Validity of the ESTA

In order to travel to the United States, it is imperative to obtain a valid authorization. Without it, it would be impossible to set foot on the soil of Uncle Sam’s country. The ESTA fulfills this role by allowing you to present yourself at the border without needing a visa, where the final decision will be made by a U.S. customs officer. So how can you be sure that your ESTA is valid so that you don’t get any unpleasant surprises?

 

ESTA: valid, validated and validated

In order to obtain a valid ESTA, you must first make sure that you meet the requirements for being issued one. If not, you will have to apply for a USA visa.

The visa-free program is only available to participating countries, including France. You must be a citizen of one of these countries to be able to apply. It is also necessary to have a valid passport, biometric or electronic. Finally, your stay must meet certain criteria:

• Do not exceed 90 days;
• Be conducted for tourism or business purposes (unpaid activity only).

The American administration will validate your request (or not) within 72 hours. If theESTA is denied for any reason, you will need to initiate a visa process.

Once validated, your authorization is valid for 2 years. It may expire if, for example, the 90 days of presence are used up, if essential information entered when filling in the form is changed or if the passport used has expired.

 

How to obtain a valid ESTA?

To receive the precious sesame opening the doors of the USA, it is necessary to fill out a form. It consists of 3 parts where you will have to give information about your identity, passport information, criminal record, health, etc.

You can apply on the official U.S. ESTA website or through a private assistance partner. They offer services that are not available from official bodies: they take care of all the procedures on your behalf, ensure the proofreading and correction of the information provided and answer your questions via an online helpdesk. All this in order to issue you an ESTA quickly and with guaranteed validity!