Romanians to Travel Visa-Free to U.S. as Visa Waiver Announced

Romania will be officially entering the Visa Waiver Program. The United States Secretary of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, and the Romanian Ambassador to the United States, Andrei Muraru, will formalize Romania’s accession to the American visa waiver program, in an event that will take place on Friday, January 10, at the headquarters of the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, the Romanian embassy in the US announced in a press release.

“Officials from the two countries will mark Romania’s designation in the visa waiver program, reviewing the efforts of both parties for our country’s accession, as well as the forms of cooperation regarding the further fulfillment of the requirements of reciprocity and information exchange,” the Romanian embassy in Washington states.

During the event, the US Secretary of State is expected to announce the technical details of joining the Visa Waiver and the date from which Romanians will be able to enter American territory without visas.

“Friday’s event is the culmination and final result of years of hard work by Romanian and American officials. The designation of Romania in the US visa waiver program is an important recognition of our common economic and security interests. Romania thus consolidates its status as a strategic partner of the US, being the first country in the Black Sea region admitted to the Visa Waiver program”, emphasizes Andrei Muraru. The diplomat emphasized that joining the Visa Waiver will boost trade and investment and encourage tourism and direct contacts.

Following the decision of the US Government, Romania thus becomes the 43rd participant in the US visa waiver program.

The Visa Waiver Program’s accession comes after Romania met the visa refusal rate criterion for qualification in the Visa Waiver Program last year – a 2.61% refusal rate. The State Department published in November the B1/B2 visa refusal rate for fiscal year 2024 (October 1, 2023 – September 30, 2024). Romania has fallen below the 3% threshold imposed by US law, thus meeting one of the main criteria for joining the program.

During fiscal year 2024, Romanian citizens filed 80,596 B1/B2 visa applications worldwide, almost double the number of applications in the previous fiscal year. U.S. diplomatic and consular offices granted over 78,000 B1/B2 visas, a record number for Romania, according to the Romanian Embassy in the United States.

The Visa Waiver Program is a comprehensive security partnership between the United States and designated countries that allows citizens of those countries to travel to the United States without a visa for up to 90 days for tourism or business.
The program has a significant component in combating terrorism and cross-border crime, including illegal immigration, by requiring ongoing information sharing with participating countries while supporting trade and tourism and business travel.
The program is administered by the Department of Homeland Security in collaboration with the Department of State. To date, citizens of 42 countries can travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program.
Citizens of countries included in the Visa Waiver Program who wish to travel to the United States must register with the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) before traveling to the United States and meet a number of eligibility requirements.
By joining the Visa Waiver Program, Romanian citizens will no longer have to undergo interviews at a U.S. consulate, making the procedure much less expensive and time-consuming. The travel authorization that replaces current visas is valid for two years, has an unlimited number of entries/exits from the U.S. during this period, and can be used for visits of up to 90 days; the cost of a travel authorization is 21 U.S. dollars.
Alejandro Mayorkasandrei murarurefusal rateRomaniaRomanian Ambassador to the United StatestravelUnited States Secretary of Homeland SecurityUSvisa waivervisa-free
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