The United States should increase the capacity to process visas for Brazil and China by 40% over the next 12 months, ordered President Barack Obama recently, as part of a stimulus package for tourism for their country, announced in Disney World in Florida.
The executive order issued by the White House asked the ministries to prepare a plan within 60 days to make sure that “80% of visa applications should be processed within three weeks” in these two countries, with few exceptions involving national security.
“People want to come here. China and Brazil are two countries with the greatest accumulation [of visa applications]. So that’s what we’re doing – telling the world that America is open for business”, the president said according to the newspaper “Chicago Tribune”.
The requirements for tourists and foreign businessmen have been the subject of complaints by some emerging countries that do not belong to the so-called visa waiver program, which benefits most European countries and rich nations and allies of the United States .
Senior diplomatic officials have already announced in November/2011 that will increase the number of staff in the embassies of Brazil and China due to high demand for visas.
Of the 820,000 Brazilians who asked permission to travel to the United States between October 2010 and September 2011 (U.S. fiscal year), 791,000 got it.
The demand has exceeded 40% in the previous year’s numbers.
The United States granted 885,000 visas to Chinese, compared with more than one million requests during the same period, an increase of 34% in demand.
According to estimates cited by the White House, the growth of middle classes in China, Brazil and India should lead to an increased number of trips to these countries 135%, 274% and 50% respectively by 2016.
The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that Chinese tourists spend more than $ 6,000 when traveling to the United States, with all included, and the Brazilians about $ 5000.
The presidential order occurs in a context of loss of international market, said the White House.
“The U.S. market share in the spending of international tourists fell from 17% to 11% between 2000 and 2010,” said the statement issued by the Government detailing the measures.
Given this situation, Obama announced his goal of making the U.S. the first global tourism destination to boost job creation within the sector, the White House.
“The more people visit the United States, more Americans back to work,” he said in a statement after signing a decree calling several federal agencies to take measures to stimulate tourism in the country.
via G1 – Obama orders increase in visas for Brazil and China – in World News.
