Israeli efforts to be included in the United States' Visa Waiver Program have again failed to succeed, Israel Hayom learned Monday. The Visa Waiver Program enables nationals of 38 participating countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without first obtaining entry visas. Israel has tried to be included in the program for years, through several U.S. administrations, but has always been turned down. The Foreign Ministry had hoped that the friendly Trump administration would grant Israelis the coveted waivers. But the issue hit a serious snag over the American demand to include Israeli citizens in the U.S. fingerprints database. This means allowing Israel's national fingerprint database to be fully accessible to the FBI's Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System -- a matter that raises right to privacy issues. Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely, who is spearheading the effort to include Israel in the program, said acceding to the American demand requires a legislative change in Israel. She said a special team in the Foreign Ministry has been tasked with trying to advance the issue and devise a solution. "The addition of Israel to the list of countries included in the Visa Waiver Program would be an important achievement for the deep friendship between Israel and the United States. Under the Trump administration, I believe there is a great chance that we can make progress on this issue," Hotovely said.
