Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s Cuba Trip Questioned by GOP Congress

First, a Cuban official complained that Beyoncé and Jay-Z's visit to Havana wasn't getting enough attention. Now it may be getting too much of the wrong kind.

In a letter to Adam Szubin, director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control, U.S. Representatives Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart asked for "information regarding the type of license that Beyoncé and Jay-Z received, for what purpose, and who approved such travel." Both representatives are from districts in south Florida, a region known as a destination for Cuban exiles and a longtime stronghold of opposition to the Castro-helmed Cuban government. The letter refers to the latter as a "murderous regime" and points out that tourism on the island is clearly prohibited under U.S. law.

Reuters reported that in Washington this week, the State Department said it had no prior knowledge of Beyoncé and Jay-Z's visit, and a spokeswoman at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana said she did not know if they had obtained a license for their trip. In photographs, the couple certainly looked the part of tourists, and they were seen in the tourist quarter of Old Havana and in the upscale restaurant La Guarida. Members of the Cuban government have referred to it as a tourist visit, and the Cuban press has followed suit in its coverage of the trip.

In 2012 the Obama administration lifted some restrictions governing travel to Cuba. Under the "people-to-people" travel program, visitors must have a full-time schedule of educational exchange activities that will result in "meaningful interaction between the travelers and individuals in Cuba," according to U.S. Treasury Department guidelines. But the prohibitions against tourist travel in Cuba remained untouched.

Only two American citizens in the past have ever been prosecuted for such travel, according to travel journalist Christopher P. Baker. The first such case happened in January 2005 with a Michigan couple who came there in 2001 on a religious mission and were forced to pay $5,250. The second case occasioned a penalty of $780. An individual can be fined $55,000 for trading illegally with Cuba under provisions of the Helms-Burton Bill, plus an extra $250,000 under the Trading with the Enemy Act, though most fines have been for far less. The top civil fine is $7,500 for the first trip. Many travelers enter through a third country, such as Mexico. Cuban customs officials are said to be familiar with the practice and neglect to stamp the passport of U.S. citizens on tourist visits.

Representatives for Beyoncé did not immediately respond for comment on Saturday.