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The United States is proposing to make social media disclosure a compulsory requirement for millions of travellers seeking entry under its visa-free travel regime.
According to a new public notice by the department of homeland security (DHS), the proposed revision to the electronic system for travel authorisation (ESTA) has been published ahead of its formal listing in the federal register.
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said the update will require applicants to submit their social media accounts from the past five years as part of a broader security overhaul.
CBP said the change is necessary to comply with Executive Order 14161, signed in January 2025, which directs federal agencies to intensify screening measures aimed at identifying foreign security threats.
Until now, ESTA applicants were only asked, but not required to provide social media identifiers. The new rules would make it compulsory.
“The data element will require ESTA applicants to provide their social media from the last 5 years,” the notice states.
The agency said mandatory disclosure will improve its ability to verify identities, flag fraudulent applications and detect potential security risks.
The proposed revision goes far beyond social media. CBP plans to add several “high-value data fields”, including email addresses used in the last 10 years, telephone numbers used in the last five years, IP addresses and metadata from submitted photos, extensive family information, A wide range of biometrics — face, fingerprints, iris, and even DNA
The department said the expanded collection is designed to align with updated federal biographic-data requirements issued in April and strengthen identity verification.
Another major change is the plan to shut down the ESTA web application portal and require all applications to be submitted through the mobile app.
The Visa Waiver Program — which covers visitors from 40 countries — processes more than 14 million ESTA applications annually.
The expanded data requirements and mobile-only system are expected to significantly increase the compliance burden on travellers, as reflected in the agency’s new estimates of processing time and hours.
DHS is requesting public feedback on all proposed changes, including the mandatory social media disclosure, before they are finalised. Comments will be accepted for 60 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register.
If approved, the new rules would mark one of the most sweeping expansions of digital-identity and social-media vetting in US immigration history.
