New Guide Discussion: Beat the impending ESTA charge

ferf1223

dougal76 wrote: »

My wife is Canadian and she has a Canadian passport, will she need to fill in a ESTA form or is she exempt so to speak??

Thanks

No as ESTA only relates to countries that are part of the Visa Waiver programme...Canada is not one of those countries.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/without/without_1990.html#othersvwp

ChrisDowning

ferf1223 wrote: »

The guide explains:

Although the ESTA is meant to replace filling in the I-94W piece of paper, this is only being phased out slowly across US airports, so you may find you still have to complete one depending on your arrival airport (currently you do at Newark, but not at LAX).

My husband did not have to fill in the green form when arriving at LAX...which caused a lot of confusion for the gate agents at ORD (where the forms are still required to enter) when we were departing the US and they wanted to collect the bit that would have been stapled in his passport.

Not to mention the confusion on the plane on the way out -we'd been told at check in at LHR we didn't need the green form if we were arriving at LAX. On the plane they were handing out the forms but ran out before they got to us and we were a bit annoyed thinking we'd be stuck at the back of the queue filling it out when we landed...but no, it wasn't needed.

And I could be wrong, but my guess is that they will try to be sure that the green forms are no more by the time they start charging...until then, I don't really see the big deal about having to fill out a form when you're stuck on a plane with little to do for many hours.

And the guide also says:

Although you don’t need to present the reference number at Border Protection when you land on US soil, you can only check your ESTA's status, or update it (you may need to change the address of where you’re spending your first night, or your flight details) if you keep a record of your reference number. Rather frustratingly, it isn't emailed to you.

So I would expect it will always be handed back to anyone - arriving by air or land.

Well I went to Tennessee in June 2010 and I filled out the ESTA as required, with plenty of time (in January) and when I turned up at Chicago not only did everyone have to wait 2 1/2 hours to get through immigration - yes that two and a half hours - no seats, no drinks, and nobody to ask anything or complain - and wait for everyone to be interviewed (where were the side rooms for difficult cases??) - I ended up behind someone who looked like they came from indo-asia and he was interviewed in front of me for 20+ minutes, filling out new forms and writing declarations - and when it was my turn - the ESTA was refused and I had to fill out a Green Form. Absolutely unbelieveable. So much for our "special relationship", "fighting terrorism together". How about us doing it that way to Americans at Heathrow?!

My recommendation - don't go unless you are prepared to be treated like an enemy at immegration and fill out everything you are asked for even though you are told don't and expect to wait at USA immegration in line with every Worldwide drop out and potential terrorist. Forget the special realtionship - we're nobody.

The whole process is shameful considering what we told by our politicians about the close relationship.

ChrisDowning

Danstar wrote: »

I'm going to uni in the states in august, I have a student visa do I still need to do ESTA?

I'd get one of everything you can find you need. And don't exect an easy time at immegration - they'll assume you are on some sort of scam. Have your addresses, routes, proof of subsistence, offers...just everything.

ChrisDowning

dzug1 wrote: »

You don't need either - scanning your passport at the airport/on arrival will show whether you have one or not to the satisfaction of the airline/US authorities. If the scan shows you haven't got one no reference number or printout is going to convince anyone you have. OK it might convince them to look a little harder, but computer's word is fnal.

Having the reference number does mean you can update your details though.

Ha ha ha ha ha. Are you sure you've been to enough USA airport to assert that. They would't accept my ESAT and I had to do the whole Green Form thing as people waited. Smart Passport? - gimmee a break it was Chicago.

ferf1223

ChrisDowning wrote: »

- and when it was my turn - the ESTA was refused and I had to fill out a Green Form. Absolutely unbelieveable. So much for our "special relationship", "fighting terrorism together". How about us doing it that way to Americans at Heathrow?!

My recommendation - don't go unless you are prepared to be treated like an enemy at immegration and fill out everything you are asked for even though you are told don't and expect to wait at USA immegration in line with every Worldwide drop out and potential terrorist. Forget the special realtionship - we're nobody.

The whole process is shameful considering what we told by our politicians about the close relationship.

The 'green forms' are still required at some airports - they are phasing them out...your ESTA was not 'refused'..you wouldn't have been able to get on the plane without it...as people keep explaining, a print out of the ESTA approval does not need to be shown, it does nothing to show it...it's an electronically held thing.

Everyone has to clear immigration from the same queue - so sorry if you got stuck in a big one, it does happen when a lot of international flights are landing at the same time...having an approved ESTA application doesn't mean you're fast tracked or anything like that. ESTA isn't a specific thing to the UK you know, it applies to all visa waiver countries...I'm not sure why you have the impression that folks from the UK are 'special' in this respect.

FWIW, I'm American and have stood in queues at London airports for 2 hours before AND I HAVE A VISA. Sometimes we land when a load of other international flights land and the queues are horrendous. I have to stand in the queue like everyone else ("every Worldwide drop out and potential terrorist") coming from everywhere else...I don't expect special treatment (though having a visa, it would kind of be nice). Thankfully with IRIS I can avoid this now.

ferf1223

ChrisDowning wrote: »

Ha ha ha ha ha. Are you sure you've been to enough USA airport to assert that. They would't accept my ESAT and I had to do the whole Green Form thing as people waited. Smart Passport? - gimmee a break it was Chicago.

From the guide (AGAIN)

You may still have to fill out a Green i-94W form

Although the ESTA is meant to replace filling in the I-94W piece of paper, this is only being phased out slowly across US airports, so you may find you still have to complete one depending on your arrival airport (currently you do at Newark, but not at LAX).

fredflintstonerules

ChrisDowning wrote: »

Chicago ..........wait 2 1/2 hours to get through immigration ...........and wait for everyone to be interviewed (where were the side rooms for difficult cases??) ............when it was my turn - the ESTA was refused and I had to fill out a Green Form. .....The whole process is shameful considering what we told by our politicians about the close relationship.

You seem to belevie, mistakenly, we have a special relationship with the US that is related to the individual, its not, its political - even then its just a phrase used for convenience.

You are subject to the same scrutiny as everyone else and deemed to be a potential illegal immigrant. CBP beleive themselves to be the last line of defense against you (a potential threat/illegal) getting into their country.

Not filling in a green form could have resulted in you being sent back to the line.

Wait times at immigration are published on the web.

http://apps.cbp.gov/awt/

keithsmum

I already have this form which expires in Feb. 2011. Can I renew it now to save the fee? I plan to travel to US in Jan/Feb next year so will need it then.

ferf1223

keithsmum wrote: »

I already have this form which expires in Feb. 2011. Can I renew it now to save the fee? I plan to travel to US in Jan/Feb next year so will need it then.

You can't renew the existing one but you can reapply for a new one and get 2 years from the date of the new one.

jackie71

Hi Ive just read with interest about the fee that the usa government are imposing for traverling into the US from September 2010. We are looking into travelling to disney next year so it would be beneficial to apply for this now but when Ive looked at the form they want to know travel destination dates as we have not actually booked up yet can we still apply and then I guess this information could be updated using the reference number given at a later date?