Hong Kong-based travellers seeking to visit the US without a visa were left in a state of disarray last week when the country’s government proposed requiring tourists to hand over up to five years of social media information as part of strengthened entry requirements.
The proposal, a continuation of US President Donald Trump’s expanded scrutiny of immigrants and foreign travellers, would affect nationals from the 42 jurisdictions covered by the country’s visa-waiver programme.
The Post breaks down the main aspects of the proposal, who it targets and what other vetting Hongkongers should expect when visiting the United States.
1. What does this mean for Hongkongers?
In a notice published last week, US Customs and Border Protection proposed requiring visitors using the country’s visa-waiver programme to hand over additional personal information to obtain an Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA).
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Among the proposals generating the most concern was the suggestion that travellers be required to hand over five years of social media data.
US Customs said the social media requirement was in line with an executive order signed by Trump in January, which called for additional screening of individuals entering the country on the grounds of national security.
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While Hong Kong is not among the 42 jurisdictions in the visa-waiver programme, the city’s passport holders are already subject to social media vetting owing to changes introduced in Trump’s first term.
The 2019 changes required applicants for all non-immigrant visas to list their social media handles used in the past five years as part of the online DS-160 form. It also applied to the paper backup DS-156 non-immigrant application visa form and DS-260 online immigrant visa application form.