How to apply for ESTA

The programme ESTA serves

The Visa Waiver Program is administered by the Department of Homeland Security in consultation with the Department of State. [3] It permits citizens of designated countries to travel to the United States for business or tourism for stays of up to 90 days without a visa. [3] The arrangement runs both ways: participating countries must allow U.S. citizens and nationals to travel to their countries without a visa for business or tourism for a similar length of time. [3] The programme has existed since 1986. [3]

ESTA sits inside that programme, not beside it. Eligible citizens or nationals of VWP countries must obtain approval through ESTA before travelling to the United States under the VWP. [3] The application collects biographic information and answers to the VWP eligibility questions. [2] For how this fits with other permissions to enter a country, see entry permission types.

Designation is decided country by country and can be withdrawn. DHS lists Argentina, whose designation ended in 2002, and Uruguay, which ended in 2003, as former programme countries, and records that Romania was designated on 9 January 2025 but that the designation was rescinded on 2 May 2025 before it was implemented. [3]

Applying, and what happens next

Answers on the ESTA form are screened automatically against U.S. law enforcement and counterterrorism databases and against INTERPOL databases, and DHS re-checks ESTA data on a daily basis. [3] DHS coordinates with the National Counterterrorism Center when vetting applications so that authorisations are not issued to people who pose a threat to national security. [3] Applicants have had to supply additional information since November 2014. [3] Since ESTA began in 2008, CBP has denied several thousand applications as a result of vetting against the U.S. government's terrorist watchlist. [3]

In most instances applicants receive real-time notification of the status of their application. [3]

Timing, and the questions the sources leave open

An ESTA application may be submitted at any time before travel, though CBP recommends applying as soon as a traveller begins preparing travel plans, or before airline tickets are purchased. [2] DHS likewise encourages travellers to apply as soon as they begin to plan a trip. [3]

Authorisation is required before boarding a plane or ship bound for the United States. [3] Since October 2022 the same pre-travel authorisation has also been required of VWP travellers who plan to enter the United States by land, and it must be obtained before they appear at the land border crossing. [3]

Three questions readers often ask are not answered by the CBP ESTA page or the DHS Visa Waiver Program page: how long an approval remains valid, what an application costs, and how families or groups apply. [2] [3] This guide therefore states none of them. What the sources do make clear is that an authorisation is not a guarantee of admission, and that travellers must establish their eligibility for the programme during inspection by an officer at a port of entry. [3]

Exceptions, refusals and limits

• Nationality footnotes. For the Netherlands, citizens of Curaçao, Bonaire, St Eustatius, Saba and St Maarten (the former Netherlands Antilles) are not eligible to travel under the VWP if they apply for admission with passports from those countries. [3] The Taiwan Region of China refers only to individuals with an unrestricted right of permanent abode in that region who hold an electronic passport bearing a personal identification (household registration) number. [3] The United Kingdom refers only to British citizens with an unrestricted right of permanent abode in the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, and not to British overseas citizens, British dependent territories' citizens or citizens of British Commonwealth countries. [3]
• Passport condition. An e-Passport is required for the VWP; it is a more secure passport with an embedded electronic chip and a unique international symbol on the cover. [2] The e-Passport rule applies to all VWP travellers, whatever the date of issue of the passport and the date the traveller's country joined the programme. [3] Passport checks are covered separately in passport validity and entry check.
• Refusals. An applicant who is denied an ESTA will be advised to apply for a visa at the nearest U.S. consulate or embassy. [3]
• On arrival. CBP officers validate travel and identity documents, collect biometric data from VWP travellers, perform biographic and biometric checks and may interview selected travellers before making an admissibility determination. [3] Commercial air and sea carriers operating flights to, from or through the United States must give CBP Advance Passenger Information and Passenger Name Record data. [3]
• A different system: EVUS. The Electronic Visa Update System applies to nationals of the People's Republic of China holding maximum-validity (10-year) B1/B2, B1 or B2 visitor visas, who must complete an enrolment in addition to holding a valid visa. [4] A friend, relative, travel industry professional or other third party may submit an EVUS enrolment on a traveller's behalf, and the traveller is responsible for the truthfulness and accuracy of everything submitted. [4] Neither a visa nor an EVUS enrolment guarantees admission. [4] Compare the systems in travel authorisation systems compared.
• Scope of this page. The programme described here covers business or tourism travel of up to 90 days. [3] This guide does not cover U.S. work, student or immigrant visas.

Related pages

Guides: travel authorisation systems compared, passport validity and entry check. Terms: glossary, entry permission types, onward ticket requirement.

Sources

Sources accessed on 18 October 2026. It covers ESTA for Visa Waiver Program travellers only; U.S. work, student and immigrant visas, and other countries' travel authorisation schemes, are not covered here.

1. CBP: Electronic System for Travel Authorization, checked 18 October 2026
2. DHS: U.S. Visa Waiver Program, checked 18 October 2026
3. CBP: Electronic Visa Update System (EVUS) frequently asked questions, checked 18 October 2026