Aussies may soon need to provide five years of social media history to enter the US under new Trump administration ESTA rules

Travellers to the US could be asked to provide their social media posts before entering the country under a new proposal from the Trump administration. The plan, published on the Federal Register by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), would expand the information travellers must submit when applying through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). Currently, ESTA allows citizens from 42 countries, including Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Japan, Israel, Qatar, and much of Europe, to visit the US for less than 90 days without a visa. Applicants are already asked for basic details such as passport information, birth date, and any criminal history. Under the proposed changes, applicants would have to provide their social media history, along with “high value data elements” such as phone numbers and email addresses from the past five years. The application would also require information about close family members, including their names, birth dates, birthplaces, residences, and phone numbers over the same period. A social media question was first introduced to ESTA in 2016, though it was optional. According to the CBP website, travellers can still choose whether to provide this information. “If an applicant does not answer the question or simply does not hold a social media account, the ESTA application can still be submitted without a negative interpretation or inference,” the website states. The new proposal would make providing this information mandatory, although it remains unclear how it might affect travellers hoping to enter the US. The public can comment on the plan until February 9. The proposed changes are part of a wider push by the Trump administration to overhaul the US immigration system, including stricter measures on legal entry and mass deportation programs targeting undocumented residents. Over the past 11 months, the administration has tightened scrutiny across almost every immigration pathway. Social media accounts have also come under particular attention for people entering the US on student visas. In June, the State Department instructed embassies and consulates to vet applicants for “hostile attitudes towards our citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles”. The guidance encourages applicants to make their social media profiles public and notes that a lack of online presence could negatively affect their application.