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VISA WAIVER PROGRAM
Generally, U.S. immigration entails
getting a U.S. visa,
however one exception to this rule, is the
Visa Waiver Program.
A visa is not necessary if you are from one of the Visa Waiver
Program countries.
You can come to the United States for a maximum of
90 days for whatever purpose, if you belong to any of the
Visa Waiver
Program countries. But please be warned that if you travel
without a visa, you automatically give up many rights and benefits
associated with it, thus the ease of your entry into the United
States is counteracted by the ease with which the United States can
expel you out of her territories.
The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables citizens of
certain countries to travel to the United States for tourism or
business for 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. Not all
countries participate in the Visa Waiver Program. Some restrictions
apply to this visa as explained below.
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Currently, 27 countries participate in the Visa
Waiver Program, as shown below:
Visa Waiver Program -
Participating Countries
|
Andorra |
Iceland |
Norway |
|
Australia |
Ireland |
Portugal |
|
Austria |
Italy |
San Marino |
|
Belgium |
Japan |
Singapore |
|
Brunei |
Liechtenstein |
Slovenia |
|
Denmark |
Luxembourg |
Spain |
|
Finland |
Monaco |
Sweden |
|
France |
the
Netherlands |
Switzerland |
|
Germany |
New Zealand |
United
Kingdom |
|
This list of VWP
countries appeared through the courtesy of :
U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs
Visa Services
( www.travel.state.gov/vwp.html ) |
To enter the U.S. on Visa Waiver
program, travelers from participating countries must:
-
Be seeking entry for 90 days or less, as a temporary
visitor;
-
Be a citizen (not merely a resident) of the Visa Waiver
country;
-
Have a valid passport issued by the participating
country. Additionally, starting October 1, 2003, the passport presented at
the U.S. port of entry must be a machine readable passport;
-
If entering by air or sea, have a round-trip
transportation ticket issued on a carrier that has signed an agreement
with the U.S. government to participate in the VWP, and arrive in the
United States aboard such a carrier.
-
Hold a completed and signed Nonimmigrant Visa Waiver
Arrival-Departure Record,
Form I-94W, on which he/she has waived the right of review or appeal of an
immigration officer’s determination about admissibility, or deportation.
These forms are available from participating carriers, from travel agents,
and at land-border ports-of-entry. (Travelers should consult carriers to
verify which ones are participating before making travel arrangements.)
-
Entry at a land border
crossing point from Canada or Mexico is permitted under the Visa Waiver
Program. Travelers who apply for entry at a land border crossing point are
not required to present round-trip transportation tickets or arrive at the
border entry point aboard a carrier who has signed an agreement with the
U.S. to participate in the Visa Waiver Program. All other Visa Waiver
Program requirements apply to such travelers.
Related links:
US immigration information center |
US immigration law | US visa application
| USA green cards | Visa waiver program (VWP)
| I-751 petition
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