A proposed new plan by United States authorities to charge a fee to US-bound travellers from visa-waiver countries* has been attacked by the European Commission.
The fee would be used to promote foreign travel to the US, but John Bruton, the European Commission’s Ambassador to Washington, said: “Only in ‘Alice in Wonderland’ could a penalty be seen as promoting the activity on which it is imposed,”
Coming just nine months after the introduction of the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation, which requires that travellers from the visa-waiver countries register online at least 72 hours before travel, the charge is being seen as yet another burden on hard-pressed flyers.
William Delahunt, the US Representative who is sponsoring the bill, has said that the $10 charge is a “nominal fee” and urged the EU not to get exercised about it.
Mr Bruton said the EU would have to consider whether the new charge, if it comes into effect, would amount to a new visa for travellers.
* There are 35 countries in the Visa Waiver Programme including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Andorra, Iceland, Norway, Australia, Portugal, Austria, Italy, San Marino, Belgium, Japan, Singapore, Brunei, Liechtenstein, Slovenia, Denmark, Luxembourg, Spain, Finland, Monaco, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany and New Zealand.
