A new rule has been implemented in El Salvador, causing travel to the United States via this Central American country to become significantly more expensive for Indian and African citizens.
El Salvador is now charging passengers, including those with Indian passports, an additional fee of $1,000 (approximately ₹83,000) to travel to America.
This decision was made to regulate and reduce the influx of travelers using El Salvador as a transit point to reach the United States.
The Port Authority of El Salvador announced this rule on its website on October 20.
Key Details of the Rule:
Fee Structure: Under this rule, citizens from more than 50 African countries traveling to the United States via El Salvador will be required to pay a fee of $1,000.
Including Value Added Tax (VAT), the total charge amounts to $1,130, approximately ₹94,000.
Utilization of Funds:
The funds collected through this fee will be directed toward improving the country’s main international airport.
El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, recently met with Brian Nichols, the US Assistant Secretary of State for Western Affairs, where various matters were discussed, including addressing irregular migration patterns.
Background and Need for the Rule:
According to the US Customs and Border Patrol, a record number of 3.2 million migrants arrived in the United States between October 2022 and September 2023.
Many of these migrants passed through Central America on their way to the United States, leading to concerns over irregular migration patterns.
Effective Date:
The new rule took effect on October 23 and was implemented due to the rising volume of passengers using El Salvador’s primary international airport for transit to the United States.
Airline companies are now required to report daily to authorities the details of passengers arriving from 57 countries in Africa and India.
To comply with this rule, the Colombian airline company Avianca is notifying African and Indian passengers that they must pay $1,000, plus VAT, before boarding flights to El Salvador.
This new regulation represents an effort by El Salvador to manage the movement of passengers transiting through the country and to fund improvements to its key international airport.
