According to newly
released survey results, the U.S. customs and entry procedures for inbound
international travelers is "embarrassingly" lengthy and inefficient.
Such entry delays, according to a poll of 1,200 travelers from other countries,
are deterrents for those considering a visit to the United States.
"By experience and word of mouth, at least 100
million overseas travelers are receiving the message to avoid travel to the
U.S.—costing the economy at least $95 billion in total output and 518,900 jobs,"
according to the U.S. Travel
Association, which conducted the study with Consensus Research Group between
January and October 2012. Survey respondents included travelers from Brazil,
China, France, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom that had traveled to other
countries "during the past five years."
According to the
research, one in seven respondents who had traveled to the United States missed
a connecting flight "due to the long wait time or delays" at U.S.
customs checkpoints. Those missed connections, survey respondents indicated,
lead to missed meetings and hotel and car rental cancellations.
Based on either their
experiences or perceptions of U.S. immigration and customs processes, about 44
percent of those who would be traveling for business and 22 percent who would
be traveling for both business and leisure said they would not come to the
United States in the next five years.
According to U.S. Travel,
"an investment in 1,000 additional Customs and Border Protection officers—at
a cost of approximately $150 million—could help to meet a 30-minute standard
for processing guests and realize tens of billions in new traveler spending."