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The 'Visa Waiver Program (VWP)' is a program of the United States of America which allows citizens of specific countries to travel to the US for tourism or business for up to 90 days without having to obtain a visa. All countries participating in the program have high HDI and most are regarded as developed countries.

Contents

History

Eligible countries

Enlargement of the group of eligible countries

Requirements for the visa waiver program

Machine readable and biometric passports

Passport validity

Return or onward ticket

Other eligibility requirements

Visa waiver program restrictions

Citizens of Canada, Bermuda and Mexico

Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, and Palau

References

See also

External links

History

The visa waiver program was introduced in 1986 with the aim of facilitating tourism and short term business visits to the United States, and allowing the Department of State to focus consular resources on addressing higher risks to the U.S.
In November 2006 it was announced that plans for an Electronic Travel Authorization would be developed so that VWP travellers can give advance information on their travels to the United States. In return, they will be given authorization electronically to travel to the United States. This program will be modelled on the Electronic Travel Authority scheme that has been used in Australia for many years.

Eligible countries

To be eligible for a visa waiver under the VWP, the traveller seeking admission to the U.S. must be a 'citizen' of a country that has been designated by the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of State, as a "program country". Permanent residents of designated countries do not qualify unless they hold a citizenship of another designated country. The criteria for designation as program countries are specified in Section 217 (c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (U.S.C. 1187) [1] [2]. The criteria stress passport security and a very low nonimmigrant visa refusal rate: not more than 3% as specified in Section 217 (c)(2)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as well as ongoing compliance with the immigration law of the United States.
As of 2006, 27 countries were designated as VWP participants:

★ 'Europe' (22)
Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom

★ 'Asia' (3)
Brunei, Japan, Singapore,

★ 'Oceania' (2)
Australia, New Zealand
Eligibility for the visa waiver scheme may be withdrawn at any time. Usually this may happen if the United States feels that citizens of a certain country are more likely to violate their VWP restrictions (such as working without a permit or overstaying their allowed period of stay in the U.S.). Accordingly, Argentina's participation in the VWP was terminated in 2002 in light of the financial crisis taking place in that country and its potential effect on unlawful emigration of its citizens to the U.S. by way of the VWP. Uruguay's participation in the program was revoked in 2003 for similar reasons.
Greece is the only country of the original 15 nations European Union prior to the May 1,2004 enlargement whose citizens require a visa to enter the United States. Slovenia is the only nation of the ten newly admitted nations that is already a member of the VWP.

Enlargement of the group of eligible countries

After the expansion of the European Union in 2004, both the newly admitted countries and EU agencies began intensive lobbying efforts to include those new countries in the VWP. The U.S. government initially responded to those efforts by developing bilateral strategies with 19 candidate countries known as the Visa Waiver Roadmap process [3]^[1]. The U.S. government began to accept the possibility of departing from the original country designation criteria - which had been contained within immigration law ''per se'' - and to expand them by adding political criteria, with the latter being able to override the former. This development began first with Bill S.2844 [5], which explicitly named Poland as the only country to be added to the VWP, and continued as an amendment to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 (S.2611), whose Sec. 413, Visa Waiver Program Expansion [6], defined broader criteria that would apply to any EU country that provided "material support" to the multinational forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, the definition of that "material support" would be met again only by Poland and Romania, a fact that was not favorably received by the other EU candidate countries.
During his visit to Estonia in November 2006, President Bush announced his intention "to work with our Congress and our international partners to modify our visa waiver program" [7]. Recently (July 2007) the Congress and the senate passed the Secure Travel and Counterterrorism Partnership Act, directing the secretary of Homeland Security to establish a pilot program to expand the visa waiver program for up to five new countries that are cooperating with the US on security and counterterrorism matters. This new act changes the nonimmigrant visa refusal rate threshold - from 3% - to 10%, thus making 12 countries qualify for inclusion in the visa-waiver program: Argentina, Brazil, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Israel, Malta, Slovakia, South Korea, Taiwan and Uruguay [8]. Cyprus, Greece and Malta had already refusal rates less than the original 3%, but were not included in the VWP countries.
South Korea's chances are further being scrutinized due to a thriving and very sizable sex-trade industry in that nation. With no controls or laws to regulate human trafficking and prostitution, the country will have to strengthen its position on this moral issue before it can be granted membership in the program. [9]
While all participating nations must provide reciprocal visa-free travel for U.S. citizens (usually ninety days for tourism or business purposes), Australia is the only nation that requires U.S. citizens (and other VWP nations) to apply for an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA), which in fact is a visa that is stored electronically in a computer system operated by the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC). A passport holder must apply for and purchase an ETA through an authorized travel agency, airline, or via the official DIMA website before departing for Australia. However, as the ETA process is relatively free of formality, the United States recognises it as the equivalent of visa free travel.
The only European microstate that is not a member of the program is the Vatican City. Its candidacy in the program is still a mystery, with no knowledge whether it will or will not seek membership in the program.
;British passport holders
Only British Citizens are eligible for the program. British National (Overseas) and other British passport holders (except most persons from Bermuda) need a visa to visit the United States. [10]
British National (Overseas) passport are eligible for Guam Visa Waiver Program to visit Guam [11]. See British Nationality Law for details regarding various kinds of United Kingdom passports.

Requirements for the visa waiver program

The requirements for the visa waiver program are as follows:

Machine readable and biometric passports

All travellers must have individual passports. It is not acceptable (for the visa waiver scheme) for children to be included on a parent's passport.
Passport requirements depend on the date the passport was issued or renewed:

★ Passports issued or renewed before 26 October 2005 must be machine readable.

★ Passports issued or renewed after 26 October 2005 must be machine readable and contain a digitized photograph, or must be biometric passports.

★ Passports issued or renewed after 26 October 2006 must be biometric.

Passport validity

The standard requirement for passport validity is 6 months beyond the expected date of departure from the U.S., however some country-specific arrangements are different. ^[2]

Return or onward ticket

If entering the U.S. by air or sea, additional requirements apply. The traveller must:

★ Be travelling on a participating commercial carrier and;

★ Be holding a valid return or onward ticket. Where the ticket terminates in Canada, Mexico, Bermuda or an island in the Caribbean, the traveller must be a legal resident of that country or territory.

Other eligibility requirements

Applicants for admission under the visa waiver program:

★ Must have complied with the conditions of all previous admissions to the U.S.;

★ Must never have been arrested or convicted for an offence or crime involving 'moral turpitude' no matter how long ago. National regulations which normally expunge criminal records after a certain length of time (e.g. The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act in the UK) do not apply.

★ Must not be ineligible for a visa;

★ Must not have been previously denied entry to the U.S.;

★ Must not be intending to visit the U.S. for a purpose other than tourism or a short term business visit. In particular, journalists cannot use the visa waiver scheme to operate in the U.S. and must instead apply for an ''I visa''.

★ If entering over the land frontier, must pay a fee of $6. For those arriving by air or sea, the cost of the visa waiver is included in the airline ticket.
Those who do not meet the requirements for the visa-waiver scheme must obtain a U.S. tourist visa from an American Embassy or Consulate.

Visa waiver program restrictions

A person entering the United States under the VWP cannot request an extension of the original allowed period of stay in the U.S. (this practice is allowed to those holding regular visas). Additionally, a person who entered the U.S. under the VWP may not request a change of immigration status while in the U.S. (e.g. one is unable to change status from say a tourist to a student). Moreover, if one seeks to enter the U.S and is denied at a port of entry, no path of appealing the denial of entry is allowed.
Travellers can leave to Mexico and other countries, but will not be granted another 90 days after reentry in the US [13].

Citizens of Canada, Bermuda and Mexico

Canadian citizens and British Overseas Territories citizens from Bermuda are also admitted to the United States without requiring tourist visas, but under different legislation to the Visa Waiver program ^[3]. Mexicans holding a 10-year Border Crossing Card also do not require a visa to enter the United States.
Before 23 January 2007, citizens of Canada, Bermuda, and Mexico (provided they held valid photo identification were able to enter the United States with only a birth certificate as proof of citizenship and were not required to show a passport. However, since 23 January 2007, they are now required to have passports when entering the U.S. by air only (U.S. citizens also require passports to re-enter the U.S. by air). Citizens of Canada will still be able for some time to use their birth certificates when traveling to the U.S. by land or sea. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has set a tentative date of January, 2008 for this requirement.

Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, and Palau

Under the Compact of Free Association, citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia^[4], the Republic of the Marshall Islands ^[5], and the Republic of Palau^[6] (except for adopted children), may enter, reside, study, and work in the United States without visas. These three nations hold the distinction of being the only countries in the world that their citizens do not require visas or other required documents (except a valid passport) for permanent residence, employment, educational pursuits, or for general visits in/to the United States.

References

1. Argentina, Brazil, Israel, South Korea, Taiwan, Turkey, Uruguay, and The rest of the UE members (Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic[4], Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia).
2. [12] U.S. State Department
3. U.S. State Department: Who from Canada, Mexico and Bermuda, Needs a Non-immigrant Visa to Enter the United States Temporarily?
4. U.S. Embassy in Kolonia, Micronesia
5. Republic of the Marshall Islands Embassy in Washington
6. Embassy of the Republic of Palau in Washington

See also

★ US-VISIT

★ List of countries by Human Development Index

★ List of countries by GDP (PPP) per capita

★ Developed country

★ United States visas

★ European Union visa lists

External links

★ Expand Visa Waiver Program to Qualified Countries

★ Visa Waiver Program, Department of State, the United States

★ President Clinton Signs the Visa Waiver Permanent Program Act

★ Calculation of the Adjusted Visa Refusal Rate for Tourist and Business travelers under the Guidelines of the Visa Waiver Program

★ The Relationship between Bilateral Trade and Temporary Immigration Policy: Panel Evidence from the U.S. Visa Waiver Program

★ A Sound Visa Policy: The Heritage Foundation's Research