By Pedro Bianco
ESTA authorization, linked to the Visa Waiver Program, is a permit issued by the U.S. government. It allows tourist or business trips of up to 90 days, but it is not available to just any foreign national, only to citizens of 42 countries. In Latin America, the only country in the program is Chile.
What ESTA is
ESTA stands for Electronic System for Travel Authorization. It is not a visa or a traditional form: it is an electronic authorization requested online that determines whether a person qualifies to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program, or VWP. It replaces the visa application process, but only for those who qualify.
Who it is for
Only citizens of countries in the Visa Waiver Program can use ESTA, and there are 42 today. They are:
- Andorra
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Brunei
- Chile
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Japan
- Republic of Korea
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Monaco
- Netherlands (citizens of Curacao, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, Saba and Sint Maarten cannot travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program if they apply for admission with passports from these countries)
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Qatar
- San Marino
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Taiwan (this refers only to people who have unrestricted permanent residence rights in Taiwan and hold an electronic passport with a personal identification number)
- United Kingdom (British citizens who have unrestricted permanent residence rights in the United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man)
What it allows and what it does not
The ESTA allows stays of up to 90 days per trip for tourism, business or transit to another country. It does not allow you to work for a U.S. employer or receive a salary from a source in the U.S. It also does not allow formal academic study, and the stay cannot be extended or changed to another immigration status once in the country.
The authorization allows travelers to board a trip and present themselves at a port of entry, but the final decision on admission is made by the officer of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) upon arrival. In other words, it is a travel authorization, not a guaranteed entry.
Requirements to apply
To apply for ESTA, generally speaking, you need:
- To be a citizen or national of one of the 42 countries in the Visa Waiver Program.
- To have a valid electronic passport (chip-enabled, machine-readable) that remains valid throughout the stay.
- To travel for tourism, business, or transit for a maximum of 90 days.
- To complete the online application by answering the eligibility questions (criminal history, immigration history, and travel history, among others).
- To have a valid email address, a payment method, and contact details in the U.S.
- To submit one application per traveler, including infants.