Foreign tourists could be required to disclose five years of their social media history before entering the U.S. under a proposed Trump administration plan.
The Department of Homeland Security in a notice published Wednesday in the Federal Register proposed social media as a mandatory data element for anyone filing an Electronic System for Travel Authorization application.
"In order to comply with the January 2025 Executive Order 14161 (Protecting the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats), CBP is adding social media as a mandatory data element for an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) application," DHS wrote.
"The data element will require ESTA applicants to provide their social media from the last 5 years," it added.
ESTA is an automated system "used to determine the eligibility of visitors to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program and whether such travel poses any law enforcement or security risk," according to DHS.
The visa waiver program allows people from 42 countries to travel to the United States for up to 90 days without a visa as long as they first obtain electronic travel authorization.
Once approved for the ESTA, the authorization is good for two years.
The notice said the American public has 60 days to comment on the proposal.
The White House in the executive order referenced in the notice said it's the policy of the United States "to protect its citizens from aliens who intend to commit terrorist attacks, threaten our national security, espouse hateful ideology, or otherwise exploit the immigration laws for malevolent purposes."
"To protect Americans, the United States must be vigilant during the visa-issuance process to ensure that those aliens approved for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans or our national interests," the statement explained.
Visitors from countries like Britain and France, whose citizens don't need visas to enter the U.S., would also be subject to the rule should it be implemented.
The method "involves looking at online speech, and then denying travel based on discretion and policy about the kinds of things that get said," Bo Cooper, a partner at immigration law firm Fragomen, told The New York Times.
"It'll be interesting to watch the tourism numbers."
Under President Donald Trump, the U.S. has increased restrictions on people entering the U.S.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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