Washington cancels visa-free travel agreement with Romania

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has canceled the visa-free travel agreement between the United States and Romania, Azernews reports, citing foreign media sources and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Although Romania was officially added to the U.S. Visa Waiver Program on January 9, 2025, the agreement had not yet taken effect and was scheduled to come into force around March 31. However, the Department of Homeland Security decided to pause the program’s implementation to conduct additional assessments.

Following these reviews, the DHS concluded that the agreement posed concerns regarding border and immigration security, and officially terminated the program as of May 2, 2025.

The original visa-free arrangement had been negotiated and approved during the administration of President Joe Biden, Trump’s predecessor. The revocation marks a reversal in diplomatic travel policy, likely to affect thousands of Romanian travelers and potentially strain bilateral relations.