US-EU Differences Flare Over US Travel Data Requirements

By Victor Comras

Tensions are mounting again between the EU and US over planned new travel information requirements set by the Department of Homeland. The dispute is coming to a head just as transatlantic air traffic reaches its peak season. An interim agreement arranged last October is about to expire. And, the US has set July as the deadline for EU airlines to comply with new US information requirements.

Under the current interim pact, European air carriers provide information to US authorities on passengers boarding America-bound flights, including such details as credit card numbers, travel itineraries, addresses and telephone numbers. But, many European political leaders and Parliamentarians have balked at this arrangement. They are calling for a pull back on the information provided and increased data protection safeguards. Washington, on the other hand, is pushing hard for additional information, the right to acquire the information earlier, and to retain the information longer. The US also wants direct access to passenger data contained on the airline computers.

For its part, the EU wants to strictly limit the details provided and to ensure that the US takes specific steps to protect the data. This includes limiting its dissemination to fewer US agencies, and expunging the data shortly after the travel is completed. EU data protection officials have also demanded that the personal data sent to US authorities should be made anonymous and the identity of their owner only revealed if the data matches a profile in a terrorist database.

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