The refusal rate for US visas dropped to 8.79% in the fiscal year 2023, "the lowest level in the entire history of bilateral relations between Romania and the United States," the Romanian Embassy to the US announced. The figure comes from a report released by the US Department of State on the B1/B2 visa rejection rate between October 1, 2022, and September 30, 2023.

Romania has seen an accelerated decline in the US visa rejection rate in the last three years (17.03% in 2021, 12.61% in 2022), with a drop of 3.82% compared to the previous fiscal year, according to the same source, quoted by News.ro.

At the same time, the Embassy says, among the three candidate countries from the European Union that are not part of the Visa Waiver program, Romania registered the most significant decrease in percentage terms - the Republic of Cyprus registered a decline from 6.22% to 4.48%, and Bulgaria saw an increase from 10% in 2022 to 11.61% last year.

Andrei Muraru, Romania's ambassador to the United States, commented: "There is still a long way to go, but we are very optimistic as there is a real political intention to include Romania in the Visa Waiver Program, and both governments are fully committed to ensuring that all the requirements of the Visa Waiver Program are met. If everything goes according to plan and no major difficulties arise, we can estimate that Romania will be part of the American visa waiver program next year."

Prime minister Marcel Ciolacu said during his working visit to the US last December that Romania's entry into the Visa Waiver program will be announced this year, with the deadline being 2025.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

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