Overseas travel to the United States dropped 11.8% in August compared with the same month last year, according to Commerce Department figures, extending a summer decline in foreign tourism. The National Travel and Tourism Office recorded nearly 3.1 million overseas visitors during the month, leaving arrivals down 5.8% for the year.

The decline has accelerated over the summer. Overseas arrivals fell 1.8% in June and another 7% in July, when slightly more than 3 million visitors came to the United States. Travel from Canada, which is tracked separately, increased 8.8% in August but remained well below 2024 levels.

The weaker numbers came despite expectations that the 2026 World Cup would bring a major boost to international tourism. The United States co-hosted the tournament with Canada and Mexico, but visitor numbers associated with the event fell short of expectations.

Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, told Axios that the United States is "the only major country in the world losing visitation." He separately told the New York Post that high travel costs, tariff and trade disputes, and misinformation about travel to the United States were among the factors discouraging foreign visitors.

Freeman specifically pointed to concerns among some travelers that they could be detained after entering the country. He said some foreign visitors, particularly in Northern Europe, believe immigration policies are already in place that have not actually taken effect.

One example involves a proposal from U.S. Customs and Border Protection that would require travelers seeking authorization through the Visa Waiver Program to provide five years of social media history. CBP later indicated it could narrow the proposal to certain populations, and the requirement had not taken effect as of Tuesday.

The travel industry is now calling for increased efforts to attract international visitors. After travel executives met with President Donald Trump at the White House, the U.S. Travel Association announced a goal of reaching 100 million international visitors annually by 2030.

The goal would represent a substantial increase from the 68.3 million international visitors recorded in 2025, a figure that includes travelers from Canada and Mexico.

Trump has also addressed the issue, writing Sept. 4 that his administration is "making it easier to visit, and do business, in the United States." Freeman described the president's message as a "critical first step."

The U.S. Travel Association is also seeking continued federal support for Brand USA, the organization Congress created in 2009 to promote the United States to international travelers. The association says the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed by Trump in July 2025, reduced Brand USA's potential federal funding from as much as $100 million annually to $20 million.

Freeman argued that reducing promotional funding comes at a difficult time for the U.S. tourism industry and said Brand USA could also help counter misinformation about traveling to the country.

He also criticized what he described as treating legal foreign visitors as "collateral damage" in efforts to combat illegal immigration, arguing that the approach could discourage legitimate tourism.