This idea is sure to kill off a lot of tourism to the U.S., and put a thumb in the eye of businesspeople. According to the NY Times yesterday, the U.S. Congress is considering a request by the Department of Homeland Security to require people in 27 countries to pre-register their travel plans 48 hours before departure to the U.S.
The 27 targeted countries are mostly Western European, and they’re mostly countries whose citizens can already travel to the U.S. for up to 90 days without a visa.
This also flies in the face of efforts by new EU countries (such as the Czech Republic) to have visa requirements lifted, so that their citizens can visit the U.S. more easily.
Travel to the U.S. has plunged over 17% since 2000, in part because of foreigners’ perceptions that they aren’t welcome in the U.S., costing 200,000 jobs and $16 Billion in lost tourism, according to the U.S. travel industry.
Of course, U.S. officials think it’s not a problem because they’re proposing an on-line registration. But, it begs the question: what if one person on the plane forgets to pre-register? Does the plane get turned around? Or just routed to Guantanamo?