Create tourism jobs by reforming antiquated U.S. visa system

The United States in general and Washington state in particular are among the most sought-after travel destinations in the world. Visitors travel thousands of miles to experience attractions such as the Museum of Glass and soak in the scenery at Mount Rainier National Park.

Nationwide, travel generates $1.8 trillion per year in economic output and employs about 7.4 million Americans. Here in Washington, 143,800 people work at travel-related jobs – jobs that can’t be outsourced. Tourism creates $4.3 billion in earnings, $15.2 billion in visitor spending and $1 billion in state and local tax revenues.

But we could attract far more visitors to our fair state, bringing money and jobs to ease the economic pinch that so many in Pierce County are feeling.

The U.S. has been falling behind other countries in the race to attract overseas visitors. The Tacoma Regional Convention + Visitor Bureau, Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Port of Seattle are cooperatively investing in Chinese market development in partnership with destinations in British Columbia. But many travelers to Canada don’t have U.S. visas and can’t cross the border.

If getting a visa were easier, Washington’s tourism industry could expand, creating jobs to serve more visitors and boost our economy.

For the last decade, the number of travelers visiting the U.S. has remained essentially flat, even as the number of travelers worldwide increased by 60 million. Meanwhile, our competitors are seizing market share – and reaping the economic benefits. Between 2000 and 2010, long-haul travel to China increased 126 percent, while travel to India increased 124 percent. Italy was up 48 percent, Japan 32 percent and Australia 23 percent.

Prospective visitors to the U.S. from rapidly growing markets such as China, India and Brazil are often forced to wait more than three months to secure a visa. The U.S. has only five consular offices capable of processing U.S. visas in all of China, leaving 27 Chinese cities with populations more than two million with no local access to a U.S. visa.

U.S. visas to Chinese nationals are only good for a year, compared with 10 years for most countries. And it’s difficult for operators of group tours to secure visas for everyone on the tour. Meanwhile, Chinese citizens can obtain visas to visit Thailand, Malaysia or other destinations within a matter of hours or days.

So we join the U.S. Travel Association in calling on the State Department to reform the visa system, especially for China. The validity period for visas should be expanded to match the rest of the world. Changes should be made in consular operations so wait times for visa interviews are reduced. And group tour operators should be allowed to apply for visas for their Chinese clients.

The costs of upgrading and modernizing our visa system would be financed out of visa fees paid by international visitors, so no additional taxpayer dollars would be required and all the benefits would accrue to the U.S. economy. According to research by the U.S. Travel Association, simply winning back our share of the global long-haul travel market to 2000-01 levels would create 1.3 million new American jobs by 2020 and add $859 billion in economic output.

In a lackluster economy struggling to create jobs, few proposals offer more bang for the buck than smarter visa policies that will bring millions of additional international visitors – with money to spend – to the U.S.

Tammy Blount is the president and CEO of the Tacoma Regional Visitor + Convention Bureau. Kyle Smith is the president of Smith-Western Co. in Tacoma.