ESTA - Entering the USA

Now that the days of Covid testing and quarantines are behind us there are only really three documents that you need to travel to the United States. You need proof of being twice vaccinated, travel insurance and an approved ESTA.

To be eligible for an ESTA you must be a citizen of a country that is a part of the Visa Waiver program. For British Citizens, we are a part of this, and so will a majority of other European countries. However, do double check before you apply.

The process of obtaining an ESTA is fairly straight forward and can be sorted within 15 minutes by the time you have created an account, filled in the various questions and paid. You should firstly only ever obtain your ESTA through this website: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/. Never get anyone else to do this on your behalf and when you are approved have a printed copy ready for your travels and for the Border team at US customs. The cost for this process has recently been increased to $21 but this ESTA will permit you to enter the US an unlimited amount of times for a period of two years.

Do not panic if you are not accepted immediately, many people say that they are accepted immediately but sometimes it may take just under an hour or so to be approved. In my experience it has taken around 45 minutes to be approved, this may be because it was the first time I ever applied for one.

It is important to remember that this ESTA only permits you to travel and visit the United States for business or for pleasure. You also can only stay for an absolute maximum of 90 days at a time and overstaying in the US will lead to heavy consequences. Furthermore, if you stay just under the 90 days and then re-enter to refresh your 90 day period, you can expect to be questioned by border control. They will want to prove that you are not trying to live in the United States. A simple policy if you travel frequently, spend more time outside of the US than you do in it.

A warning to those who have visited Cuba!

The US recently regarded Cuba as a State sponsor to terrorism. If you have visited Cuba recently, you are no longer eligible to use the ESTA and must apply for a visa. You should check the date you entered Cuba against the date the United States are prohibiting entrances from.

Please follow this link if you would like to learn more about the current Covid restrictions, entering the USA. https://samuelsmith8118.wixsite.com/sam-smith-travel/post/covid-19-entering-the-usa