Travel Jun. 04, 2008 - 05:09AM JST ( 42 )

WASHINGTON —

Travelers from Japan and Western Europe will face tighter restrictions on coming to the United States beginning in January, according to new rules unveiled Tuesday by the U.S. government.

Tourists and business travelers from the 27 countries currently listed under the visa waiver program will have to register with the U.S. government three days in advance, the Department of Homeland Security said.

The new rules aim to make it more difficult for potential terrorists to enter the United States from places such as France, Germany, Switzerland, Britain, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Singapore, New Zealand, Japan and Australia, the government said.

However, critics have raised concerns about the possibility of reduced tourism and difficulties with last-minute business travel.

“Getting this information in advance enables our frontline personnel to determine whether a visa-free traveler presents a threat, before boarding an aircraft or arriving on our shores,” said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.

“It is a relatively simple and effective way to strengthen our security, and that of international travelers, while helping to preserve an important program for key allies.”

The government will ask for the same information that travelers currently fill out on the I-94 card which is handed out on the plane and turned in to customs on arrival in the United States, a DHS official said.

That includes such information as passport number, country of residence, disclosure of communicable diseases or involvement in terror activities.

Travelers may register with the U.S. government beginning in August, and the information will remain valid for a maximum of two years so it is not necessary to repeat the same process in that time period.

Once the regulations become mandatory in January 2009, all U.S.-bound travelers from the countries affected “will need to receive an electronic travel authorization prior to boarding a U.S.-bound airplane or cruise ship,” it said.

Under the new program, known as the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), travelers may apply for an ESTA authorization on the Internet at a U.S. government website, or through their travel agent.

The European Commission, which negotiates security arrangements on behalf of the 27 EU member countries, has asked the United States to explain the new restrictions, spokesman Michele Cercone said in Brussels.

EU Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot wants to establish whether the system would amount to a de-facto visa, and asked Chertoff by phone for “more information in detail and for documents so they could be studied by the commission,” Cercone said.

“We have to see what data the Americans are going to ask for, how they plan to manage and use them.”

The website, https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/, will accept applications beginning August 1 and “will employ technology to prevent unauthorized access to the information entered and viewed.”

“Access to such information is limited to those with a professional need to know,” the DHS said on its website.

If a traveler is denied ESTA authorization, the alternative is to apply for a non-immigrant visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate.

“ESTA will accommodate last minute and emergency travelers,” it said, but added that travelers should seek an ESTA approval as soon as they start planning a U.S. trip, and no later than 72 hours before departure.

ESTA was called for under the “implementing recommendations” of the 9/11 Commission Act in 2007, DHS said. The 9/11 Commission was a bipartisan panel created by the U.S. government to investigate the circumstances surrounding the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

The ESTA rules do not affect U.S. travelers heading overseas.

The visa waiver program was created in 1986 “with the objective of eliminating unnecessary barriers to travel, stimulating the tourism industry,” according to the State Department website.

Wire reports