Washington - Prague managed to bypass the EU as it signed a bilateral agreement with Washington on visa-free travel to the USA for Czech citizens.

Now it seems that this agreement will not change much.

Electronic registration, a less time-consuming version of a visa application, will be required starting January next year obligatory for all visa-free states - even those that were not subjected to such procedures previously.

US Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff announced this on Tuesday, June 3.

Electronic System of Travel Authorization will ask travelers to fill out an electronic form, which will be available online, no later than three days before departure. According to Chertoff, the form asks for the same information as the I-94 immigration card, which is the green form currently filled out after arrival on the US soil by passengers from visa-waiver countries.

Are you a war-criminal, sir?

In addition to personal data, the US authorities will also ask for information about the passengers' address of residence in the USA, his physical and mental illnesses, or, for example, whether he or she participated in Nazi persecutions during World War Two.

Electronic registration will be valid for two years and will enable its holder to make numerous trips to the country.

"History has showed us that it is naive to think that travelers from countries without visa obligations automatically present less of a risk than passengers with visas," explained Chertoff.

For example, a French national Zacarias Moussaoui, who participated in the September 11 attacks, entered the country without a visa.

However, experts don't believe that the electronic registration system (ESTA) will be able to be introduced that quickly.