The importance of the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) and the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is going through a period which is definitely going to increase in the near future. Primarily, the ESTA has been initiated by the Department of Homeland Security in order to determine whether a traveller or a group for that matter is eligible to visit America without applying for a visa. Actually it is through this ESTA that the department can estimate whether a person is eligible for VWP. This VWP is a program which is basically an agreement between America and 38 other countries which include the likes of Australia, Japan, Greece and Spain which ensures that the citizens of those countries are eligible to stay in the US for a period of up to 90 days and also the US citizens are allowed to stay in those countries sans visa for the same length of time.
Now it is essential to know regarding the eligibility for the Visa Waiver Program. Primarily, the people who have applied for the program need to be a resident of the 38 countries who are a part of this deal. What is even more important is the fact that this applies only for people who are travelling for business or travel. To be more specific, this applies for people who are seeking impermanent entry and not for people who come under the bracket of refugees or the ones who are seeking permanent entry to the country. It is also to be kept in mind that people who are already in possession of visitor visa to America are not eligible for this program.
The costs are also quite nominal as it costs you US$ 4 for processing and if the application is approved, you need to pay an additional US$ 10 additional as authorization fees. If your application gets rejected, all you need to pay, as such, is the US$ 4 as processing fees only. Then, in order to apply for VWP through ESTA, you need to possess a valid passport, a credit card and your contact information needs to be submitted as well.
Apart from all these aspects, one thing that needs to be kept in mind is the fact that there is no set time which is to be ensured in between visits as the VWP website suggests that the time between two trips must be a reasonable amount which must be sufficient to ensure the fact that you are not trying to stay in America permanently to the Customs and Border protection officials. For example, if you are a citizen of Iceland and your application for VWP has been granted and you are staying in America as a part of it and more importantly on the verge of completion. Then what you do is plan a couple of days’ trip to Mexico and come back so as to reset your 90 days span, there are more chances of you being a suspect to the Custom and Border protection as one who is trying to live permanently in America.
