One of the hallmarks of Donald Trump’s second term has been making it tougher to visit the United States.
The president’s ‘America First’ philosophy has seen the administration crack down on tourists and longer-term visitors alike.
The State Department announced this week that it revoked over 100,000 visas since Trump returned to office, including around 8,000 student visas and 2,500 specialized visas for people who had run-ins with U.S. law enforcement.
However, tourists from multiple countries are also reporting problems with the ESTA visa waiver scheme, claiming they have had theirs revoked. The ESTA – or Electronic System for Travel Authorisation – is an online system that tells visitors to the U.S. in advance whether they are allowed to travel under the Visa Waiver Program.
Although it does not guarantee entry at the border, it is a routine process for many tourists from countries such as the U.K., most of Europe, Australia, Japan and many others.
Users on Reddit have claimed that their ESTAs were canceled despite never speaking publicly about their political views, never staying beyond the number of days they were allowed to remain in the U.S., and never having any criminal charges. They are left none the wiser about what the waiver was revoked.
“I’ve gotten an ESTA this last September with my EU passport in order to travel to the US after some years not having been there,” one poster wrote.
“I traveled to New York for three weeks, went back to my home country, then came back in December to visit Miami for a week – both trips for actual tourism and nothing else.
“Today I receive an email from the DHS saying my ESTA status has been “changed”, and when I check he application, it shows I’m no longer authorized to travel to the U.S..”
Another Redditor claimed they had their ESTA revoked shortly after they visited Cuba, forcing them to reroute via Madrid, Spain rather than Miami, Florida. Another said they would “not going to bother with that country [the U.S.] anymore” after a similar experience.
ESTAs, like visas, can be withdrawn ore refused for multiple reasons but it is not always clear why.
An undisclosed criminal record can lead to withdrawal, or the failure to prove non-immigrant intent. Visa applicants are required to adequately disclose their ties to their home countries, so it is clear that they are not trying to emigrate to the United States.
Travelling to countries on the United States’ banned travel list could also lead to your visa being denied. Those include Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
Overstaying in the U.S. on an old visa or being denied entry in the past could also lead to visitors being banned from returning.
If an applicant has had their ESTA denied or revoked, they need to apply for a standard B1 or B2 Visitor Visa, which will require them to attend an interview.
Filing for a request through the DHS TRIP website can also allow applicants to address potential errors on their visa applications. However, filing for an appeal of an ESTA being denied or revoked is not allowed.
Despite the visitor visa rules already being very stringent, a State Department memo seen by Fox News Digital could suggest that immigration visas could become even stricter.
According to the memo, visa applications from 75 countries will be frozen from January 21 as the Trump administration pushes further with its attempts to curb immigration.
The crackdown will reportedly affect immigration visas, not visitor visas, from countries including Russia, Iran, Thailand, Egypt, Brazil, Somalia and Yemen, amongst others.
The memo says that the alleged pause will continue indefinitely until the State Department conducts a full reassessment of visa processing.
The Independent has contacted the State Department for comment.
