In these fast-moving times, when the world is looking more and more like a village because it’s so easy to travel from one continent to another, the need for a travel document doesn’t seem so obvious. For people in the Schengen area, no visa or authorization is required to move from one country to another – an identity card is all that’s needed. But what about the USA? Is a passport enough to enter the USA? We’ll find out in this article.
Is a passport the only document required to travel to the USA?
Summary :
A passport is required for any stay abroad outside the Schengen area. The passport is your international identity document. It is therefore the travel document par excellence.
For travel to the United States, the American authorities require an electronic or biometric passport. These passports are the most difficult to falsify, thanks to the microchip they contain. In addition to identification information, the biometric passport contains passport photos and the holder’s fingerprints.
Depending on nationality, the U.S. government requires a valid passport to have at least 6 months remaining on it after a trip to the USA. French nationals are not obliged to comply with this requirement, but their passport must be valid for the entire duration of their stay in the USA.
A valid passport is not the only document required for travel to the USA. Entry to the U.S. by air or sea requires a visa or Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).
A travel authorization is required for any stay in the U.S.
For security reasons, the U.S. government requires the identity of all travelers to the USA. Several criteria must be taken into account to determine the applicable travel authorization.
U.S. visa for all types of stay
American consular services are responsible for issuing visas. The American government offers 2 types of visa: the non-immigrant visa for a temporary stay in the USA, and the immigrant visa for expatriation to the USA.
A temporary visa is obtained using an online form, the DS-160, completed with various supporting documents. The application is then presented to a consular officer. There is a visa for every type of stay in the USA: tourist visa, transit visa, student visa, work visa, etc. A green card, or permanent residence permit, can be obtained either through an American sponsor or through the green card lottery.
ESTA for visa-exempt travellers
The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows nationals of signatory countries to travel to the USA without a visa. Instead of a USA visa, foreign nationals are required to obtain an ESTA electronic travel authorization.
ESTA is not applicable to all trips to the USA. It is imperative that the stay in the USA be a temporary one of no more than 90 days. It can also be for transit, tourism or business purposes only.
The nature of the travel authorization requires an online application via a form to be completed on the official U.S. government website. The ESTA form is subject to a fee, and can only be validated once payment has been made. It can take up to 72 hours to receive a response to an authorization request.
The travel authorization is valid for two years, but its validity depends on the validity of the passport. The ESTA allows multiple entries, so there’s no need to apply for a travel authorization every time you travel to the USA.