ESTA application guide for USA travel

If you are applying for an ESTA to travel to the United States, you must complete the form correctly to avoid risking an ESTA ban or entry problems. We will guide you through your application so you can travel to the USA visa-free without problems.

Before you start completing the ESTA application, set up an account. You can do this on the US government website or at a trusted ESTA agency with additional service and security offers. Please use a valid email address and create a secure password.

After creating your ESTA account, the online form will guide you through the application process. It consists of the following steps and questions:

After successfully creating your ESTA account, you must indicate how many people will participate in your trip to the USA. Then you enter the personal information for each traveler individually. This includes:

• Name
• Gender
• Date and place of birth
• Nationality(s)
• Contact details
• Passport number, country of issue, date of issue, and expiry date of the passport
• National Identity Number (optional)
• Names of your parents
• Information about your employer
• Information about your social media accounts
• Emergency contact details

You must provide the following information about your USA trip in the ESTA form:

• First overnight address in the US (e.g., hotel)
• Type of trip (transit or stay)

If you are a member of the Global Entry Program or another Trusted Traveler program, please enter your membership number here.

Have your passport ready to scan the data page via your webcam. Alternatively, you can prepare a file for upload. It must include the photo and show the machine-readable zone (lower third of the data page) in jpg, jpeg, png, or gif format.

After leaving your personal information in the ESTA form, you will be redirected to the security questions section, which helps US authorities detect potential risks in travelers.

Prepare for questions on the following topics:

• Diseases
• Drug consumption
• Offenses
• Citizenships
• Travel to certain high-risk countries
• Visa refusals and expulsions
• Job search and intention to immigrate to the United States

Since the entire ESTA process is automated, if you answer "yes" to any of the security questions, your application will be rejected, and you will need to apply for a visa to enter the United States.

Nevertheless, it is essential to answer all questions truthfully because incorrect or misleading information in the ESTA application can lead to an entry ban from the USA or even criminal prosecution.

The US government has classified Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Somalia, North Korea, Libya, and Syria as countries with security risks. If you traveled to one of these countries after March 1st, 2011, you cannot enter the United States with ESTA, even if you would otherwise be eligible for the electronic travel authorization system.

In addition, the U.S. Department of State designated Cuba as a "State Sponsor of Terrorism" on January 12th, 2021. With limited exceptions, you are no longer eligible to travel with ESTA if you visited Cuba on or after that date. Instead, you must apply for a visa to enter the United States.

Please note that you also cannot apply for ESTA if you hold dual citizenship from Iran, Iraq, Cuba, North Korea, Syria, or Sudan.

If your ESTA has already been approved, and it is later determined that you have been in one of these countries with security risks, such as Cuba, or have dual citizenship with one of these countries, your ESTA approval will be revoked.

We have collected some valuable tips for you on how to fill out the ESTA form:

• Provide an email address to which you have full access.
• If you do not know names or places or only partially, please enter "UNKNOWN" in the appropriate fields.
• If you don't have a phone number, you can provide a contact number from someone else, e.g., a family member, friend, or business partner.
• In the ESTA online form, umlauts or "ß" do not have to be spelled out, and street names can be abbreviated.
• In the employer field, you may also state “self-employed,” “student,” “child,” “housewife/househusband,” “parent living at home,” or any other term that best describes your situation.
• If you do not use social media, you can answer the question about your social media accounts with "No."

Please note: It can take up to 72 hours for the US government to process your ESTA application! As a rule, the ESTA approval comes after a short time.