Installment Sixty-Six
Recently, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced important changes for nationals of certain countries who are eligible for the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). DHS implemented the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), which began to accept applications on a voluntary, trial basis on August 1, 2008. This system is expected to become mandatory by January 2009. ESTA is a new, fully automated, electronic system for screening eligible passengers before they begin travel to the United States under the VWP. ESTA applications may be submitted at any time prior to travel to the United States, and VWP travelers are encouraged to apply for authorization as soon as they begin to plan their trip to the United States. Guyana passport holders continue to require visas and are not eligible to use ESTA.
Q: What is the visa waiver program and who is affected by ESTA?
The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is administered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and enables eligible citizens or nationals of certain countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without needing to obtain a visa. Additional information regarding the VWP is available on CBP.gov. Although Guyana is not currently part of the VWP, many nationals of VWP countries reside or visit Guyana and are eligible to travel on the VWP.
Q: What is ESTA?
The Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is an automated system that will assist in determining eligibility to travel to the United States under the VWP, and whether such travel poses any law enforcement or security risk. Upon completion of an ESTA application, a VWP traveler will be notified of his or her eligibility to travel to the United States under the VWP.
Q: Do Guyanese citizens need to use ESTA?
No, Guyanese citizens wishing to travel to the U.S. for business or pleasure should continue to apply for an appropriate non-immigrant visa at the Unites States Embassy. Holders of valid U.S. visas from a VWP eligible country do not need to use ESTA.
Q: Is ESTA mandatory?
ESTA will be implemented as a mandatory program for all VWP eligible travelers 60 days after publication of a notice in the Federal Register. DHS anticipates that the Secretary of Homeland Security will issue that notice in November 2008, with ESTA becoming mandatory for all VWP travelers by January 2009.
Beginning August 1, 2008, the system became available in English only to process voluntary applications. By October 15, 2008, ESTA will be available in a variety of languages to facilitate the voluntary application process for the overwhelming majority of VWP travelers. NOTE: Although the ESTA Web site will be translated into different languages, just as the I-94W paper form must be completed in English, information for the ESTA application must also be completed in English.
Q: Which countries are included in the VWP?
There are currently 27 VWP eligible countries. They are: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Kingdom.
Q: Where can I find out more about ESTA and the Visa Waiver Program?
The Department of Homeland Security administrates the Visa Waiver Program and ESTA. You can find out more about both at DHS’s Customs and Border Protection website or http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/id_visa/esta/. You can also find out general information about visas and requirements for traveling to the U.S. at http://travel.state.gov.
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“Ask the Consul” is a periodic column from the U.S. Embassy answering questions about U.S. immigration law and visa issues. If you have a general question about visa policy please email it to us at AskGeorge@state.gov. We select questions and publish the answers in Stabroek News and on our website at http://georgetown.usembassy.gov/guyana/ask_con.html. For more information about visas please see http://www.unitedstatesvisas.gov or http://georgetown.usembassy.gov/.
Other than the questions we select, we DO NOT respond to questions sent to Ask the Consul. Please contact the visa inquiries unit (email visageorge@state.gov or call 225-7965 between 8 am- 12 pm and 1 pm- 4 pm Monday through Friday) if you have questions about a specific case.
