If you're planning a quick trip to the United States from London or Tokyo or Sydney, the Trump administration has some new paperwork for you. And by paperwork, we mean handing over half a decade of your digital life.

What's Being Proposed

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced a plan in the Federal Register that would require travelers from Visa Waiver Program countries to submit up to five years of social media history before entering the United States. Oh, and also every phone number you've used over the past five years and all email addresses from the past decade, according to Al Jazeera.

The official justification? "Protecting the United States from foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats," citing Executive Order 14161, which President Trump signed in January 2025.

How It Would Actually Work

Before you panic about sharing passwords, travelers would only submit social media handles, not login credentials. Officials would review publicly accessible content, not your DMs or private posts.

The rule would apply to citizens from 42 countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and Australia, who currently travel under the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). That's a lot of tourists and business travelers suddenly facing a much longer application process.

First Amendment Concerns

Legal experts aren't thrilled. Caroline DeCell, senior staff attorney at Columbia University's Knight First Amendment Institute, pointed out that "even travellers who post publicly on social media typically maintain some expectation of obscurity." Her bottom line? "It's a massive blow to First Amendment freedoms."

Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) criticized the plan on X Wednesday, calling it a burdensome measure that could damage U.S. tourism and trigger reciprocal requirements from other countries. Imagine American tourists having to hand over their Instagram history to visit Paris.

The Administration's Defense

Secretary Marco Rubio emphasized that a visa is a privilege, not a right, and that the government can both deny and revoke visas if a holder engages in inappropriate or prohibited activities.

When a journalist asked Trump last week whether requiring five years of social media for tourist visas could reduce tourism, he dismissed the concern. The U.S. is "doing so well," he said, stressing the need to keep "the wrong people" out of the country.

Whether that calculation works out remains to be seen. Tourism is a big business, and adding bureaucratic hurdles tends to have consequences.