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Visa Waiver Program Expansion

As of November 17, 2008, nationals of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, the Republic of Korea and the Slovak Republic can travel without a visa for tourist and business travel of 90 days or less provided they meet the following requirements:

As of December 30, 2008, nationals of Malta are able to travel to the U.S. without a visa if they meet the following requirements:

• Possess a passport with an integrated chip (e-passport)
• Register on-line through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).
• Meet the standard VWP conditions (Please see below)

Review the Visa Waiver Program quick reference handout, as well as this webpage to learn more about VWP travel.  For more details about the Visa Waiver Program Expansion, please see the here.

Visa Waiver Program

Attention: All nationals or citizens of Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries who plan to travel to the United States for temporary business or pleasure will require an approved Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to boarding a carrier to travel by air or sea to the United States under the VWP. Please see here for details.

Eligible Japanese citizens may travel to the United States for business or pleasure without a visa provided they have a valid passport, a return or onward ticket, and will stay for no more than 90 days. Tourists and business people who take advantage of this program may not extend their stay in the United States beyond 90 days and may not change their visa status.

All VWP travelers, regardless of age or type of passport used, must present a machine-readable passport. In addition, depending on when VWP travelers’ passports were issued, other passport requirements apply:

• Machine-readable passports issued or renewed/extended on or after 10/26/06 – requires integrated chip with information from the data page (e-Passport).
  

• Machine-readable passports issued or renewed/extended between 10/26/05 and 10/25/06 – requires digital photograph printed on the data page.

• Machine-readable passports issued or renewed/extended before 10/26/05 – no further requirements.

• Temporary, emergency, official and diplomatic passports are exempted from digital photo and electronic chip requirements, but must be machine-readable. This rule applies to all VWP countries except for Germany. Temporary or emergency German passports are not valid for VWP travel, and must contain a visa for admission to the United States.

If a passport was issued on or after October 26, 2005, and it does not meet these requirements, the traveler will need to obtain a visa. For more information, please see Visa Waiver Program Passport Requirements.

Travellers may also use the waiver to make their initial entry into the United States from Canada or Mexico by land. In such cases, upon entering at a land border port of entry you may be required to present proof of financial solvency and a residence abroad to which you intend to return. There is no list of specific documents which must be presented.

The waiver program has been extended to include nationals of the following countries: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

For citizens of Canada, Mexico, and British Overseas Territories of Bermuda, please see here.

Eligible persons in transit through the United States to another country may also use the Visa Waiver Program.

To enter the U.S. on the Visa Waiver Program, travellers must be:

• A citizen of one of the countries listed above, travelling on an unexpired passport and IN POSESSION OF AN INDIVIDUAL MACHINE READABLE PASSPORT. Details..

• Travelling for business, pleasure, or transit

• Staying in the United States for 90 days or less
  
  

AND if entering the United States by air or sea must be:

• Holding a return or onward ticket. If travelling on an electronic ticket, a copy of the itinerary must be carried for presentation to the immigration inspector.
  
  Note: Travellers with onward tickets terminating in Mexico, Canada, Bermuda or the Caribbean Islands must be legal permanent residents of these areas
• Entering the United States aboard an air or sea carrier that has agreed to participate in the program. This includes aircraft of a U.S. corporation that has entered into an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security to carry passengers under the Visa Waiver Program.
  
  Note: Other private or official aircraft or vessels do not meet this requirement and
• In possession of a completed form I-94W, obtainable from airline and shipping companies

OR if entering the United States by land from Canada or Mexico must:

• Possess a completed form I-94W, issued by the immigration authorities at the port of entry, and a $6.00 fee, payable only in U.S. dollars

Important: Some travellers may not be eligible to enter the United States visa free under the VWP. These include people who have been arrested, even if the arrest did not result in a criminal conviction, those with criminal records (even if subject of a pardon, amnesty, or other act of clemency) , certain serious communicable illnesses, those who have been refused admission into, or have been deported from, the United States, or have previously overstayed on the visa waiver program. Such travellers must apply for a visa. If they attempt to travel without a visa, they may be refused entry into the United States.

Note: Travellers with minor traffic offenses which did not result in an arrest and/or conviction for the offense may travel visa free, provided they are otherwise qualified. If the traffic offense occurred while you were in the United States, and you have an outstanding fine against you or your did not attend your court hearing, it is possible there may be a warrant out for your arrest, and you will experience problems when applying for admission into the U.S. Therefore you should resolve the issue before travelling by contacting the court where you were to appear. If you do not know the address of the court then information is available from the Internet at: www.refdesk.com.

Passport Validity: If travelling under the Visa Waiver Program, the passport must be valid for at least 90 days from the date on which the holder enters the United States. If not, the holder will be admitted until the expiration date on the passport. Note: Passport holders from Andorra, Brunei, and San Marino must be in possession of a passport valid for at least six months from the date of departure from the United States, even if traveling visa free under the Visa Waiver Program.

Refused a Visa: Travellers who have been refused a visa under the provisions of Section 214(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act may be denied entry if travelling under Visa Waiver Program. It is therefore in the traveller’s best of interest to get a visa before departure. For information on applying for a visa, please see the here.

• Transit under the Visa Waiver Program
• Guam Visa Waiver Program
• Emergency, Temporary, Official, or Diplomatic Passports under the Visa Waiver Program

Transit under the Visa Waiver Program:

Travellers who qualify for visa free travel under the Visa Waiver Program are eligible to transit the United States. Application for entry is made on the arrival/departure form I-94W provided by the airline or shipping company. If transiting the United States to a destination in Canada, Mexico or the adjacent islands, the traveller may re-enter the United States on the return journey using any mode of transport, as long as the total visit, including both periods of time spent in transit and in Canada, Mexico or the adjacent islands, does not exceed 90 days. If transiting to a destination outside of Canada, Mexico, or the adjacent islands, the return journey must be on a participating carrier, but need not be within 90 days, as the traveler will be required to make a new application for admission and therefore, required to complete a new arrival/departure form, I-94W. Travellers transiting the United States to take up residence in Mexico, Canada, Bermuda or the Caribbean Islands must be legal permanent residents of these areas.

Important reminder: Visa-free travel does not include those who plan to study, work or remain more than 90 days. Such travellers need visas. If an immigration officer believes that a visa-free traveller is going to study, work or stay longer than 90 days, the officer will refuse to admit the traveller.

Guam Visa Waiver Program(GVWP):

In addition to the Visa Waiver Program, there is a separate visa waiver program for Guam. The following countries are eligible for the Guam Visa Waiver Program: Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Taiwan (only authorized for citizens and residents arriving directly from Taiwan or arriving on a flight from Taiwan which stopped in Saipan en route; the traveler must possess a Taiwan National Identity Card), United Kingdom (including British National Overseas), Vanuatu, and Western Samoa.

The Guam Visa Waiver Program allows the traveler to enter Guam visa free for 15 days or fewer for business or pleasure. To utilize the program, you must:

• Arrive on a GVWP signatory carrier

• Be traveling only to Guam (no onward flights to other U.S. destinations is permitted)

• Have a nonrefundable, and nontransferable round-trip ticket, departure date not exceeding 15 days from the date of admission

• Have a completed and signed form I-736 and Form I-94

Persons who are travelling to Guam and utilitizing the GVWP do not need to have a machine-readable or e-passport with an integrated chip. They also do not need to get an ESTA.

Travelers who plan to spend more than 15 days in Guam or plan to travel on to another U.S. destination can utilize the regular Visa Waiver Program (VWP) for their trip to Guam. Using the regular VWP requires an ESTA, a machine-readable passport, and under some circumstances an e-passport with an integrated chip.

Travelers going to any U.S. destination (including Guam) who plan to work or study in the U.S. or have certain medical problems, criminal convictions, prior denial of entry into the U.S., etc. will continue to need visas.

For further information, please see http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/without/without_1990.html .

How about Korean citizens?

If you are a Korean citizen going to Guam for business or pleasure for 15 days or less, you can continue to use the Guam Visa Waiver Program.

You can also utilize the regular Visa Waiver Program for up to 90 days of business or pleasure in Guam or other U.S. destinations as of November 17 so long as you have an e-passport and ESTA. See http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/without/without_1990.html

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