MSE News: Esta site struggling ahead of new US tourist tax

Rob_Edmunds

I Was in exactly the same position as you "Pay The Bills"....2 forms completed...1 to go !!!

Tried 5 or 6times throughout the day...finally got there at 17:01hrs......just when most people logg off and finish work i guess.

So keep going you will get there in the end....try when the soaps are on.....most will be watching them ;-)

Whats p1ssed me off is ......

Why wasn't this mentioned earlier by the TV....surely Martin should have been on a show a week ago explaining this !!

or by my travel agent...i've recieved no details that this was a requirement

Usually when travelling abroad you get told to complete the visa etc......

I've been to the US for the last 5 years and was told by US customs last year that ESTA was only a trial at certain airports and wasn't going to be implimented !..

Then I had the printed ESTA forms but still had to complete a green visa wavier card...as they US customs wouldn't accept them..

Thank god i'm just passing through the US....I never have liked them much....:mad::mad:

hope you all get sorted out

Rob

eslick

thommy wrote: »

you, in theory, shouldn't need a hard copy of the ESTA. However, some people have been asked for it in the US.
we travelled to south america via maimi. we were asked to show it at bristol airport but not on arrival in miami. the immigration bloke even asked if we had done it (but didn't ask to see it!) when i was under the impression that he only had to check his computer!
this is the main bit - when travelling back to miami from s america we had to show we had the esta. they were not going to let us even check in unti lwe showed them a print out of it.
i'd get re registered if you have no record, just to be on the safe side.

at the end of the application or or clicking on the print button it says that you dont need to print a copy and you wont be asked for it.

glitter123

Finally got mine completed only to get the "pending" response. Daughter got immediately "approved" though.

supa_sue

I'm furious because it's 18:15 (GMT) and I'm trying to complete an ESTA application - what a nightmare!! The site is refusing to let me complete an application and it's probably because there is a charge from the 8th!!
Can I complain about this? What can I do?:mad:

mssloan

If you already have a Visa:

ESTA is not required for people traveling to the U.S. with a valid visa. However, if you have a visa, but are traveling under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) instead of your visa, then you will need to apply for ESTA. For instance, if you have an F1 visa, but are coming to the U.S. for business or pleasure for no more than 90 days, (and are a citizen of a VWP country) then you would be traveling under the VWP, which requires you to apply for ESTA before you travel.

choc_mouse

Had absolutely no idea about this but just saw it on MSE home page. High chance I could be visiting the US for a holiday so just tried to apply. Took 5-10 attempts at refreshing the web page but got approved in the end.

heronfolder

The site is just so overloaded right now. Think i'll wait til after midnight. We have until 5am..

trol

the site is totally inaccessable, is there any other way to apply for the visa waiver (esta)??

cjlawton73

After a million refreshes I finally got all 3 of ours done (I did mine from work earlier as I know my passort info).

Strangely mine got a pending response and my wife and daughter were approved straight away.

Chris

time2waste

21.00 and it is still down. The people who cause this unneccessary pandemonium need to sit back and think what they are really doing. If you can afford to fly to the USA and stay in either paid accommodation or with relatives and treat them to a Wendy Burger by way of a thank you, are you REALLY so short of cash that you cannot afford $14????? So what if it is $14 x 4 people; you've paid 4 airfares! Come on lets use this site for what it was meant and lets have more mature postings of real worth....2 for 1 pizzas and convoluted bank account applications that take hours to apply for and then you close them after 1 month for the sake of £20 are ridiculous.
It is immature in the extreme to whip gullible people up into a frenzy so that they think they won't get into the USA if they don't beat the 5AM deadline.
Please stop trying for an ESTA unless you have booked your flights.........