails. Currently, the ESTA application costs $40, allows people to visit the United States for 90 days at a time and is valid for two years.

Mandatory social media reporting and other requirements can discourage travelers. Some Australian tourists who were coming to the United States for the upcoming World Cup said they had abandoned those plans, according to the British Daily Mail. The Guardian, One person described the new rules as “horrifying.”

However, when asked if the proposal could lead to a decline in tourism in the United States, Trump said he was not concerned. “No. We’re doing very well,” he told a reporter. “We want to make sure we don’t let the wrong people into our country.”

The People’s Bank of China stressed that the new terms are only a proposal at the moment. “Nothing has changed on this front for those coming to the United States [currently]“, a spokesperson stated BBC. He added: “This is not a final rule, it is simply the first step in starting a discussion to find new policy options to keep the American people safe.”

If implemented, the rule would affect people from 40 countries, including the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Australia and Japan. The largest number of tourists to the United States come from Canada and Mexico, accounting for nearly half of the total – however, visitors with passports from these two countries do not require a visa or ESTA approval. Travel to the United States is down three percent this year compared to 2024 as of August 2025, according to the National Travel and Tourism Office.