Visa Issues: What's Being Done to Ease Restrictions?
May 19, 2015
An integral part of expanding the U.S. trade show industry is having more international attendance, yet organizers continually receive complaints from foreign visitors who are unable to attend shows. The biggest impediment seems to be the difficulty of obtaining U.S. visitor visas for business travelers. This panel will not only take a look at the challenges through the experiences of show managers, but also what the U.S. Travel Association is doing to help lobby for new laws to ease travel restrictions.
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Ready for Takeoff
A Plan to Create 1.3 Million U.S. Jobs by Welcoming Millions of International
Travelers
Patricia RojasVice President
Government Relations
Travel is an Export Leader
94.0
81.8
65.7
60.8
95.8
120.9
124.3
125.9
128.3
134.4
Machinery
Basic chemicals
Computers and electronic products
Petroleum and coal
Agriculture
Aerospace and other transportation
Motor vehicles
Royalties and license fees
Travel
Business andProfessional services
Exports in Billions
Services
Manufacturing
Agriculture
Overseas Travel to U.S.
Common Visa Barriers
Lack of prioritization of visa processInefficient and unpredictable visa processLack of access to U.S. consular facilityPoor customer service and communicationsInadequate visa application CostPoor planning and analysis of growth in demand for visasInability to place needed resources to meet market needsInappropriate allocation of resources to meet demand
Barriers
Brazil No visa required to Europe; competitive disadvantage with top competitorsExcluded from VWPLimited access to expedited services by tour operators
China One-year visas for the United States vs.10 year visas for most other countriesGroup travel policy is underutilized
India Limited assistance available for incentive travel groupsInadequate language capabilities of consular officers
Barriers to Visiting
Not a Cheap Place to VisitFlight from Manaus
to Brasilia (4 passengers):$1,726
Hotel (one night):$170
Visa ($140 x 4):$560
Application fee ($30 x 4):$120
Passport delivery fee ($20 x 4):$80
TOTAL:$2,600
1,250 miles
Regaining 17% share of global long-haul travel would create 1.3 million jobs by 2020
Note: Each additional $X in spending creates one job. Source: U.S. Travel Association
2010 2015 2020
Millions of jobs1.33
million jobs
Four-Step Plan to Increase Overseas Travel And Create Jobs
121
43
Set a 12 day standard to process U.S. visas and hire sufficient personnelImprove planning, measurement and transparency
Test videoconferencing technology for visa interviews
Preserve and expand the Visa Waiver Program
Get Involved Now!
1. Learn more at: www.smartervisapolicy.org.
2. Visit the online action center at: www.travelcoalition.org/keyissues/visa
Patricia Rojas
Vice President
Government Relations
202-408-2138
It’s Time For Takeoff!
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