International Travel Receipts and Payments Program

The International Travel Receipts and Payments program provides information on U.S. travel and tourism receipts (exports), payments (imports), and the balance of trade; more simply, what international visitors spend in the United States (or, conversely, what U.S. residents spend abroad) on travel and tourism-related goods and services. We provide this data in an interactive tool, the Monthly Travel Trade Monitor.

The National Travel and Tourism Office obtains these datasets from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). We analyze the data and publish preliminary data in March, revised data in June, and final annual data in October.

International Travel Receipts and Payments Program Details

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Downloadable Excel Files

Monthly Travel and Tourism Trade Statistics (Exports, Imports, and Trade Balance)

Annual Travel and Tourism Trade Statistics (Exports, Imports, and Trade Balance)

Annual Travel Trade Statistics by Country and World Region

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In 2009 the International Monetary Fund released the sixth edition of the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual, which included a definitional change for ‘travel’ and the trade of travel-related goods and services.

As a result, the BEA embarked on a path towards a comprehensive restructuring of the U.S. international economic accounts, the most extensive restructuring since 1976, in an effort to bring our international accounts into closer conformity with international guidelines. In June and October 2014, the BEA issued the restructured and revised trade data including new estimates of travel and tourism revising the timeline for travel spending for all world regions and countries from 1999-2013.

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Travel Receipts and Payments: These accounts cover purchases of goods and services by both U.S. persons traveling abroad and by international visitors traveling in the United States for business or personal reasons. These goods and services include food, lodging, recreation, gifts, entertainment, local transportation in the country of travel, and other items incidental to a foreign visit. U.S. travel transactions, with both Canada and Mexico including border transactions, such as day trips for shopping and sightseeing. For 1999-2013 and into the future, the travel spending will also include receipts from education, medical and temporary worker spending.

Passenger Fare Receipts and Payments: These accounts cover the fares received by U.S. air carriers from international visitors for travel between the United States and foreign countries and between two foreign points, the fares received by U.S. vessel operators for travel on cruise vessels, and the fares paid by U.S. residents to foreign air carriers for travel between the United States and foreign countries.

Learn more about the BEA revisions and methodology

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