L’ESTA è il Sistema elettronico per l’autorizzazione al viaggio L’ESTA è il Sistema elettronico per l’autorizzazione al viaggio. È richiesto da parte del governo degli Stati Uniti d’America per i viaggiatori dei paesi partecipanti al Programma Viaggio senza Visto (VWP). L’implementazione delle Raccomandazioni del Commission Act 9/11 del 2007 impongono il requisito dell’ESTA.
L’ESTA utilizza un sistema automatico per definire se i viaggiatori sono idonei a visitare gli USA nell’ambito del VWP. Il programma dell’ESTA tuttavia non definisce se un visitatore sarà accettato negli USA. Ciò sarà deciso dai funzionari delle Dogane e della Protezione delle Frontiere (Customs and Border Protection - CBP) degli USA al momento dell’arrivo del visitatore negli Stati Uniti d’America.
È possibile inviare una richiesta dell’ESTA (in cui vengono richieste informazioni su di te e domande relative a cose che possono influire sulla tua idoneità) in qualsiasi momento prima di recarsi negli USA. È inoltre possibile ottenere un’autorizzazione ESTA presso l’aeroporto di partenza. In generale è comunque consigliabile richiederla in anticipo e prima di acquistare i biglietti per il volo negli USA.
È importante ottenere un’autorizzazione ESTA. Se non ne hai una, non ti sarà consentito effettuare il check-in; questa regola si applica a tutti, adulti e bambini.
Il requisito dell’ESTA si applica solo per l’arrivo tramite aereo o vettore marittimo; il vettore aereo o marittimo deve essere approvato. Se ti stai recando negli Stati Uniti d’America dal Messico o dal Canada via terra, non hai bisogno dell’ESTA. Inoltre, non hai bisogno dell’ESTA se viaggi nello stato di Washington da Victoria o da Vancouver nella Columbia britannica, Canada per nave.
Il VWP ti consente di visitare gli Stati Uniti d’America fino a 90 giorni. Se ti rechi in Messico, Canada, isole dei Caraibi o Bermuda dagli USA, il tempo speso in questi paesi sarà incluso nei 90 giorni.
Il Secretary of Homeland Security degli Stati Uniti e il Secretary of State americano insieme stabiliscono quali paesi rientrano nel VWP. Per partecipare al programma Viaggio senza Visto bisogna essere cittadini di uno dei paesi partecipanti. Se non sei cittadino di un qualsiasi paese aderente al VWP, ma sei un residente permanete di uno di essi, non hai diritto.
L’Immigration and Nationality Act (Title 8 U.S.C. § 1187) stabilisce i requisiti di base affinché un paese sia idoneo al VWP. Nello specifico, la Sezione 217 (c)(2)(A) specifica che il tasso di rifiuto dei visti per visitatori non immigranti deve essere del 3% o meno. Sono inoltre importanti fattori come la conformità alle leggi sull’immigrazione americane e un livello elevato di sicurezza dei passaporti.
A Gennaio 2016, l’ESTA è stato revocato per i cittadini con doppia cittadinanza dei seguenti paesi:
Iraq, Siria, Iran e Sudan. I cittadini con doppia cittadinanza in questi paesi devono richiedere un visto turistico normale per visitare gli Stati Uniti d’America.
Se hai un’ESTA, e al momento dell’arrivo negli USA, il CPB stabilisce che arrivi dall’Iraq, Siria, Iran, Sudan, Somalia, Libia o Yemen o dopo il 1 Marzo 2011, non ti sarà consentito entrare nel paese a meno che tu non sia qualificato ad avere un waiver. L’ESTA tuttavia non ti verrà revocato.
Le autorizzazioni di questo tipo possono essere concesse ai viaggiatori che visitano uno dei paesi elencati nel mandato ufficiale nell’interesse di organizzazioni internazionali o regionali, organizzazioni umanitarie non governative o governi sub-nazionali. Tali autorizzazioni possono anche essere concesse a giornalisti che visitano uno dei paesi elencati per questioni di lavoro .
Queste autorizzazioni sono tuttavia gestite caso per caso e sono a discrezione del Secretary of Homeland Security, che può scegliere di emettere tale autorizzazione sulla base di interessi di sicurezza nazionale degli USA o per l’applicazione della legge.
According to U.S. government recommendations, it is best to submit an online request for authorization at least 72 hours (three days) before the date that you travel to the U.S. Most applications are approved very quickly (within a minute); the 72-hour period is a recommendation only, and not a requirement.
You should be aware, however, that if you are not eligible for an ESTA, you will need to go through the much longer process of applying for a visa at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate, and possibly interviewing with a U.S. Consular officer. This may, according to some observers, impose some delays on last-minute travel to the U.S. on business, so you should plan accordingly.
An ESTA travel authorization is valid for as long as two years. You must apply for a new ESTA, however, any time that you change your name, gender, or the country of which you are a citizen, or if there is a change to any of your answers to the eligibility questions on the ESTA application, or when you obtain a new passport.
ESTA allows you to stay in the U.S. and the surrounding countries for up to 90 days, with no extensions. To stay for a longer period of time, you should apply for a visa.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers make the final decision about whether you will be allowed to enter the United States. They are able to deny or cancel your ESTA at any time during your visit, so possession of an ESSTA is not a guarantee of admission to the U.S.
The VWP, or Visa Waiver Program, is a U.S. government travel authorization program which applies to citizens of specified countries. It allows visitors from those countries to come to the United States without a visa for as long as 90 days for business or tourism. Visitors under the VWP can travel to all fifty states, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. There is limited travel to other U.S. territories under the VWP.
Countries selected for the VWP have developed economies and high incomes, with high Human Development Index ratings. When a country is nominated for the VWP, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security begins to investigate its policies regarding immigration and homeland (internal) security. The nomination process ends with acceptance or rejection, but it may continue for an indefinite period of time.
Nomination may be preceded by "roadmap" status. Roadmap countries are typically in discussion with the U.S. about admission to the VWP. Such roadmap discussions have been ongoing since 2005. They originally involved 19 countries. Nine of these countries (Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Israel, and Turkey) are still involved in such discussions. The other 10 are now part of the VWP.
Eligibility may be affected by a variety of circumstances, and a country may be removed from the VWP at any time. The most common reason for the loss of eligibility is a change of circumstances which, in the opinion of the U.S. government, increases the probability that the citizens of the country affected will overstay their visit, work illegally, or otherwise violate VWP restrictions.
This means that economic and political instability can have an indirect effect on eligibility (although not considered to be direct factors). Citizens of nations undergoing such instability could, from the U.S. point of view, have greater reason to violate the terms or their visa or work in the U.S. without a permit than would citizens of countries which are politically and economically stable and developed. Typically, a U.S. consul will take such factors into consideration when considering a visa application.
Argentina (2002) and Uruguay (2003) both lost their VWP eligibility due to economic instability resulting from a financial crisis; the U.S. was concerned that citizens of either country could have emigrated in large numbers and overstayed their visits.
Other circumstances may affect VWP eligibility, as well, including treatment of U.S. citizens traveling to the countries in question. This appears to be the reason why Israel has not been included in the VWP; it has been known to place Palestinian-American visitors under scrutiny so strict that it violates the requirement for mutuality.The Visa Waiver program began with an act of Congress passed in 1986. it's purpose was to make short-term business and tourist visits to the U.S. easier, and to let the State Department concentrate on higher risks. The first VWP country was the UK (July, 1988); the second was Japan (December 16, 1988). The Netherlands, France, West Germany, Italy, Sweden, and Switzerland all followed in October of 1989.
1991 saw Spain, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, and San Marino added tot he program. New Zealand was the first country form Oceania to join, also in 1991. Brunei was the second Asian country to join, in 1993.
Ireland was admitted to the VWO on April 1, 1995. Australia and Argentina (the first Latin American country, later dropped from the program in 2002) joined in 1996. Slovenia joined on September 30, 1997. Singapore, Portugal, and Uruguay (dropped in 2003) joined on August 9, 1999.
The George W. Bush administration instituted more restrictive requirements after the September 11 attacks. These included a law requiring VWP visitors arriving in the U.S. to present a machine-readable passport beginning on October 1, 2003. Several VWP countries were still issuing passports which did not meet the machine-readable requirement, however; over 33% of Spanish and French travelers still held passports which were not machine-readable. As a result, the requirement for machine-readability was delayed until October 26, 2004. This delay, however, did not apply to Belgium, because the U.S. had serious doubts regarding the integrity and security of passports from that country.
The U.S. had also previously set October 26, 2004 as the date on which the requirement that all passports for VWP visitors must be biometric would begin. When the machine-readability requirement was reset for that date, however, the U.S. rescheduled the biometric requirement to begin on October 26, 2005. This date was later moved to October 26, 2006, because the EU believed that several countries would not be able to comply by the 2005 date.
The Biometric requirement did finally go into effect on October 26, 2006; all VWP passports issued on that date or subsequently must be biometric. At that time however, Brunei, Liechtenstein, and Andorra were still not issuing biometric passports.
The ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) was unveiled in November of 2006. It was based on Australia's long-standing Electronic Travel Authority program, and was intended to allow VWP visitors to provide travel information to the U.S. government in advance of their visit. The U.S. would then provide them with electronic authorization to visit the country (without, however, a guarantee of admission).
Since the program originated in Australia, it is worthwhile to take a look at the Australian implementation of the Electronic Travel Authority system. The Australian ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) is an electronic visa stored on the DIAC (Department of Immigration and Citizenship) computer system. All travelers to Australia are required to apply for a visa (whether an ETA or otherwise), with the exception of New Zealanders, who are automatically granted a visa when they arrive in Australia, under the terms of the Trans-Tasman Travel arrangement. With the single exception of NZ citizens, the ETA has effectively replaced visa-free visits to Australia. Although visitors must purchase an ETA (online from the DIAC, or from an authorized airline or travel agency), and Australia is the only nation requiring such a purchase for visiting U.S. citizens, the process is sufficiently informal so that the U.S. accepts it as an arrangement that meets the standard (i.e., ninety days of visa-free travel for business or tourism) reciprocal requirement. Many European travelers (including citizens of EU countries) use the very similar (but free) eVisitor program for electronic travel authorization. Overall, there is a strong resemblance between the eVisitor system and the U.S. VWP requirement for travelers to apply for an ESTA.
A traveler must meet the following requirements to qualify for the Visa Waiver Program:
As of June 3, 2008, if you are traveling to the U.S. under the VWP, you must apply for an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) before you depart for the U.S. The application process is online, and it is suggested, although not required, that you apply three days (72 hours) before departure for the U.S. An ESTA is valid for two years from the date that it is issued. The ESTA program is based on the Electronic Travel Authority system used in Australia.
The purpose of this requirement is to allow VWP travelers to be checked against lists and databases of terrorist suspects and no-fly individuals; it is primarily a security measure. ESTA authorization is required for VWP travelers, but in itself, it is not a guarantee that you will be admitted to the U.S. That decision rests with CBP officers at the point where you enter the United States.
Under most circumstances, the U.S. requires that a traveler's passport must be valid for six months past the date when the traveler leaves the U.S. There are, however, agreements between the United States and several countries under which this requirement is waived.
To travel to the U.S. under the VWP, you must:
Note that under some circumstances, some U.S. embassies and consulates advise visitors to apply for a standard tourist visa (instead of the VWP) when the visitor may still be eligible for the VWP. This may happen if you have previously been refused entry to the U.S. You may still be eligible for the VWP, but unless you have taken care of the initial problem, you may be refused gain. You may also be advised to apply for a standard tourist visa if you have been arrested or convicted of a crime, although, as described above, an exemption may apply. You are only ineligible if you do not meet the requirements specified for the VWP.
If an immigration officer does decide to refuse to let you enter the U.S. however, you will have no right of appeal unless you hold a visa, allowing you to appeal to an immigration judge.
Under the Visa Waiver Program: