Now it's official: Anyone who has been to Cuba can no longer enter the USA without a visa with Esta. Not only do Cuba travelers no longer get an Esta. With a trip to Cuba, an existing Esta will also become invalid.

Individual cases had been known for months in which people were not allowed to enter the USA via Esta after a stay in Cuba. It doesn't matter whether the trip to the Caribbean country has just taken place or was a long time ago. Now the US immigration authorities are making it official: the Esta registration website now contains a note that the US has classified Cuba as a terror-supporting country. Persons who have traveled to countries with this status in the past will be denied entry via Esta.

However, this is not a general entry ban. Only participation in the visa waiver program, i.e. entry without a visa, is no longer possible. Instead of the uncomplicated Esta permit, which costs 21 euros and remains valid for two years, a regular visa must then also be applied for for tourist stays. However, this is only possible with an appointment at the consulate, which currently often has to be waited for for months, as the Swiss travel portal About Travel reports.

This is likely to hit tourism to Cuba hard again. In response to the tightened regulations, the Cuban border authorities have already announced that they will no longer stamp holidaymakers' passports or will only do so if explicitly requested. This should make it possible to disguise previous stays in Cuba for later entries into the USA. But even then, the trips do not go undetected: Although the online Esta application does not explicitly ask about a previous trip to Cuba, the applications are often checked at least randomly. If the concealment comes to light, for example because of Cuba photos posted on a social media channel, there is a risk of immediate deportation and a lifelong ban on entering the USA.