Trump's $15,000 visa plan: How World Cup ticket holders will be affected

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FT Desk

The United States government has agreed to drop the $15,000 visa deposit required to enter the country for supporters who hold an official World Cup ticket.

Last year, president Donald Trump introduced the new deposit payment for travellers from countries who were a "high risk" of staying in the US beyond the allocated allowed time on their visa.

"In this temporary final rule (TFR), the Department of State announces the commencement of a 12-month long visa bond pilot program," an official gov document stated.

"Aliens applying for visas as temporary visitors for business or pleasure and who are nationals of countries identified by the Department as having high visa overstay rates, where screening and vetting information is deemed deficient, or offering Citizenship by Investment, if the alien obtained citizenship with no residency requirement, may be subject to the pilot program.

"Consular officers may require covered nonimmigrant visa applicants to post a bond of up to $15,000 as a condition of visa issuance, as determined by the consular officers."

Algeria, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Senegal, and Tunisia were five of the countries impacted by the rule as they will feature as participants in the World Cup and this would grossly impact their travelling fans heading to North America.

Players and coaches were already exempt from the bond requirement, but normal fans with confirmed tickets for the World Cup had not been included until this week.

"We are waiving visa bonds for qualified fans who bought World Cup tickets," Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Mora Namdar told the BBC.

FIFA said the announcement highlights its continued collaboration with the White House to ensure a successful, record-breaking, and memorable global event. The organisation added that it is grateful to the administration for its ongoing partnership.

The requirement has now been lifted for football fans from 50 affected countries, but travellers from Iran and Haiti are still barred. Players, coaches and dignitaries from those nations are exempt when travelling for World Cup-related purposes.

Travellers from Ivory Coast and Senegal, both of which have qualified for the tournament, remain subject to partial restrictions under an expanded version of the travel ban.

Separately, the US government announced late last year that tourists from dozens of countries may be required to provide five years of social media history as a condition of entry, another immigration measure that could impact those travelling to the World Cup.

Some sections of travelling World Cup fans will be "vulnerable to serious harm" in the United States, according to several civil rights organisations.

More than 120 civil society groups and MLS and NWSL-affiliated fan groups published a travel advisory document to travelling fans of immigrant backgrounds, LGBTQ+ people and racial and ethnic minority groups warning them of the potential treatment they face in the USA, who will host the World Cup alongside Mexico and Canada this summer.

The message issues a stark warning to everyone from fans, to players, to the media: "exercise caution and have an emergency contingency plan." This call to action stems from the group’s concerns regarding an escalation of violence and authoritarianism under the Trump administration.