At present, tourists from Guam and Northern Mariana Islands, whose main economic pillars are tourism, mainly come from Japan and South Korea. In recent years, the number of Japanese tourists has decreased by 5% to 7% every year, while the number of China tourists has increased significantly. Last year, China tourists accounted for 7.5% of the total number of foreign tourists in the Northern Mariana Islands, which became the hope of local economic revitalization. Fidel, governor of the Northern Mariana Islands, even exclaimed that if Chinese and Russian tourists are not granted visa-free treatment, the Northern Mariana Islands will face "economic extinction".
According to a US federal law passed in May this year, the US Department of Homeland Security controls the immigration clearance between Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, and the visa-free projects in the two places are integrated. The Department of Homeland Security has the right to decide to increase the local list of visa-free countries.
In mid-September this year, Governor Camacho of Guam specially led a delegation to Washington to discuss visa-free treatment for China tourists with officials of the Department of Homeland Security.
It is reported that the main concern of the US is that China tourists will stay in Guam or seek political asylum. Camacho told the local media that Guam needs two years of experiments, and there are safeguards to prevent China tourists from staying, including Fujian, where the smuggling incident occurred, which will be excluded from the visa-free plan; Visitors are required to register within 72 hours after arrival; Visitors check in and the deposit is confiscated; Punish China tourism companies that have tourists stranded.
At present, if tourists from China want to go to Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, they must apply for a "tourist entry permit" a few weeks before departure, conduct background checks, hold a round-trip air ticket, provide a guarantee from the travel company and proof of financial support from the hotel or individual before they can obtain a 30-day travel permit to Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.