The rate of Cypriot citizens who have their applications for United States visas rejected has fallen below the minimum threshold for the country to join the country’s Visa Waiver Programme (VWP).
Undersecretary to the President Irene Piki announced on Wednesday that the rate of Cypriots having their US visa applications rejected has fallen to just 2.16 per cent, meaning that Cyprus now meets the requirement.
She said the news “constitutes another crucial step towards our country’s accession VWP and seals the significant progress achieved by the Cypriot government, particularly over the last year, in the technical consultations between the Republic of Cyprus and the US.”
“We are continuing to focus on our goal of achieving Cyprus’ accession to the VWP as soon as possible, within 2025, and we will methodically work towards this goal so that Cypriot citizens will be able to travel to the US, for tourism or for business purposes, without having to apply for a visa,” she said.
US ambassador in Nicosia Julie Fisher also reacted to the news, describing it as a “critical milestone which brings Cyprus one step closer to joining the VWP and to bringing visa-free travel to the US for Cypriots.”
The news comes as steps on the matter are being made at a governmental and legislative level, with Cyprus’ parliament passing legislation in October which allows Cyprus and the US to exchange information about individuals in their respective databases to determine if they have committed, are suspected of, or are under investigation for serious crimes.
Earlier, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said Cyprus had been “very close” to the three per cent target target last year.
“There is still an agreement to be signed, and we hope that this will be done in the very near future. We will fulfil all our obligations. The difficulty of the three-per-cent barrier remains, but we are optimistic that we will be able to achieve this goal,” he said.
Should Cyprus secure visa-free travel to the US for its citizens, it will join a total of 41 countries, of which 24 are European Union member states, which currently have access to the US’ Visa Waiver Programme (VWP).
Instead of applying for a visa, Cypriot citizens would therefore fill out the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (Esta) to thus be granted access to the country for up to 90 days per visit.
Those travelling to the US through the Esta are required to have a fully valid biometric passport and to have evidence of a return or onward ticket.
Citizens of countries covered by the VWP are still required to apply for a visa if they have entered Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Sudan, Syria, Libya, Somalia, or Yemen since March 1, 2011, or if they have entered Cuba since January 12, 2021.
