A trip to the USA is an unforgettable experience of a lifetime. The sheer size of this country still fires the imagination. Visiting New York, the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone National Park are unique experiences. But the American dream comes at a price, and a stay in the USA is often synonymous with substantial expenditure, if you count accommodation, sightseeing and airfares.
Before you leave, you should also think about the cost of travel documents. The U.S. government requires travel authorization before you can travel to the USA. In the past, applying for a visa was the only alternative, but now a more economical solution, in the form of an ESTA application, is also possible. In addition to the authorization, the traveler must also have a valid passport, i.e. an electronic or biometric passport whose validity is equal to or greater than the duration of the stay in the USA.
Why do I have to pay for ESTA?
Summary :
When the decision was taken to make the Visa Waiver Program more secure, ESTA was free of charge. However, the U.S. authorities subsequently decided to make the travel authorization fee-based. The revenues collected not only cover processing costs, including the installation and maintenance of the electronic systems provided for this purpose, but also help to promote US tourism internationally. After all, the ESTA is part of the Visa Waiver Program, which was set up to enable citizens of member countries to travel to the USA without a visa, i.e. without constraints, and thus increase the number of travellers to the USA.
Because of its electronic format and limitations, the ESTA is much more affordable than a US visa. Where the ESTA applies only to temporary stays (tourist, business or transit) of up to 90 days by air or sea, by visa-exempt travelers, the USA visa is suitable for all possible reasons: tourist visas, work visas, student visas, and so on.
How much does an ESTA electronic travel authorization cost?
Applying for a U.S. visa is a tedious and costly procedure. Firstly, because obtaining a visa involves a visit to the US embassy to present supporting documents to a consular officer, but also because the cost of a non-immigrant visa is a minimum of $160. Add to this the cost in time and money of travel, if the U.S. embassy is located far from your home.
Unlike a visa application, the ESTA authorization request is made exclusively online. This significantly reduces the cost of ESTA, since it requires less human intervention. To obtain the ESTA document, you need to fill in an online form. There are two options for accessing the ESTA form.
The first is to apply online via the U.S. government’s Custom and Border Protection website. You’ll need to complete all three parts of the form, and submit your application after paying the application fee. If you apply via the official website, the ESTA application will cost you $21. The difference with the price of a visa is significant, but you need to be careful not to run up the bill. When you go through the U.S. government website, you don’t get any assistance, so you’re on your own when it comes to the sometimes incomprehensible intricacies of the administration. The United States of America is serious about homeland security, and the slightest error in the ESTA form means you’ll have to apply again, which you’ll obviously have to pay for, multiplying the cost of the ESTA.
The second option is to use a private service provider to apply for an ESTA. Naturally, these service providers charge for their services. The cost of ESTA varies from site to site, depending on the level of assistance offered. So, if you’re eligible for ESTA, going through a private site reduces the risk of refusal due to an error on the form. This saves you time and money.