The US government is proposing making social media accounts part of the visa screening process for entry into the country. US Customs and Border Protection’s proposed change would add a line on both the online and paper forms of the visa application form that visitors to the US must fill out if they do not have a visa and are planning on staying for up to 90 days.
US border guards may require your Facebook and Twitter accounts before letting you in
The Department of Homeland Security has proposed that all travellers be asked to provide their social media details before entering the country. The US Department of Homeland Security has proposed social media vetting as an additional step for anyone seeking a visa or an Esta (Electronic System for Travel Authorisation).
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In a notice published in the Federal Register last week, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) division of the DHS said that it wanted to add a line to Form I-94W, which is the form used by people who enter the U.S. on the Visa Waiver Program that lets people from certain countries visit the U.S. for 90 days without a visa. The line would say, “Please enter information associated with your online presence—Provider/Platform—Social media identifier.”
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The new data field would be optional, according to the DHS’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, which posted its request to the Federal Register on Thursday.
The DHS proposal is open for public comment until 22 August.