Government submits bill for Cyprus to join US visa waiver programme

The government on Thursday tabled to parliament a bill relating to Cyprus joining the United States’ visa waiver programme.

On June 17 the governments of Cyprus and the United States signed in Washington DC an inter-state agreement on the sharing of travel information, including risk assessments of persons deemed dangerous to enter either country.

The purpose is to allow Cypriot passport holders to travel to the United States without a visa.

The government subsequently drafted legislation on the visa waiver programme. As it is an inter-state treaty, it needs the legislature’s approval.

Prospective visa-free entry to the United States for Cypriot nationals is part of the strategic dialogue initiated between the two governments in June.

Speaking at the time, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said the goal is to do away with entry visas by the end of this year or early 2025.

Under the VWP, Cypriot passport holders who obtain an e-passport embedded with an electronic chip would be able to arrive at a US port of entry and seek admission to travel within the United States for up to 90 days under the B-1 business or B-2 tourism visa categories without applying in advance for a visa at the American Embassy.

The visa waiver does not remove the visa category for the traveler, but it does eliminate the need for applying at a US embassy or having a face-to-face interview with a US consular officer prior to the trip.

Cyprus has been seeking to get on the American VWP for years.