ELECTRONIC SYSTEM FOR TRAVEL AUTHORIZATION (ESTA)
ADVISORY STATEMENT
Beginning January 12, 2009, all nationals and citizens of Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries will be required by law to obtain a travel authorization prior to initiating travel to the United States under the VWP. This authorization may be obtained online through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA™), a free Internet application administered by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) through a U.S. government Web site.
As from 9th September 2010 the DHS does charge VWP travellers a fee of $14 or £9 for completion of an ESTA™ application. Eligible visitors seeking to travel to the United States under the VWP may apply for travel authorization via the ESTA™ Web site at https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov.
VWP travellers should be aware that unauthorized third-parties have established Web sites, which charge visitors seeking to travel to the United States under the VWP, for information about ESTA™ and for submitting ESTA™ applications to DHS on behalf of the traveller. These businesses and Web sites are not endorsed by, associated with, or affiliated in any way with DHS or the United States Government.. Use of a private service to apply for travel authorization via ESTA™ will not expedite the granting of approval.
The ESTA™ application Web site is available in 16 languages and includes a help section that provides additional information for VWP travellers to guide them through the application process. Additional information about ESTA™ may be found at http://www.cbp.gov/esta. The United States has recently announced plans to expand the VWP, and beginning November 17, 2008, eligible citizens and nationals from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia will be able to travel to the United States under the VWP provided they have an e-passport and an approved authorization via ESTA™.
Please Note: Not all entry ports to the USA are fully equipped to deal with the Electronic Visa Waiver yet and there may still be a requirement to complete both a paper U.S. Customs Form and a paper Visa Waiver Form that is supplied by the airline.
Visa, Immigration information and Passport information:
Visit http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/without/without_1990.html