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American Visa Bureau » ESTA Application Information
The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows foreign nationals from certain countries to travel in America for a period of 90 days for business or pleasure without having to obtain a paper visa in advance. However, travelers must apply for an ESTA before travelling.
In cases where the foreign national does not hold a passport which meets new immigration requirements (i.e. contains a digital photo and machine readable text), they will still need to apply for a B-type Visitor Visa.
To apply for an ESTA and travel to the United States under this the Visa Waiver program, you must:
All Visa Waiver Program ("VWP") travelers, regardless of age or type of passport used, must present machine-readable passports. In addition, depending on when VWP travelers' passports were issued, other passport requirements will apply:
The requirements your passport needs to meet are dependent on your country of citizenship and the issue date of your passport.
Alternatively, click your country of citizenship below for relevant ESTA passport requirement information.
Depending on when your passport was issued, it will need to meet certain requirements. These requirements are as follows:
New passports issued by Visa Waiver Program countries on or after October 26, 2006 must be e-Passports, which include an integrated computer chip capable of storing biographic information from the data page, as well as other biometric information, such as the required digital photograph of the holder.
You can identify an e-Passport by whether the e-Passport symbol appears on the front cover of the passport (see the image to the right).
Older, but still valid passports issued or renewed/extended by Visa Waiver Program countries between October 26, 2005, and October 25, 2006, must include a digital photo printed on the data page, or the traveller will be required to obtain a visa.
You can identify a digital photo as one that is printed on the page, not a photo that is glued or laminated into the passport (see the image to the right).
Older, but still valid passports issued by Visa Waiver Program countries before October 26, 2005, must have a machine-readable zone.
You can identify a machine-readable passport by the presence of two lines of text as letters, numbers and chevrons (i.e. <<<) at the bottom of the personal information page, along with the bearer’s picture (see the image to the right).
If you are a citizen of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Republic of Malta, Slovakia or South Korea, then you MUST present an e-Passport in order to qualify for the ESTA
If you don't have an e-Passport, you will be required to apply for an alternative visa for travel to the United States.
e-Passport include an integrated computer chip capable of storing biographic information from the data page, as well as other biometric information, such as the required digital photograph of the holder.
ESTA applicants with a physical or mental disorder must declare so when making their ESTA application. A definition is provided below.
Physical or Mental Disorders
With regard to physical or mental disorders, answer 'Yes' to this question if:
(a) You currently have a physical or mental disorder and a history of behavior associated with the disorder that may pose or has posed a threat to your property, safety or welfare or that of others; or
(b) You had a physical or mental disorder and a history of behavior associated with the disorder that has posed a threat to your property, safety or welfare or that of others and the behavior is likely to recur or lead to other harmful behavior.
Answer 'No' if:
(a) You currently have no physical or mental disorders; or
(b) You have or had a physical or mental disorder without associated behavior that may pose or has posed a threat to your property, safety or welfare of that of others; or
(c) You currently have a physical or mental disorder with associated behavior, but that behavior has not posed, does not currently pose nor will pose a threat to your property, safety or welfare or that of others; or
(d) You had a physical or mental disorder with associated behavior that posed a threat to your property, safety or welfare or that of others, but that behavior is unlikely to recur.
ESTA applicants with a communicable disease must declare so when making their ESTA application. A definition is provided below.
Communicable diseases
Under United States law communicable diseases of public health significance include:
Cholera
Diphtheria
Tuberculosis, infectious
Plague
Smallpox
Yellow Fever
Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers, including Ebola, Lassa, Marburg, Crimean-Congo
Severe acute respiratory illnesses capable of transmission to other persons and likely to cause mortality.
ESTA applicants who are a drug abuser or drug addict must declare so when making their ESTA application. A definition is provided below.
Drug Abusers and Drug Addicts
Under United States law persons may not be admissible if they have been determined to be a drug abuser or drug addict.
For further information refer to § 212(a)(1)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(1)(A), and corresponding regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations.
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