Do European Citizens Need a Visa for USA?

Any travelers planning to visit the US in the future must be aware of the travel authorisation requirements that the US operates with. The US has a Visa System in place for non-US citizens who wish to travel to the US.

However, for citizens from certain countries and many European countries, a visa is not required for tourism or business trips. This is because the US has an agreement with 40 countries that they are members of the Visa Waiver Program, which means they can visit the US using an ESTA instead.

Visa Waiver Program: The Overview

The majority of the European countries are members of the Visa Waiver Program. Out of the current EU countries, only Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, and Romania are not included in the Visa Waiver Program. Therefore the citizens from these countries must apply for a US visa.

Poland is the most recent country to be added to the VWP. Conversations happen regularly between the US and the officials from the remaining non-VWP EU countries regarding becoming members to become members in the future.

Requirements for Using the Visa Waiver Program

Eligible Countries

You must be a citizen of a nation designated by the VVP. These are the following countries: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom.

Passport Requirements

Your passport must be valid for a minimum of 6 months after your intended departure from the United States. A passport is required for every member of your family, including newborns and children (The VWP does not permit children to be listed on a parent's passport).

To utilize the VWP, you need to have an e-passport. An e-passport is a more secure passport with an electronic chip inside.

Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA)

Prior to boarding an air or sea carrier with a U.S. destination, you must get authorisation through the Electronic System for travel authorisation (ESTA) in order to travel without a visa under the VWP. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) uses the ESTA (web-based system) to assess a visitor's eligibility to travel to the US for tourism or business under the VWP.

When Can’t You use the VWP (ESTA) and Need a Visa?

Some travellers won’t be able to use an ESTA because of personal factors:

Some travellers won’t be able to use an ESTA due to the various reasons for travel:

Benefits of using an ESTA

There are many benefits of being able to apply for an ESTA as opposed to applying for a US visa. For example, the process is much quicker, and the ESTA can usually be applied for and confirmed within just a few hours.

Applying for a US visa, on the other hand, involves attending an interview at the US embassy and completing a much longer form. The processing time for a US visa can take weeks or even months, so the ESTA is a much more convenient option for people who are just visiting the US for tourism or business purposes.

How to apply for an ESTA

An ESTA is an Electronic System for Travel Authorization. To apply for one, you must fill in a short online form that requests personal details, passport details, and other information such as medical history and any criminal convictions. The ESTA forms part of the US approach to maintaining security and screening visitors entering the US while still not making it too difficult for low-risk tourists to visit the country.

The US tourism industry is huge, with places like NYC, LA, and Las Vegas being top travel destinations for citizens from Europe and the rest of the world. Therefore, the ESTA allows tourism and business trips for most EU citizens to be more straightforward than applying for a US visa.