As shared by the US authorities, the visa refusal rate for Romanian passport holders stands at 2.61 per cent, thus qualifying for the scheme.

Data from the US State Department show that for the fiscal year 2024, between October 1, 2023 and September 30, 2024, the refusal rate of tourist visa applications fell below the three per cent threshold that is imposed by American legislation.

The authority further disclosed that during the same period mentioned above, Romanians submitted a total of 80,596 B1/B2 visa applications, which is almost double the number of applications submitted in the previous fiscal year.

Of the total number of applications submitted, more than 78,000 were approved, representing a record number.

Romania’s Accession to Visa Waiver Program Will Help Strengthen Partnership, Romanian Ambassador Says

Commenting on the matter, the Romanian Ambassador to the US, Andrei Muraru, said that the entry of Romania into the Visa Waiver Program will help strengthen the partnership between the two countries.

Ambassador Muraru further noted that the accession of Romania in the scheme has been a very integral and transparent process.

In addition, Ambassador Muraru said that the decision would give the chance to create better people-to-people relationships with Americans and build an even more prosperous partnership.

Different from Romania, which has fulfilled the criteria, two other EU countries, Cyprus and Bulgaria, are still in the process of joining the US Visa Waiver Program.

Cyprus submitted a bill to join the US Visa Waiver scheme in July 2024. The country aims to join the scheme next year.

As for Bulgaria, the country intends to reduce the visa rejection rates as soon as possible and launch a campaign to raise awareness about joining the scheme.