What are these countries whose citizens can enter the United States without a visa?
Friday, December 15, 2022 ((rezonodwes.com)) – In addition to Canada, citizens of more than 30 countries can enter the United States without a visa. Citizens of these countries benefit from the visa waiver program.
The visa waiver program allows citizens of certain countries to travel to the United States without a visa for up to 90 days for tourism or business. However, travelers are required to obtain an electronic travel authorization (Electronic system for travel authorization – ESTA).
Citizens of the following countries are required to obtain an ESTA and provide a machine-readable (eligible) or biometric (PDF 126 KB) passport to travel to the US without a visa (PDF 127 KB). To learn the specifics of passports required under this program, visit the website of the US Embassy of your country of citizenship:
Germany, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, South Korea, Denmark, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Monaco, Norway, New Zealand, Netherlands, Portugal, Republic of Malta, Czech Republic, Great Britain, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland.
Conditions for admission to the United States under the visa waiver program:
- Be a citizen of a Visa Waiver Program beneficiary country.
- Get an electronic travel authorization (ESTA).
- Present a passport issued by one of the Visa Waiver Program beneficiary countries and valid for six months beyond the intended period of stay.
- Plan tourist or business destinations or plan a stopover or connection.
- The length of stay is limited to a maximum of 90 days.
This was reported by the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Beginning September 8, 2010, all travelers to the United States under the visa waiver program will be required to pay a fee of $14. When applying for an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization).
Received by air or sea:
- Have a return ticket or ticket that provides continuity of travel outside the United States: persons with a final destination in Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, or the Caribbean must have permanent resident status in the applicable country.
- Traveling aboard an air or sea carrier that is a signatory to the Visa Waiver Program and has a Form I-94W available from the carrier.
Land acquisition from Canada or Mexico:
Submit the form I-94Wissued by immigration authorities upon arrival and pay a $6 fee (payable in US dollars only).
Have a criminal conviction(s), have a serious communicable disease, have been previously removed from the United States, overstayed, etc. prohibits anyone from entering American territory. Affected individuals are not permitted to travel under a Visa Waiver. At the risk of being turned away, they must apply for a visa under restrictive conditions.
People who wish to study, work professionally, or stay longer than 90 days cannot travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program. A visa is required. Any traveler without a visa who is suspected by an immigration officer of wanting to study, work, or stay longer than 90 days will not be allowed to enter the United States.
Emergency and temporary passports:
As of July 1, 2009, emergency and temporary passports are only valid for travel to the United States or for transit under the visa waiver program in electronic format (e-passports). The e-passport has an internal chip with identity information, a scanned photograph and other information about the holder; its cover is characterized by a golden symbol. Travelers arriving in the United States under the visa waiver program with passports that do not meet the required requirements may be subject to additional formalities and/or denied admission to the United States. At ports of entry, Customs and Immigration (CBP) may exercise discretion for medical conditions or emergency travel.
How to apply:
Applications for ESTA permits can be made online at the official DHS website: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/. Please review the DHS warning about unauthorized ESTA sites. ESTA authorization requests can be submitted at any time prior to travel. The ESTA authorization will generally be valid for two years. Authorizations will be valid for multiple entries into the United States.
