iVisa launches tracker as visa rules tighten worldwide

iVisa has launched a Global Policy Tracker for changes to visa, ETA and arrival card rules. The free tool is updated weekly and has recorded at least 97 changes across 61 countries since October 2025.

Entries are based on government and other verified sources. They cover changes such as new digital entry forms, fee increases and disruptions to recently introduced systems.

The launch comes amid heavy international travel volumes. UN Tourism recorded 1.52 billion international tourist arrivals worldwide, almost 60 million more than in 2024 and the highest total on record.

Tighter rules

Data highlighted by iVisa points to a broader tightening of travel requirements, including for travellers from countries with traditionally strong passport access. The Henley Passport Index's 2026 Global Mobility Report found that the US and the UK each recorded their steepest annual losses in visa-free access on record, with the US losing seven destinations and the UK eight in one year.

A mid-2026 update moved the UK back to sixth place after it regained visa-free access to China. Over two decades, the US has fallen from fourth to 10th place in the ranking, while the UK moved from third to seventh before that partial recovery.

US entry controls have also widened. Congressional Research Service data cited in the tracker shows that 39 countries now face a full or partial US travel ban, up from about 16 in mid-2025.

Separately, a proposed rule posted by the Department of Homeland Security in December 2025 remains under White House budget office review. If implemented, it would require citizens of all 42 Visa Waiver Program countries, including the UK, Germany, Japan and Australia, to disclose five years of social media history, the email address used over the past 10 years, and the phone numbers and home addresses of immediate family members.

System strain

The UK ETA became mandatory for 85 nationalities in February 2026. During the summer peak, a system outage led to delays of more than 60 hours for some travellers, while carriers faced fines of up to £2,000 per passenger for boarding an ineligible traveller, according to UK Home Office figures.

Digital arrival cards are also becoming more common. The tracker lists at least 16 countries that have required one over the past year, including South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Cambodia and Papua New Guinea.

These forms are separate from visas or ETAs and must be completed before travel, adding another step even where broader visa rules have not changed.

The European Union has faced similar operational problems on a larger scale. Its Entry/Exit System went live across 29 Schengen states in April 2026 and, within days, an easyJet flight left 122 passengers behind in Milan. By summer, some border crossings were reporting waits of up to five hours, according to the European Commission.

Nine member states asked Brussels to pause the rollout, but the request was declined. The EU has since delayed its planned €20 ETIAS travel authorisation, which had been expected to launch alongside the Entry/Exit System in late 2026, until some point in 2027 without setting a new date.

Sri Lanka provides another example of volatility in entry rules. It made its pre-departure ETA mandatory on October 15, 2025, revoked the requirement on October 30, then experienced a system disruption in February 2026 that delayed approval notices before restoring the pre-departure requirement on May 25, 2026.

Japan has also changed its pricing, increasing its single-entry visa fee from ¥3,000 to ¥15,000 in July in its first rise in nearly 50 years.

Traveller questions

The tracker is designed to help travellers follow frequent administrative changes that may fall outside major policy announcements. Coverage currently leans towards high-traffic routes and English-language sources rather than every travel policy change worldwide.

David Perez, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of iVisa, said customer queries drove the project.

"Every one of these changes looks small on its own: a new form here, a fee increase there. Add them up over a year, and the pattern is unmistakable: the rules are moving faster than most travelers, or the airlines and agencies serving them, can keep track of.

"It feels like the right moment to put that pattern in one place because our own customers kept asking the same question: 'Did something change since the last time I traveled?' Now there's somewhere to check."