November 5, 2024
English TKP News

US Travel Association announces its position on US visas

The association took stock of the initiatives it is leading in favor of tourism

Through a letter addressed to the leaders of the tourism industry, Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the US Travel Association, announced the efforts that the organization has been making for the benefit of the sector.

1. US Travel continues to address the issue of visa issuance on two fronts: visitors and work.

Visitor Visas: The recently introduced Visitor Visa Wait Time Reduction Act (HR 9141) directs the United States Department of State to study reducing interview wait times of more than 400 days for visitors potentials. US Travel strongly supports the legislation. He is constantly on the lookout for opportunities to spread this issue through the media and will soon launch his #TheyWaitWeLose campaign. This message takes on special relevance when it is replicated by members of the sector, as Robert Isom, CEO of American Airlines, did in recent days.

Work Visas: The Department of Homeland Security announced that, for fiscal year 2023, it will make available an additional 65,000 temporary H-2B visas for non-agricultural workers, which translates into the largest increase in supplemental visas in history. Although the above will be a great support for next year’s high season, it is not enough. US Travel continues to ask Congress to pass a waiver of the cap in fiscal year 2023 and enact a permanent expansion of the H-2B program.

2. Uniting Destination Leaders to Address Obstacles to Growth: Held a roundtable discussion with U.S. destination travel CEOs, discussing some of the biggest challenges facing the industry, including there are destination boycotts, security and urban revitalization, and current workforce challenges. Many of these issues will need to be addressed by DMO leaders, and US Travel will need to help by sharing best practices and training these leaders so they can learn from each other.

3. Establish group travel as essential: The Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMBC) of the United States held a meeting to discuss strategies to increase group travel and optimize the promotion of its plans and actions with a view to March 30, 2023, World Meetings Industry Day (GMID). Next year’s theme #MeetingsMatter will highlight the economic and social importance of face-to-face meetings with elected officials and business leaders. The coalition also took the opportunity to thank and discuss strategy with one of the biggest advocates of group travel, Democratic Rep. Dina Titus of New York State.

4. Share industry insights: Nearly 30 members of the new Research Advisory Committee met to discuss the latest economic conditions, the outlook and the impact on the travel industry in an increasingly likely recession. The group also focused on the lack of understanding of what sustainable travel means – how to define, measure and track it among consumers, travel organizations and stakeholders – and the importance of developing common metrics.

5. Provide resources to industry leaders: We have updated the Guide to Federal Assistance. Billions of dollars are still available through federal programs in the United States. This guide describes each program, the eligible recipients, and how travel companies can access these resources.

Source: Interamerican Network

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