| Advertisement |
Jan. 12 (UPI) -- The United States is losing tourists to other countries due to excessive wait times for visas and security screenings, according to a new study commissioned by the U.S. Travel Association. America is ranked 17 out of 18 countries analyzed in terms of competitiveness, due to decades of "under-investment and a lack of focus and coordination from the federal government," according to the study released Thursday.
Advertisement
The U.S. The Travel Association tapped Euromonitor International to study the reasons behind the country's declining share of global travel. The study found that the U.S. global market share for long-haul travel declined from 5.4% in 2019 to 5.3% in 2023.
The study also showed that rampant inefficiencies in the U.S. travel system have put off potential travelers, adding the country could lose 39 million visitors and $150 billion in spending over the next 10 years due to excessive visitor visa wait times.
The coronavirus pandemic led to the suspension of U.S. visa services around the world, leading to a back up. As restrictions have eased, most U.S. embassies and consulates slowly resumed certain immigrant and non-immigrant visa appointments.
The U.S. issued nearly 8 million visas for tourism and business during fiscal year 2023, more than it has in eight years but demand has soared in that time as well.
In 2023, Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) introduced the Visa Processing Improvement Act to help increase consular capacity by expanding the availability and use of English-language interviews and recruiting new consular fellows from foreign service applicant pools.
The United States is lagging in terms of leadership on travel-related issues and the strength of its national travel strategy. Other key findings included that visa interview wait times are averaging around 400 days in top source markets in the United States and only 36% of U.S. international airports use both biometric entry and exit systems.
The United States could gain 2.4 million more visitors in 2024 if the market were unconstrained by visa wait times.
In 2023, the United States saw nearly 67 million international visitors -- down from 79 million visitors in 2019. The number also represents a 84% decline from pre-pandemic levels.
The study weighed four categories: national leadership, brand and product, identity and security and connectivity. The study also underscored the fact that the position of Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Travel and Tourism has not yet been filled or fully funded by Congress in the Biden administration.
Countries including Spain, France, Turkey, Mexico and the United Arab Emirates have fully recovered from pre-pandemic levels, while the United States lags.
Comparatively, the study found countries like Canada have invested in large national strategies to boost travel spending, improve visitor experiences and highlight lesser-known destinations through key partnerships.
Tourism spending in Canada grew steadily last year to $21.1 billion, driven by an increase in foreign tourism demand, according to Statistics Canada. The country's revenue recovery was on track to reach 104% of 2019 levels by the end of 2023.
In reaction to the news, the U.S. Travel Association formed the Seamless and Secure Travel Commission, chaired by former acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan.
"U.S. officials cannot ignore the bold, decisive steps other nations are taking to advance and modernize their travel economies," U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman said in a statement. "The United States should aspire to lead the way into a new era of seamless and secure travel and capitalize on the many opportunities to grow this critical sector."
Freeman said the commission, which formed on Wednesday, is tasked with creating a vision and making policy recommendations to modernize the travel experience, increase U.S. competitiveness and facilitate growth. The commission plans to release its policy recommendations in the fall.
"Travel and tourism returned with force in 2022 as we opened up our country once again to visitors from around the globe," Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement Thursday.
"Since day one of the Biden administration, the Commerce Department has taken decisive actions to support this industry's recovery. The U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board plays a vital role in providing expert recommendations and industry insight to optimize the American travel experience. I look forward to working with new and returning members."
