Government aims to finalise US visa waiver procedures before September, source reveals

Meetings between US experts and Cypriot officials regarding Cyprus' inclusion in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) are set to conclude, with the government aiming to complete the process before the upcoming September, according to information obtained by the Cyprus News Agency.

The VWP allows citizens of participating countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business purposes for up to 90 days without a visa.

The visiting US officials began their meetings in Cyprus on Monday, 14 April and they are set to conclude on Wednesday, 16 April. According to a source from the Presidency, the discussions aim to assess the level of security across various sectors in Cyprus. By Tuesday, the delegation had already visited airports, ports, the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection, the Ministry of the Interior, the Police, and other institutions, with meetings expected to continue on Wednesday.

CNA learns that, following the conclusion of the mission, any additional questions that may arise will be addressed. The focus of this visit, however, was on on-site inspections to evaluate how Cyprus manages different security-related matters. The next step will involve the US government preparing a report to be submitted to Congress. If the recommendation is favourable, Congress will then approve Cyprus’ inclusion in the program.

Subsequently, a 2-3 month period will be needed for the US systems to be updated, allowing Cypriot travelers to complete the required process online.

According to the same source, there is no set timeline for the completion of the procedure. However, the Cypriot government wishes to finalise everything by September in order to take advantage of the current low visa refusal rate.

One of the key requirements for joining the VWP is maintaining a visa refusal rate below 3%. This rate is published annually based on data from September to September. “Ideally, we want the process completed by September at the latest, as the current low refusal rate is valid until then,” the same source told CNA.

This year, Cyprus has a refusal rate of just 2.16%, the third lowest in the world, according to figures published on the US State Department’s website.

(Source: CNA)