Some airlines have begun issuing waivers in anticipation of what is expected to be a major snowstorm in the Northeast United States this weekend.
22.12.2023 - 15:18 / travelpulse.com / Antony Blinken / Geoff Freeman / Patrick Clarke
The U.S. Travel Association is praising President Joe Biden's administration this winter after the U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security moved to extend the visa interview waiver authority for low-risk applicants ahead of its previous December 31 expiration.
The decision comes one month after the organization sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas urging both agencies to extend the visa interview waiver authority, which gives consular officers the discretion to waive in-person interviews for certain low-risk nonimmigrant visa applications.
These eligible applicants have previously visited the U.S. and are still subject to the same strenuous background checks and screening that all nonimmigrants receive.
However, failing to extend the waiver authority and the subsequent red tape would have significantly increased wait times for as much as 40 percent of visa applicants, a backup that could have cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars in lost traveler spending.
A U.S. visa application. (photo via iStock/Getty Images Plus/Manjurul)
"Visa interview waivers for low-risk travelers are critical to protecting the American economy and reducing the pandemic-era visa backlog that has hindered the growth of international inbound travel to the United States," U.S. Travel President and CEO Geoff Freeman said in a statement on Thursday.
"Even nearly four years after the pandemic began, the United States is welcoming 13 million fewer visitors than it did in 2019. Much of that decline is the direct result of stubbornly high visa interview wait times—currently averaging more than 400 days in top source markets. Extending visa interview waiver authority is a major step in increasing global competitiveness and promoting a more seamless, secure travel experience," added Freeman.
"By extending the visa waiver authority, the Biden administration prevented a loss of 64 million visitors and $215 billion in spending over the next 10 years. In 2024 alone, the U.S. will retain an additional 2.2 million visitors and $5.9 billion in traveler spending that would have been lost without the extension."
"U.S. Travel applauds the Departments of State and Homeland Security for their efforts to uphold security, eliminate barriers and facilitate international inbound travel growth," he concluded.
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Some airlines have begun issuing waivers in anticipation of what is expected to be a major snowstorm in the Northeast United States this weekend.
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The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) anticipates that airport security checkpoints will be busier this winter holiday travel period compared to last year.Fortunately, the agency says it's prepared to meet the surging travel demand.The official end-of-the-year holiday travel period runs from Thursday, December 21 through Tuesday, January 2. TSA is projecting that the busiest days will be Thursday, December 21; Friday, December 29, and Monday, January 1.TSA said it expects to screen more than 2.5 million passengers each of those days, signaling a 6 percent increase from 2022. The busiest day last year was December 29, when officers screened nearly 2.4 million passengers nationwide.The projections come after the TSA screened nearly 30 million passengers during November's 12-day Thanksgiving holiday period. The agency broke the record for most passengers in a single day on Sunday, November 26, screening more than 2.9 million passengers at security checkpoints across the country."We are prepared to handle the busy passenger volumes this winter holiday season," TSA Administrator David Pekoske said in a statement."TSA’s continued success during this record year for travel is a direct result of teamwork, planning and professional execution across the agency, from our frontline employees to those behind the scenes; partnerships with airports and air carriers; and innovative checkpoint technologies that improve security effectiveness, efficiency and the passenger experience," he concluded.Industry trade group Airlines for America (A4A) projects that 39 million people will board flights in the U.S. between Wednesday, December 20 and Tuesday, January 2, for an average of 2.8 million passengers per day.
The U.S. State Department will expand its policy of waiving in-person interviews for select visa applicants next year, a spokesperson confirmed to Skift. The policy was set to expire on December 31, and the travel industry had been pushing for an extension.
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