More important information for ESTA, the visa for the USA

In addition to the basic requirements of the "Visa Waiver Program" adopted by the US that the ESTA authorization will also have a set of rules that specifically relate to the passport; The basic condition is that the passport must be valid ESTA from the request until the end of the trip or stay.

The passport is then directly connected to the ESTA, and consequently for the whole duration of the trip to the US is required to move within the US territories with the same passport with which the application was made ESTA.

If the passport is renewed within the period of time between the ESTA application and the departure, the legal validity of the ESTA will immediately expire; the request made with the first passport will therefore no longer be valid and consequently a new application must be sent to obtain ESTA.

The passport must also have specific peculiarities:

1. It must contain an area reserved for optical reading within the personal data page.
2. It must be electronic and must contain a digital chip that has recorded all the biometric data of the passport holder inside.

The quickest way to see if your passport is electronic is to check the front cover page; if the EP ("Electronic Passport") logo is printed or a golden rectangle with a golden circle in the center from whose circumference two horizontal lines start towards the two short sides then there is no problem.

In the event that the passport does not have these specifications, the traveler is declared unsuitable for the ESTA application and the main consequence could be to be denied access to the boarding hall for the flight or the direct ship journey to the United States.

The "Electronic System for Travel Authorization", known as ESTA, is the certification that every traveler from a country that is part of the "Visa Waiver Program" must complete.

Since 2008, in fact, the safety meshes on the travel routes to the USA have narrowed and consequently also the requirements for being able to travel and stay without a visa in the United States have been made more stringent.

ESTA is not an entry visa and therefore cannot be considered an electronic visa; ESTA is an electronic authorization that allows to the traveler who goes to the USA to be exempted from the entry visa request to the United States, allowing entry and authorizing him to travel freely within the American territory.

You need to apply for ESTA to have the opportunity to go to America without having an entry visa if your country of origin is on the list of members of the american "Visa Waiver Program".

This electronic system allows the registration of the traveler and his preventive and non-preventive control, as previously happened, with the completion during the journey of the green form l94-W, of which ESTA has fully replaced.

The result is therefore the authorization by the American "Homeland Security" to be able to undertake the trip to the United States.
Before leaving, it is absolutely necessary to have ESTA approved because otherwise entry into the United States is not allowed.

All travelers who fall under the "Visa Waiver Program" must apply for ESTA and have this authorization before embarking on the journey.

All passengers on ships or planes bound for the United States must make a regular request for ESTA which is strictly named; as a consequence, accompanied minors or infants traveling without a ticket must also have the relevant ESTA approved.

The application can be submitted personally or by a third party (parent, agency) by name and account of the traveler who intends to enter the United States of America.

ESTA can be requested online by connecting to the ESTA.click site quickly and with a very simple procedure; in fact, filling in the form takes about twenty minutes.
You must first associate your passport number with your name and then answer a series of questions.

ESTA must be requested before each trip to the United States; the request normally has a maximum time of 72 hours to be processed and authorized.

The request for ESTA can therefore be made within the third day prior to the departure date

It is recommended to make the request in time as once approved, ESTA will be shared automatically with the American Immigration Department but above all with the carrier chosen for the trip which, in the absence of it, will not be able to pick you up on board.

To submit an ESTA application, a fee must be incurred for each individual who intends to travel to the USA.
The payment fee of € 44.90 includes consular fees ($ 21.00), the exchange fee (normally set at 2.5%), the costs of processing and sending the application, VAT and any support.
If the ESTA request is refused, you will be entitled to a full refund within ten days.

Payment can be made by credit card (American Express, Visa, Mastercard, CartaSi), Postepay or PayPal.

To be able to travel to the United States and you are a citizen of a foreign country, you generally need to obtain a visa which is inserted in the visitor's passport and which varies according to the intentions of the visitor.

A visa may also be required to make a temporary stay in the United States and is that relating to the non-immigrant category.

ESTA is not a visa but a simple authorization granted to citizens of countries participating in the "Visa Free Program" and who intend to stay in the United States for a period of less than 90 days in the United States.

These citizens therefore have the possibility of being visa-free, but must have a valid ESTA.

The cases in which you need to apply for a visa and, despite being a citizen of a country adhering to the VWP, the application for ESTA is not sufficient are the following:

1. It is planned to remain in the United States for more than three months (90 consecutive calendar days).
2. The purpose of travel to the United States is for reasons other than those related to tourism, vacation or business relationships.
3. E 'in final work order in the US through employment by a company based in the United States.
4. A U.S. port or airport is reached via a private carrier.
5. You fall into the category of ineligibility under the "Immigration Nationality Act 212 section".

Those who have a valid U.S. visa can use it to go to the United States if the reason for the trip matches the purposes for which the visa was issued.
The consequence is that all holders of a U.S. visa, even if they are citizens of VWP countries, have no need to submit an ESTA application.

For more information, visit the website of the American Embassy on the ESTA USA or USA visa application page.

The ESTA must also be requested by the traveler who has no intention of visiting or stationing in the USA but must enter the United States only for the transit, both air and naval, to another country; Similarly, anyone who already has a return ticket and leaves from a location in the United States may be admitted to the VWP program.

Furthermore, the trip must not end in the territories bordering the USA (Canada and Mexico) or in adjacent islands (Caribbean); any stay in these countries must still fall within the maximum period of 90 days.
These limitations are not implemented if the traveler is in possession of the residence or working domicile in these countries.

Once the ESTA authorization request has been approved, the traveler is eligible to be able to make a trip to the United States of America, or through them, as required by the VWP.

This step, however, does not provide any guarantee regarding the entry into the USA as this will be subject to an inspection managed by an agent of the "Customs and Border Protection" (the customs of the United States) at the moment of the actual arrival in the United States in any entry point, both port and airport; this agent will ultimately determine the traveler's actual eligibility for entry into the United States either through the Visa Waiver Program or any other program or law in force and applicable in the United States.

The "Visa Waiver Program" is reserved exclusively for citizens of VWP countries.

Those who have refugee status and are therefore in possession of a regular residence permit within the participating country do not have the basic requirements to be able to apply for ESTA but must necessarily apply for a regular entry visa at the embassy or the US consulate of the country that issued the residence permit.

In fact, only those who are holders of an official electronic passport are authorized to apply for ESTA.

In any case, you arrive in the United States of America: by air or by sea (including cruise ships), it must always be authorized in advance; therefore it is mandatory to apply for an ESTA before leaving.

The passenger will be checked at the time of boarding check-in.

If you are arriving in the United States by land from Canada or Mexico, it is not necessary to apply for ESTA before the start of the trip, but when crossing the border you must complete the old I-94W form which the ESTA has replaced in all others cases.

ESTA is only required if the maximum parking time in the United States or neighboring countries (Canada, Caribbean Islands and Mexico) is less than or equal to 90 consecutive calendar days.

If, on the other hand, you want to stay in the United States of America for more than 90 days or if the trip you want to undertake is for purposes other than those authorized in the "Visa Weiver Program", ie business or tourism, it is mandatory to apply for a visa. entry to the Embassy of the country of residence.

Also, the ESTA application is not required if you already have a valid US visa or US residence permit or if you are a US citizen.

Applying for an ESTA normally does not allow the traveler to be able to work in the United States except if the commercial activity is carried out within the United States in order to carry out a business trip as a manager of a company with its registered office and operates outside outside the borders of the United States.

The ESTA request, in fact, cannot be satisfied if the traveler will work for a US company or as a journalist; in both cases it is necessary to apply for a specific visa at the Embassy

Even if the ultimate goal of the trip is to look for a job in the United States, it is not possible to apply for ESTA as if you are in the United States with an active ESTA and find work, there is no way to change the status of authorization (tourist or business) and it is not possible to stay in the USA outside the limit of 90 continuous calendar days.

To be able to work in the United States it is therefore necessary to have a specific visa.

The ESTA application is mainly subject to the concept that the visitor cannot be considered a danger to the US state and its fellow citizens; this means that anyone who has a criminal record but who has not committed crimes against the person for injury, serious crime or murder, or has not caused material damage to any government agency can easily apply for ESTA through normal online channels. .

All violations of the highway code are not included in the conditions that prevent the issuance of the ESTA, except for those in which you have been held responsible for serious damage to persons or property.

For all those who fall into the category of those who have caused serious damage, it is necessary to make a special appointment at the relevant US consulate or embassy to be subjected to the prior check of the request and assessments by a customs officer to apply for the relevant entry visa.

In fact, the request through ESTA would be regularly refused.

If you have applied for ESTA but have made one or more trips, including transit, to one of these countries on the US blacklist (e.g. North Korea, Libya, Iran, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan ) or you have nationality even in a non-exclusive form, this will not be accepted.
In case you have or have had in the past a passport from these countries or have any kind of relationship with them even if you are a citizen of VWP countries, you are not eligible for an ESTA and therefore you must apply to the US embassy . or to the consulate for the entry visa to the United States after verifying your position with respect to these countries.

If the final destinations of the trip are Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean Islands, as well as the United States of course, it is mandatory to apply for an ESTA; this also applies if there is only one transit stopover in the United States for these destinations and to continue your journey, you must have an ESTA.
This also applies if you enter the US on the return journey by air or ship, while for land travel from Canada or Mexico you must complete the I-94W form at the border.

The period relating to the ESTA parking on American soil (USA, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean Islands) has a maximum duration of 90 calendar days starting from the day of disembarkation from the carrier.
If the final destination is exclusively the islands of the Caribbean, the maximum length of stay allowed is 45 days.

For requests forwarded via E-visa.click, the SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) protocol is always used, which allows the secure transmission of the data entered from your device to our server.
This way all data will always be protected.
The E-visa.click site fully respects all aspects of the privacy of all our users under the GDPR and the personal information they provide for the purpose of the ESTA application on our site is treated with the utmost security.

It is also important to know that your personal data will remain available for a maximum period of 12 months and will not be disclosed to third parties; if there are any other privacy questions, you can consult our "Privacy Policy" or contact us.

For payment, the site allows secure online payment methods such as Visa, Mastercard, CartaSi, American Express, Postepay and PayPal rechargeable cards.

Almost all applications immediately turn into an ESTA authorization for the United States but in some exceptional cases it can happen that it can be refused.

It will not be possible to know the reasons for the refusal as the "U.S. Customs and Border Protection" does not provide any explanation for reasons of privacy and security.

However, an application will be rejected if, in this application or in the past, the applicant has made mistakes in completing the form or does not meet the requirements for the ESTA.

The denial can also stem from a story where the traveler applied for a visa and was denied or had a disagreement with the US Department of Immigration because he stayed in the US longer than he was granted . , has violated other visa regulations or any US law or is suspected of violating legal obligations (both inside and outside the US) that do not allow ESTA.

In these cases, as if you had been in countries considered at risk and included in the black list or because the Department believes that it may be a danger to National Security or the safety of US citizens, it is mandatory to go to the embassy for the request. of visa.

In case you have an invalid passport (because it has expired or is not in electronic format), you can re-apply for ESTA in digital format.

The traveler may also be on the Immigration Department waitlist or be considered unwanted in the United States for political reasons; in this case you need to contact the embassy to adjust your position.

In the very rare event that an application is rejected, the full amount paid to obtain the ESTA will be refunded, unless the traveler has previously made an ESTA application for the same destination and it has been rejected.

Once the ESTA application has been approved, it cannot be canceled for any reason.
Consequently, in case of non-use of the same, the purchase amount cannot be refunded; this only happens if the ESTA application was rejected in the first instance by the United States Department of Immigration.

Il rimborso avviene in modo automatico entro 10 giorni lavorativi sul mezzo utilizzato per il pagamento (conto o carta di credito).

In the e-mail confirming the request it is possible to see which data are entered in the form and by checking it it is possible to understand if there are data entered incorrectly In this case, as in that of the expiring or expired passport, it is possible to present a new ESTA application only by modifying errors or entering new expiration dates.

If not, it is useless to submit a new ESTA application as it would be rejected again and the position against the Department of Immigration would worsen.

The only way to travel to the United States after a refused ESTA application is to apply for a physical visa at the embassy or consulate and this can be received within two to three weeks maximum.

There are rare exceptions where it is possible to request an emergency procedure, such as the death of a family member, medical treatment or interventions of an urgent nature or a business meeting that cannot be postponed and where it is necessary to be necessarily present.

The "U.S. Customs and Border Protection", the body in charge of customs controls and the protection of US borders, does not justify the refusals.

However, you can move on to the question "Why was my ESTA application rejected?" to understand what are the most common reasons for denial.

No, it is not necessary to print the ESTA as it is automatically shared with your travel carrier and the "US Department of Immigration".

It can be said that the ESTA travel authorization is valid for two years starting from the day it is issued or until the passport expires.
The expiration date is confirmed on the digital form that you will receive by e-mail, immediately after its acceptance. However, it is possible that the ESTA authorization will expire before this deadline, in case of revocation for any reason or because the passport expires earlier.
The passport is linked to the ESTA, therefore returning to the country must take place with the same passport with which you applied for the ESTA authorization.
However, it should be borne in mind that although the ESTA is valid for two years, this does not mean that people can stay in the United States for two consecutive years: there is indeed a relevant condition, namely the obligation that every single stay in this country is limited. to a maximum of 90 days.

Given the long validity of the ESTA travel authorization, it is advisable to submit the application well in advance of the departure date. It rarely happens that the ESTA is not granted on the same day as the application, for example this can happen if it is subjected to a thorough manual verification by the US Department of Immigration. Once approved, the application will automatically be shared with your airline and the U.S. Department of Immigration.

Yes, if you have made a new passport after applying for the ESTA, you will have to make a new application, as it is an old permit and therefore no longer valid, as the data on the ESTA must always match those of the passport, including your passport number.
There is no reimbursement from the US Department of Immigration for non-use of the ESTA, even when a new one is required due to passport renewal.

Yes, it is allowed but provided that the validity of the authorization has not yet expired. To find out the expiry date of the document, simply check the date on the receipt that was delivered to you via e-mail at the time of the request.

Remember that any single stay spent in the USA cannot last more than 90 days, for a total of 180 days in a calendar year (12 months). This means that you can enter the United States multiple times, but you cannot stay more than 90 days for a single stay and no more than 180 total days per year.

During each single trip to the USA you will need to check if the passport is still valid and if it is the one that coincides with the ESTA application.
The passport is inextricably linked to the ESTA travel authorization, therefore it will be necessary to enter the country with the same passport with which the application was submitted. If you receive a new passport, you will need to use it to apply for a new ESTA authorization.

The last authorization obtained in terms of time can be considered valid and it will be enough not to take into account the previous ESTA.

If you are dual citizens and have obtained ESTA clearance, you will need to use a passport from a VWP country to board the plane, both when leaving your country of departure and upon arrival in the United States.
If you have both Italian and Russian citizenship, for example, and as Russia is a country ineligible to use the ESTA travel authorization and is not part of the VWP, it will be essential to use an Italian passport for boarding.
In case both of your countries of citizenship are eligible for the VWP (for example as in the case of Germany and Italy, or Japan and Italy), then every time you travel it will be good for you to choose the passport with which to apply for the Authorization ESTA and use only the one it will be associated with. Otherwise, if you were to use two different ESTA authorizations you could create confusion and risk delaying your trip.

It will not be necessary to wait for the ESTA expiration to apply for the new authorization and you can do so at any time, both before and after the expiration date of the one you already have.

In case your ESTA travel authorization expires and you wish to make another trip to the United States, you will need to submit a new application.

Any ESTA that still exists cannot be extended and must only be valid upon check-in and upon arrival in the US and hence, you will not need to apply for a new form if you are already in the US.

You will be able to apply for a new ESTA travel authorization before the one you may have expires: once the new ESTA is approved, the old one will be invalidated.

There are cases in which the ESTA travel authorization must be renewed even if it h

as not yet expired; this is deemed necessary when the data cannot be updated, as occurs in the following cases:

• In case you have changed or renewed your passport;
• If there has been a change in data such as name, gender, country of citizenship or residence;
• In case the circumstances surrounding the answers to the eligibility questions of the form have changed: in this case it will be essential to apply for a new ESTA authorization where all the most recent information you answered affirmatively for security and eligibility the questions will be provided by the form of ESTA application and which you may now answer negatively due to possible changes in circumstances.

We remind you that it is necessary to apply for a new ESTA travel authorization even if one of the following additional cases occurs:

• If on a previous trip to the United States and under the Visa Waiver Program you have sought and obtained employment even unofficially. In the event that CBP (Custom and Border Protection) agents obtain information about your possible irregularity, you may be denied a subsequent trip to the USA;
• If during a previous trip to the USA you have been detained in American territory beyond the legal limit allowed by the ESTA authorization, that is, beyond 90 days;
• In case you have visited Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Somalia or Yemen or where you have acquired the citizenship of one of these countries;
• If you have violated the law by committing terrorist activities, serious crimes of persons or property, fraud or having been in possession or dealt with drugs;
• In case you have contracted an infectious disease of any kind (HIV was recently removed from the list of infectious diseases).

In case you need to make changes to your ESTA travel authorization, please read the "Questions about changes, cancellations and refusals" so you understand what you need to do.

It may happen that some foreign citizens want to stay in the United States longer than the 90 days required by law and solve the problem by entering and leaving the territory, going for a short period to Canada, Mexico or any of the Caribbean countries and in to obtain additional 90 days of residence permit in the USA. Keep in mind, however, that although you are allowed to do this outside the country, Custom and Border Protection may decide to block you when you return and stop at the border for violating immigration law.

In summary, if on the one hand it is true that leaving the United States to return immediately afterwards allows you to reset the maximum limit of 90 days, on the other hand the immigration agent has a wide margin of discretion in getting you back or in refusing your subscription. In the event that the latter is denied you, for the next 10 years you may have very serious difficulties in obtaining an additional travel permit for the United States again.

In the event that you wish or need to stay in the United States for a period of time exceeding the 90 days provided for by the ESTA travel authorization, you have the possibility to apply for a more extended visa at the American embassy of the country of your origin. .

It is highly advisable, rather than running into the problems we have just mentioned, that you just follow the correct practice, that is, the one recommended by the United States government on the matter.

Foreign citizens who have been declared eligible to participate in the visa waiver program are encouraged to apply for an ESTA travel authorization to travel to or transit on US soil.

In the event that you are on American territory exclusively for transit while on your way elsewhere, when completing the ESTA travel authorization form you will be prompted to select "Yes" in the "Your presence in the United States is for transit? ”: This will allow you to cross the United States and reach your final destination.

The ESTA form has a very fast processing time and the submitted applications contain different data which is submitted to the United States Department of Immigration.
Consequently, once the ESTA request has been sent, the processing of the application will take place practically in real time and therefore it is no longer possible to change the information entered until the response is received.

The only data that can be changed in the time between sending and replying are contact details (e-mail address and telephone number) and information regarding the trip, such as the itinerary or address of the reference stay in the United States.

You must therefore be very careful in entering the information you are entering, in particular that relating to your person and passport: your personal data, passport number, its release date and expiry date.

All this information can no longer be changed directly after sending the request. However, if you have realized that you have made a mistake and have just saved the application on our site, it is absolutely necessary that you can contact us immediately so that we can try to suspend the sending of the request and be able to give you the possibility to make the requested changes .

This procedure is only possible if the change request reaches our offices in the short period of time between the submission of the request and its verification because if in the meantime the request has already been verified, prepared and sent by one of our experts to the authorities To the Americans to ask for approval, it is no longer possible to intervene.

The only truly valid way to correct incorrectly written information is to submit a new application for an ESTA authorization after the application has been rejected.

In this case, however, the compiler will have to bear the costs for the ESTA authorization application again.

The ESTA application after being assessed cannot be changed; this means that all rejected applications cannot be changed and consequently it is not possible to modify or delete the data of rejected ESTA applications.

Although our service always tries to recognize any errors, in no case Esta.click can be considered attributable to data that have been entered in the application form incorrectly or incomplete by the applicant in the application form.

In the event that the ESTA application has been accepted but you need to update your travel details, change your contact email address or your telephone number, you must contact our facility who will make the required changes.

The ESTA is an authorization to enter the territory of the USA and is in no way binding so you can apply for ESTA even if you don't have a planned travel itinerary.

This can also be deduced from the fact that the "Department of Homeland Security" allows the ESTA request to be sent up to a maximum of 3 days before the day of travel in order to avoid any delays in the file due to investigations or investigations.
Furthermore, all travelers from countries covered by the "Visa Waiver Program" (VWP) are in no way obliged to indicate their address in the United States or the route followed during their stay.

It is therefore possible to apply for ESTA without having to provide such information; if the itineraries of the trip are not known, it is necessary to fill in the spaces inside the relevant box simply by writing "unknown" and for the telephone numbers it is sufficient to enter a series of "000000".

If you have applied for ESTA via another website and have answered a security or eligibility question incorrectly with a "yes", your application will naturally and obviously be rejected.

However, this type of error cannot be corrected by submitting a new request as the latter will be automatically rejected as it is not possible to respond differently from the first submission sent to this type of question.

The only way to obtain entry to the USA is therefore to obtain an ordinary visa and, at the time of the appointment with the official, explain that the visa request is given by the wrong answer in the ESTA and the reasons for the incident. .
If the good faith is ascertained by the official, you will be able to obtain an entry visa and will again be able to apply for an ESTA electronically in the future.

However, this ordinary procedure is longer than online (about three weeks maximum) and more expensive; if the time available is shorter or is of an urgent nature, it is possible to contact a special office of the Department of Immigration (ESTA Washington Desk) directly at the USA direct number +12 023 443710 bearing in mind that the US reference time is that of the coast oriental which has a difference with Italy of less than 5 hours.