As I understand it, this is not a final determination. The vote by the EU Parliament was strictly a non-binding resolution that may be taken up again in a few months or perhaps never.

So although a serious concern for Americans traveling in the EU, it is far from certain this will ever happen. Stay tuned!

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The EU has been threatening for several years now to do this because Romania and Bulgaria joined in 2007 and have not been able to get "Visa Waiver" status. Poland also has had problems trying to get that status because they have a higher "Overstay rate" than other EU countries. However, this time with a new administration that seems to be intent on keeping foreign immigrants out of the US, the EU may follow through and require a visa for Americans to enter any EU country which would include Ireland. The cost for a "Visa War" could be very high on both sides of the Atlantic. Right now if a citizen of one of those excluded countries wants a Visa, they MUST have a interview at a US consulate in their country and the cost is $160 US. That cost is not refunded if no visa is issued. They lose it. For citizens of Romania or Bulgaria, $160 is a lot of money. But then, let us look at another insult which does not impact US citizens going to the EU countries. If a citizen of a country on the "Visa Waiver" list wishes to come here, they MUST register at least 3 days prior to travel on the internet using the ESTA form and pay the US government $14 to do so. Yet when Americans go to ANY EU country, there are no fees. How long do you expect the Europeans to put up with this ? We get off free and they pay. Take a look at what Brazil did. They have a "Reciprocal Visa Fee" of $160 because they did not like our fee of $160. Tit for tat. I spoke with many Romanian citizens when I stayed there and they do not have a warm feeling about the US for that and some other reasons. Treating them unfairly is not a great idea.

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