The US ambassador in Bucharest said on Tuesday that in the coming months, “a number of important steps must be taken” to determine whether Romania is indeed eligible to join the US Visa Waiver Program.
According to the Agerpres report, Kathleen Kavalec reminded her after her meeting with Prime Minister Marcel Ciulacu that Romania joining the Visa Waiver Program would make it much easier for Romanian citizens to travel to the United States for tourism and business purposes, since they would be doing so. You do not need a visa.
The Ambassador also confirmed that the Visa Waiver Program is administered by the US Department of Homeland Security. He added that representatives of the governments of the two countries will continue to negotiate during the fall, because “several important steps still need to be taken” to prove that Romania is indeed entitled to join the visa waiver program.
When asked what “important steps” he meant, the ambassador replied that as part of this action, Romania has signed several security agreements, and the American side should make sure that the country puts them into practice.
One of the main conditions for admission to the Visa Waiver Program is to keep the rate of rejected visa applications below 3 percent. According to Ambassador Kathleen Kavalic, official statements regarding this matter will be announced in January at the latest, and if the US government makes a decision in favor of Romania, a period of preparation and information will follow. He added: “If all conditions and preparations are successfully met, the program could start sometime in 2025.”
The ambassador also stressed that the visa exemption program applies only to tourist trips and business trips, and does not replace student and work visas.
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