Romania has met the last criteria to be eligible to join the US visa waiver program, reducing the percentage share of rejection rates to below three percent.
The news was confirmed by the Romanian Ambassador to the US, Andrei Maruru, also implying that Romania is likely to reach its goal of joining the visa waiver program in 2025, VisaGuide.World reports.
Today is a big day, a day we have been waiting for a long, long time: as of today, Romania formally meets all the technical conditions to be part of the Visa Waiver program.
Romania Reduces Visa Rejection Rates to Below 3%
The Ambassador also pointed out that Romania has met the last condition set, which was the visa rejection rate below three percent. Now, with the fiscal year ending in October, the US is expected to issue an answer soon.
We are waiting for a confirmation from the American partners in the next period, but our assessment, based on the number of visa applications this year, as well as the strong downward trend in recent years, is that Romania has dropped below the three percent rejection rate.
The Type B visa rejection rates for Romanian applicants have changed drastically in the last few years. In 2021, the rejection rates were 17.09 percent and in the following year, those dropped to 12.61 percent.
In 2023, American authorities rejected around 8.79 percent of all visa applications – indicating that maintaining rejection rates under three percent has been a challenge.
Romanian Passport to Strengthen as US Admits the Country to Its Visa Waiver Program
According to the VisaGuide Passport Index, Romania has the 36th strongest passport in the world. This allows Romanian passport holders visa-free entry to 111 countries, while an eTA is required for entry to four countries.
A total of 31 countries, including here 27 Schengen countries, allow passport-free entry for Romanians, whereas a visa is required for entry to 25 countries.
When Romania enters the Visa Waiver Program, it will obtain the right to enter the US without a visa, which could boost its passport value.
This was the case with Kosovo, which once obtained visa liberalization from Schengen and had its passport ranking up by 90 positions, marking a historical jump. The most recent country to join the US VWP is Israel. Before it, Croatia had joined the program in October of 2021.