by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 8:15 AM ET, Tue May 19, 2026
After worldwide controversy over its proposed requirement for travelers from Visa Waiver Program countries to submit five years of their social media history to enter the United States, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is considering a watered-down version that would, in theory, reduce the number of those required to provide their social media information.
According to our sister publication, Travel Weekly, the announcement was made by Matt Davies, an executive director at CBP’s office of field operations when he spoke this week at the U.S. Travel Association’s IPW 2026 conference.
Davies called the new method “a waterfall approach,” explaining that, instead of a universal requirement for travelers heading to the U.S. to provide five years of social media history, the new method would only require a traveler to provide their social media history depending on how they respond to application questions for their ESTA.
While it’s likely some industry stakeholders and international travelers will still find the proposed method invasive, Davies did mention that the proposal won’t be implemented before or during the FIFA 2026 World Cup, but could be implemented in late 2026 at the earliest. CBP will issue another public-comment period for the proposed changes, where industry stakeholders and the general public can provide their comments to the amended proposal.
The travel industry was a strong force against the initial proposal: WTTC, ASTA and the US Travel Association issued statements urging the government to reconsider, with the USTA saying that it could have a “chilling effect” on international travel to the United States.
In addition to the five-year social media history requirement, the proposal would also include biometric requirements, from finger-printing and irises to even a traveler’s DNA. There’s been no word on whether that portion of the proposal has changed.
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