Trump Administration Waives Up to $15,000 Entry Bonds for World Cup Fans From 5 Countries
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · May 13
Trump Administration Waives Up to $15,000 Entry Bonds for World Cup Fans From 5 Countries
11 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · May 13
$5,000 to $15,000 visa bonds will no longer apply to confirmed World Cup ticket holders from five qualifying countries—Algeria, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Tunisia—if they use FIFA’s expedited visa system.
The State Department said the waiver follows months of talks and a FIFA request, carving out a rare exception to a bond policy imposed on travelers from 50 countries with high visa-overstay rates and other security concerns.
Players, coaches and some staff were already exempt, but ordinary fans had remained covered until Wednesday; U.S. officials said in early April only about 250 fans were thought to be affected, though that figure was shifting.
The move eases one barrier ahead of the June 11 tournament co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, even as broader travel bans, social-media screening and visa delays have drawn rights-group warnings and depressed hotel demand.
A World Cup visa bond is waived, but travel bans remain. Can fans from some qualifying nations even enter the United States?
Why waive a visa bond for fans while broader travel bans for the same countries remain in effect?