To travel to the USA, travelers must obtain prior authorization. Two official authorizations are available. You can apply for a visa or an ESTA document. Applying for a visa is a lengthy and costly administrative process. That’s why ESTA is so popular. But how do you get an ESTA? Is the traveler obliged to go to the American embassy as for a USA visa application? We answer this question in this article!
Do I have to go to the U.S. embassy to apply for an ESTA?
It’s true that to apply for a U.S. visa, you need to go to the U.S. embassy. However, to apply for an ESTA, you don’t need to go there, or even to the embassy at all. All you need is a computer and an Internet connection to apply online. The ESTA application is an online form. To fill in the ESTA form, all you need is your valid passport – as your passport number is the key element in your application – and your credit card to validate your request.
Requirements for ESTA authorization
Not everyone is entitled to complete an ESTA form, as certain conditions must be met by the applicant. To travel to the USA with this electronic travel authorization, the traveler must :
- be a national of one of the countries covered by the Visa Waiver Program. There are currently 38 member countries.
- Have an electronic or biometric passport.
- Entering the United States to visit, do business or transit.
- Travel in the U.S. for up to 90 days.
- Pay the requested amount.
Apply for an ESTA USA
Applying for ESTA involves filling in an online form. Exempt citizens must answer a series of questions that will enable the competent authorities to establish their profile. The U.S. authorities recommend that you give clear, exact answers to each question on the form. All the more so as it is on the basis of this information that you may or may not obtain your authorization to travel to the USA. Among the information to be provided are your identity, the reasons for your trip and certain questions relating to your previous applications to the US embassy.
To fill in the form and be authorized to stay in the USA, you have two choices: order on a private website or on the official U.S. government website. Once you’ve filled in the online ESTA application form, there’s one further formality to complete: payment. This differs according to the site where you place the order, but can be made by credit card.
Note that you don’t need to pay for the ESTA every time you travel to the USA, as the document is valid for two years. This means you can travel to the USA several times during the two-year validity period.
As you can see, to travel to the U.S., applying for an ESTA remains the most practical, quickest and, above all, inexpensive solution!
