Visa Waiver Program

Program allowing 90-day visa-free travel to the United States for nationals of some countries

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The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is a program of the United States federal government that allows nationals of specific countries to travel to the United States for tourism, business, or while in transit for up to 90 days without having to obtain a visa. It applies to all fifty U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as to Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, which also have an additional program with waivers for more nationalities; American Samoa has a similar but separate program.

All the countries selected for the VWP by the U.S. government are generally regarded as developed countries, with high-income economies and a very high Human Development Index.

Other visa waivers exist for citizens of certain jurisdictions.

Eligible countries

  The United States and its territories
  Freely associated states (freedom of movement)
  Visa-free (6 months)
  Visa Waiver Program (90 days)
  Visa-free with police certificate (6 months)
  Visa required to enter the United States

To be eligible for a visa waiver under the VWP, the traveler seeking admission to the United States must be a national of a country that has been designated by the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State, as a "program country". Permanent residents of designated countries who are not their nationals do not qualify for a visa waiver. The criteria for designation as program countries are specified in Section 217(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. § 1187). The criteria stress passport security, a nonimmigrant visa refusal rate below 3%, and a reciprocal visa waiver for U.S. nationals, among other requirements.

As of 2024, nationals of 41 countries are eligible for entry into the United States without a visa under the VWP:[1][2]

Requirements

Passport

All visitors from VWP countries must hold a biometric passport.[5]

All travelers must have individual passports. It is not acceptable (for the VWP) for children to be included on a parent's passport.[6]

In principle, the passport must be valid for six months beyond the expected date of departure from the United States. However, the United States has agreements with a large number of countries to waive this requirement, including all VWP countries except Brunei.[7][6]

Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)

All incoming passengers who intend to take advantage of the Visa Waiver Program are required to apply for a travel authorization through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) online before departure to the United States, preferably at least 72 hours (3 days) in advance. This requirement was announced on June 3, 2008 and is intended to bolster U.S. security by pre-screening participating VWP passengers against terrorist or no-fly lists and databases.[8] It is similar to Australia's Electronic Travel Authority system. The authorization is mandatory for participating VWP nationals before traveling to the United States, but as with formal visas this does not guarantee admission into the United States since final admission eligibility is determined at U.S. ports of entry by CBP officers.

ESTA has an application fee of 4 USD, and if approved, an additional fee of 17 USD is charged, for a total of 21 USD. An approved ESTA is valid for up to two years or until the traveler's passport expires, whichever comes first, and is valid for multiple entries into the United States.[d][9]

When traveling to the United States by air or sea under the VWP with ESTA, the person must be traveling on a participating commercial carrier and hold a valid return or onward ticket, dated within 90 days.[6] The VWP does not apply at all (i.e. a visa is required) if a passenger arrives via air or sea on an unapproved carrier. ESTA is also required for travel by land.[10]

Prior travel or dual nationality in certain countries

Since 2016, those who have previously been in Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria or Yemen on or after March 1, 2011, or in Cuba on or after January 12, 2021, or who are dual nationals of Cuba, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Sudan or Syria, are not eligible to travel under the VWP.[1] However, those who traveled to such countries as diplomats, military, journalists, humanitarian workers or legitimate businessmen may have this ineligibility waived by the Secretary of Homeland Security.[11]

Other requirements

Applicants for admission under the Visa Waiver Program:[6]

  • Must have complied with the conditions of all previous admissions to the United States and have not been found ineligible for a U.S. visa.
  • Must never have been convicted of, or arrested for, an offense or crime involving moral turpitude[e] or a controlled substance, or two or more crimes with a maximum aggregate sentence of five years' imprisonment or more, no matter how long ago. National regulations which normally expunge criminal records after a certain length of time (e.g. the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 in the UK) do not apply.
  • Must not be otherwise inadmissible to the United States, such as on health or national security grounds.
  • Must be intending to visit the United States for a purpose of tourism, business or transit.

Applicants should display social and economic ties which bind them to their country of origin or may be refused entry.[12]

Having been arrested or convicted does not in itself make a person ineligible to use the Visa Waiver Program. However, some U.S. embassies advise such persons to apply for a tourist visa even though there is no legal obligation to do so.[6]

Those who do not meet the requirements for the Visa Waiver Program must obtain a U.S. visitor visa from a U.S. embassy or consulate.[6]

Restrictions

Visitors under the VWP may stay for up to 90 days in the United States and cannot request an extension of the original allowed period of stay[6] (this practice is allowed to those holding regular visas).[13][14][15] However, VWP visitors may seek to adjust status on the basis of either marriage to a U.S. citizen or an application for asylum.[16]

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers determine admissibility upon the traveler's arrival. If one seeks to enter the United States under the VWP and is denied entry by a CBP officer at a port of entry, there is no path to appeal or review of the denial of entry.[17]

Travelers can leave to neighboring jurisdictions (Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean), but will not be granted another 90 days after reentry in the United States; instead they are readmitted to the United States for the remaining days granted on their initial entry.[18] Transit through the United States is generally permitted, if the total time in the United States, Canada, Mexico and adjacent islands is less than 90 days. However, if for example the traveler is transiting the United States on the way to a 6-month stay in Canada, the VWP cannot be used, as the total time in the United States, Canada, Mexico and adjacent islands will be over 90 days. In this case the traveler should apply for a B-1/B-2 visa, or a transit visa.[6]

There are restrictions on the type of employment-related activities allowed. Meetings and conferences in relation to the travelers' profession, line of business or employer in their home country are generally acceptable, but most forms of "gainful employment" are not. There are however poorly-classifiable exceptions such as persons performing professional services in the United States for a non-U.S. employer, and persons installing, servicing and repairing commercial or industrial equipment or machinery pursuant to a contract of sale.[19] Performers (such as actors and musicians) who plan on performing live or taping scenes for productions in their country of origin, as well as athletes participating in an athletic event, are likewise not allowed to use the VWP for their respective engagements and are instead required to have an O or P visa prior to arrival. Foreign media representatives and journalists on assignment are required to have a nonimmigrant media (I) visa.[20]

History

Congress passed legislation in 1986 to create the Visa Waiver Program with the aim of facilitating tourism and short-term business visits to the United States, and allowing the United States Department of State to focus consular resources on addressing higher risks.[21] The United Kingdom became the first country to participate in the Visa Waiver Program in July 1988, followed by Japan in December 1988.[22] In July 1989, France, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and West Germany were added to the VWP.[23]

In 1991, more European countries joined the Program – Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, Norway, San Marino and Spain – as well as New Zealand (the first country from Oceania).[23] In 1993, Brunei became the second Asian country to be admitted to the Program.[24]

On April 1, 1995, Ireland was added to the VWP.[25] In 1996, Australia and Argentina (the first Latin American country) joined,[23] although Argentina was later removed in 2002.[26] On September 30, 1997, Slovenia was added.[23] On August 9, 1999, Portugal, Singapore and Uruguay joined the program,[27] although Uruguay was subsequently removed in 2003.[28]

Following the September 11 terrorist attacks, the George W. Bush administration decided to tighten entry requirements into the United States, as a result of which legislation was passed requiring foreign visitors entering under the Visa Waiver Program to present a machine-readable passport upon arrival starting from October 1, 2003, and a biometric passport from October 26, 2004. However, as a number of VWP countries still issued non-machine readable passports (for example, more than a third of French and Spanish passport holders held a non-machine readable version), the implementation of this rule was postponed to October 26, 2004, with the exception of Belgian nationals, as there were concerns about the security and integrity of Belgian passports.[29] Likewise, the biometric passport requirement was also postponed to October 26, 2005, only to be further postponed by another year to October 26, 2006 at the request of the European Union, which raised concerns about the number of participating countries which would have been able to make the deadline.[30] When the new rule came into force on that day, three countries (Andorra, Brunei and Liechtenstein) had not yet started issuing biometric passports.[21]

In November 2006, the U.S. government announced that plans for an "Electronic Travel Authorization" program (officially named "Electronic System for Travel Authorization") would be developed so that VWP travelers can give advance information on their travels to the United States. In return, they will be given authorization electronically to travel to the United States, although it does not guarantee admission to the United States. This program is modeled on the Electronic Travel Authority scheme that has been used in Australia for many years.[31]

Argentina's participation in the VWP was terminated in 2002 in light of the financial crisis taking place in that country and its potential effect on mass emigration and unlawful overstay of its nationals in the United States by way of the VWP. Uruguay's participation in the program was revoked in 2003 for similar reasons. While a country's political and economic standing does not directly determine its eligibility, it is widely believed that nationals of politically stable and economically developed nations would not have much incentive to illegally seek employment and violate their visa while in the United States, risks that consular officers seriously consider in approving or denying a visa.

Road map

After the 2004 enlargement of the European Union, both the newly admitted countries and EU agencies began intensive lobbying efforts to include those new countries in the VWP. The U.S. government initially responded to those efforts by developing bilateral strategies with 19 candidate countries known as the Visa Waiver road map process.[32] The U.S. government began to accept the possibility of departing from the original country designation criteria – which had been contained within immigration law per se – and to expand them by adding political criteria, with the latter being able to override the former. This development began first with Bill S.2844[33] which explicitly named Poland as the only country to be added to the VWP, and continued as an amendment to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 (S.2611), whose Sec. 413, Visa Waiver Program Expansion,[34] defined broader criteria that would apply to any EU country that provided "material support" to the multinational forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, the definition of that "material support" would be met again only by Poland and Romania, a fact that was not favorably received by the other EU candidate countries. Ironically, Poland remained the only Central European country that was not a participating nation in the VWP until 2019, due to a visa refusal rate above the critical threshold of 3%.

During his visit to Estonia in November 2006, President Bush announced his intention "to work with our Congress and our international partners to modify our visa waiver program". In 2006, the Secure Travel and Counterterrorism Partnership Bill was introduced in the Senate but no action was taken and that bill, as well as a similar one introduced in the House the following year, died after two years of inactivity.[35] The bill would have directed the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a pilot program to expand the visa waiver program for up to five new countries that were cooperating with the United States on security and counterterrorism matters.[36]

A June 2007 Hudson Institute Panel stressed the urgency of the inclusion of Central Europe in the VWP: "An inexplicable policy that is causing inestimable damage to the United States with its new Central and Eastern European NATO allies is the region's exclusion from the visa waiver program. As Helle Dale wrote in the spring issue of European Affairs: "Meanwhile, the problem is fueling anti-U.S. antagonisms and a perception of capricious discrimination by U.S. bureaucrats ---and damping the visits to the United States of people from countries with whom Washington would like to improve commercial and intellectual ties. Meanwhile, horror stories abound from friends and diplomats from Central and Eastern Europe about the problems besetting foreigners seeking to visit the United States. In fact bringing up the subject of visas with any resident of those countries is like waving a red flag before a bull." Visa waiver must be satisfactorily addressed and resolved at long last."[37]

The Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 allowed the inclusion of new countries in the VWP with a visa refusal rate up to 10% (up from the standard requirement of 3%) if they satisfied certain other conditions, from October 2008.[38] With the relaxed criteria, eight countries were added to the program: Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and South Korea in November 2008,[39] and Malta in December 2008.[40] Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek called it "a removal of the last relict of Communism and the Cold War".[41] However, from July 2009, the authority to include countries with such higher visa refusal rate became conditioned on the implementation of a system capable of matching the entry and exit from the United States of travelers under the VWP using biometric identifiers.[38] As such system was not implemented, the visa refusal rate requirement returned to 3%.

Greece officially joined the program on April 5, 2010.[42][43]

On October 2, 2012, Secretary Janet Napolitano announced the inclusion of Taiwan into the program effectively as of November 1, 2012.[44] Only holders of passports with a national identification number can benefit from the visa waiver.[45]

In 2013 there was conflict over the United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2013 whose Senate version specified that satisfaction of the requirements regarding reciprocal travel privileges for U.S. nationals would be subject to security concerns.[46] Many members of the House of Representatives opposed the security language because it seemed to validate Israel's tendency to turn away Arab Americans without giving any reason. None of the other 37 countries in the visa waiver program had such an exemption.[47]

Chief Executive of Hong Kong Donald Tsang raised the issue of allowing holders of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passports or British National (Overseas) passports to participate in the VWP during his visit to the United States in 2011, but proposals to allow this have not been successful.[48][49]

Hong Kong is the only jurisdiction with a higher Human Development Index than the United States whose citizens cannot enjoy the program. The visa refusal rate for Hong Kong dropped to 1.7% for HKSAR passport and 2.6% for British National (Overseas) passport in 2012.[50] Hong Kong met all VWP criteria but did not qualify at the time because it was not legally a separate country, despite having its own passports and independent judicial system, monetary system and immigration control. The former Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Donald Tsang, raised the issue with then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during his visit to the United States in 2011 and was met with positive response.[51] On May 16, 2013, a bipartisan amendment bill was passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee but not ratified into law. On August 10, 2015, the U.S. Consul General to Hong Kong and Macau, Clifford Hart, said during an interview with South China Morning Post that the visa waiver was "not happening anytime soon", as the Visa Waiver law required the participant to be a "sovereign state" and Hong Kong was not independent, thus ending the possibility of Hong Kong joining the program. He also denied that the failed lobbying effort of the HKSAR government on this issue was a result of the refusal of detaining Edward Snowden in 2013.[51]

Chile joined the VWP on March 31, 2014.[52]

As of December 2018, ESTA is no longer approved in real-time to qualifying passengers and passengers are required to apply no later than 72 hours before departure.[53]

In July 2019, U.S. Ambassador to Poland Georgette Mosbacher stated that "Poland would fully qualify for the Visa Waiver Program within 3 to 6 months after September 2019" depending on bureaucratic procedures.[54] On October 4, 2019, U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed that the Department of State had formally nominated Poland for entry into the Visa Waiver Program.[55] On November 11, 2019 Poland officially joined the Program and became its 39th member.[56]

On February 12, 2021, U.S. Embassy in Croatia's Chargé d'Affaires, a.i. Victoria J. Taylor, announced on Twitter that the refusal rate for business and tourist visas in Croatia in 2020 dropped to 2.69%, marking a step forward for Croatia to join the VWP "in the near future." On August 2, 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that Croatia had been formally nominated to join the VWP.[57][58] On September 28, 2021, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas officially announced that Croatia would join the VWP before December 1, 2021.[59] Croatia joined the VWP on October 23, 2021.[60]

On July 6, 2023, the validity of new ESTA applications by nationals of Brunei was reduced to one year.[9]

On September 27, 2023, Israel was designated to join the VWP by November 30, 2023.[61] Israel joined the VWP on October 19, 2023.[62]

Date of addition to the Visa Waiver Program
  • July 1, 1988: United Kingdom[23]
  • December 15, 1988: Japan[23]
  • July 1, 1989: France, Switzerland[23]
  • July 15, 1989: (West) Germany, Sweden[23]
  • July 29, 1989: Italy, Netherlands[23]
  • October 1, 1991: Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, New Zealand, Norway, San Marino, Spain[23]
  • July 29, 1993: Brunei[23]
  • April 1, 1995: Ireland[25]
  • July 8, 1996 : Argentina[23]
  • July 29, 1996: Australia[23]
  • September 30, 1997: Slovenia[23]
  • August 9, 1999: Portugal, Singapore, Uruguay[27]
  • November 17, 2008: Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, South Korea[63]
  • December 30, 2008: Malta[64]
  • April 5, 2010: Greece[65]
  • November 1, 2012: Taiwan[66]
  • March 31, 2014: Chile[52]
  • November 11, 2019: Poland[67]
  • October 23, 2021: Croatia[60]
  • October 19, 2023: Israel[62]

Cancelled:

  • February 21, 2002: Argentina[26]
  • April 15, 2003: Uruguay[68]

Hungary's participation

In October 2017, U.S. officials discovered a massive passport fraud scheme in Hungary, in which hundreds of non-Hungarians obtained genuine Hungarian passports.[69][70] A U.S. Department of Homeland Security report (obtained by the Washington Post and reported in May 2018) showed that of approximately 700 non-Hungarians who had obtained the passports, 85 had attempted to travel to the United States under false identites, 65 had been admitted to the United States through the VWP, and (as of October 2017) approximately 30 remained in the United States despite the efforts of U.S. authorities to locate and deport them.[69] The fraud was enabled by a policy implemented in 2011 by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán; under the policy, the Hungarian government provided passports to ethnic Hungarians living outside Hungary, who could prove that one of their ancestors was a Hungarian citizen, with the goal of expediting naturalization.[69][71] More than a million people obtained Hungarian citizenship through the program.[70][69] Because the program lacked stringent identity-verification procedures, it was abused by bad actors, including criminals and applicants who used forged documents to falsely claim Hungarian descent.[71][69] Some who received Hungarian passports under the program were criminals without any connection to Hungary.[71]

U.S. officials were alarmed by the risks created by the program, including the risk that the passports might be used in drug smuggling, organized crime, illegal immigration, espionage, or terrorism.[69] In October 2017, the U.S. government downgraded Hungary's status in the VWP to "provisional" and sought to develop a "cooperative action plan" within 45 days.[69][72] U.S. and Hungarian officials engaged in a dialogue for several years on resolving the security risks, but Hungarian authorities failed to resolve the issues to the U.S. government's satisfaction.[71] As a result, beginning in 2020 and 2021, the U.S. government barred Hungarian passport-holders who were not born in Hungary from obtaining ESTA pre-travel authorizations.[73][74] In August 2023, the U.S. government imposed additional restrictions on Hungary's participation in the VWP: the ESTA validity period for Hungarian passport-holders was reduced from two years to one year, and each ESTA on a Hungarian passport would be valid for only one entry to the United States.[71][70]

Aspiring countries

Of the 19 road map countries listed in 2007,[32] 12 have been admitted to the VWP. As of 2024, the U.S. government cited seven countries aspiring to join the VWP:[75]

In 2014, the European Union pressured the United States to extend the Visa Waiver Program to its five member states that were not yet included in it (Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland and Romania).[76] In November 2014, the Bulgarian government announced that it would not ratify the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership unless the United States lifted the visa requirement for its nationals.[77] Due to incomplete U.S. reciprocity, in March 2017 the European Parliament approved a non-binding resolution calling on the European Commission to suspend the visa exemption for U.S. nationals to travel the Schengen Area.[78] On May 2, 2017, the European Commission decided not act on the resolution and hoped to restart full visa reciprocity negotiations for the remaining EU member states with the new U.S. administration.[79] In 2019, as mentioned above, Poland, which had been the last Schengen Area country not yet included in the VWP, was admitted to the program. In October 2020, the European Parliament repeated its request for the European Commission to suspend the visa exemption for U.S. nationals, and in March 2021, it filed a judicial action against the European Commission for its failure to act on the subject.[80] In 2021, Croatia was admitted to the VWP before joining the Schengen Area in 2023. On March 15, 2023, Democratic senator Dick Durbin introduced a bill that would allow including Romania in the VWP regardless of the program requirements.[81][82] In September 2023, the Court of Justice of the European Union dismissed the judicial action brought by the European Parliament, ruling that the European Commission was not obligated to suspend the visa exemption for U.S. nationals.[80] In December 2023, during a visit to the United States, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said that Romania's entry into the U.S. visa-free program would be announced in 2024, ahead of the 2025 deadline discussed with the U.S. representatives.[83]

As of 2024, three EU member states (Bulgaria, Cyprus and Romania) are still not included in the VWP, and nationals of Hungary born outside Hungary are automatically denied ESTA due to a passport fraud scheme described above.[3]

U.S. territories

The Visa Waiver Program applies to all permanently inhabited U.S. territories except American Samoa.

Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands

Although the U.S. Visa Waiver Program also applies to the U.S. territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, and therefore nationals of VWP countries may travel to these territories with an ESTA, both territories have additional visa waiver programs for certain nationalities. The Guam–CNMI Visa Waiver Program, first enacted in October 1988 and periodically amended, permits nationals from 12 countries in Asia, Europe and Oceania to enter Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands as tourists for up to 45 days without the need to obtain a U.S. visa or an ESTA.[84] A parole policy also allows nationals of China visa-free access to the Northern Mariana Islands for up to 14 days.[85]

American Samoa

U.S. visa policy does not apply to American Samoa, as it has its own entry requirements and maintains control of its own borders. Hence, neither a U.S. visa nor an ESTA can be used to enter American Samoa. If required, an entry permit or electronic authorization must be obtained from the Department of Legal Affairs of American Samoa.[89]

Nationals of Canada, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, and countries in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program may visit American Samoa for up to 30 days without an entry permit. However, if arriving by air, they must apply online for an electronic authorization called "OK Board", at least 3 business days before travel, for a fee of 40 USD.[90] Nationals of Samoa may also apply for a similar electronic authorization to visit American Samoa for up to 7 days, for a fee of 10 USD.[91]

Nationals of other countries need an entry permit, which must be requested by a local sponsor at the Immigration Office of the Department of Legal Affairs of American Samoa.[92]

Statistics

U.S. B visa refusal rate in fiscal year 2023 (October 2022 to September 2023):
  <3%
  3–5%
  5–10%
  10–20%
  20–30%
  30–40%
  40–50%
  >50%
  United States
  Visa-exempt countries

Admissions

Admissions into the United States under the VWP by country and fiscal year
Country 2022[93] 2021[94] 2020[95] 2019[96] 2018[97] 2017[98] 2016[99]
Andorra 1,100 80 532 1,544 1,692 1,371 1,357
Australia 463,792 23,096 532,815 1,369,855 1,412,605 1,431,077 1,393,642
Austria 122,008 8,779 79,871 208,366 206,643 210,727 216,122
Belgium 187,804 10,472 108,442 297,934 303,669 295,607 291,235
Brunei 302 25 421 1,014 1,086 1,034 1,081
Chile 443,702 138,940 157,498 350,811 315,703 268,704 226,127
Croatia 14,474 — — — — — —
Czech Republic 74,961 4,352 50,279 128,856 122,434 116,097 102,061
Denmark 173,843 6,471 124,274 317,683 338,063 345,070 335,158
Estonia 13,900 965 12,594 25,730 23,878 24,208 22,682
Finland 64,116 2,533 70,664 150,040 150,440 157,079 161,474
France 1,343,142 73,159 864,581 2,121,625 2,022,153 1,891,564 1,871,506
Germany 1,251,241 84,444 829,996 2,084,664 2,130,453 2,160,492 2,138,056
Greece 56,255 3,311 41,027 87,520 82,453 73,240 66,999
Hong Kong[k] 27 3 123 2,415 2,983 5,979 2,736
Hungary 53,325 3,115 47,966 110,906 98,060 90,997 81,320
Iceland 33,741 771 25,299 63,569 68,724 62,782 54,571
Ireland 366,153 10,226 245,669 588,911 576,099 521,641 491,963
Italy 769,705 104,633 494,102 1,333,908 1,315,270 1,248,156 1,234,097
Japan 338,837 49,627 1,590,287 3,615,829 3,509,759 3,672,493 3,696,408
Latvia 14,272 1,279 10,581 22,887 21,544 21,459 19,107
Liechtenstein 1,004 60 670 1,820 1,890 1,919 2,053
Lithuania 28,201 2,312 18,490 41,297 37,734 24,383 30,287
Luxembourg 9,371 431 5,101 14,864 14,196 13,008 14,195
Malaysia[k] 54 7 152 488 416 609 255
Malta 4,900 451 3,117 8,157 6,999 6,252 6,000
Monaco 580 34 408 998 888 991 1,097
Nauru[k] ≤236 0 ≤32 22 28 5 9
Netherlands 480,942 52,601 317,788 813,888 812,905 777,886 751,482
New Zealand 103,279 7,039 121,474 338,162 345,102 338,371 322,001
Norway 110,403 3,387 97,091 263,579 276,912 290,688 274,958
Papua New Guinea[k] 26 0 ≤32 55 59 100 252
Poland 138,275 5,137 27,544 — — — —
Portugal 137,241 12,290 86,176 207,772 205,780 185,010 174,040
San Marino ≤236 30 286 711 746 692 693
Singapore 66,714 4,286 63,290 149,381 138,013 133,627 132,204
Slovakia 32,200 2,060 22,414 59,527 53,181 49,399 46,692
Slovenia 14,521 1,521 13,719 30,275 27,019 25,015 24,197
South Korea 643,164 87,520 999,347 2,111,855 2,290,705 2,223,813 1,862,434
Spain 784,673 135,197 441,802 1,122,063 1,080,300 1,015,528 991,483
Sweden 198,093 8,566 204,290 466,465 529,534 554,600 572,385
Switzerland 215,053 19,137 145,192 387,285 403,095 416,944 438,061
Taiwan 74,654 24,790 165,869 440,995 442,622 419,748 388,629
United Kingdom 2,795,703 115,057 1,918,654 4,758,514 4,635,480 4,558,681 4,691,708
Total 11,625,987 1,008,194 9,939,927 24,102,240 24,007,315 23,637,046 23,132,817

Visa refusal rate

To qualify for the Visa Waiver Program, a country must have had a visa refusal rate of less than 3% for the previous year.[38] This refusal rate is based on applications for B visas, for tourism and business purposes. B visas are adjudicated based on applicant interviews, which generally last between 60 and 90 seconds.[100]

Refusal rates for B visas by country and fiscal year[l]
Country 2023[101] 2022[102] 2021[103] 2020[104] 2019[105] 2018[106] 2017[107] 2016[108] 2015[109] 2014[110] 2013[111] 2012[112] 2011[113] 2010[114] 2009[115] 2008[116]
Afghanistan 48.73% 52.65% 72.09% 56.05% 68.42% 71.39% 72.14% 73.80% 61.03% 46.7% 62.7% 59.3% 45.7% 56.0% 59.6% 51.0%
Albania 31.10% 27.55% 10.78% 40.06% 41.45% 41.92% 40.45% 35.95% 36.82% 39.8% 40.4% 40.5% 42.3% 37.7% 39.6% 38.7%
Algeria 35.19% 18.10% 38.40% 49.69% 44.22% 39.26% 43.96% 36.00% 25.92% 23.1% 28.3% 24.2% 29.2% 21.9% 20.5% 20.3%
Andorra 22.22% 0.00% 0.00% 50.00% 12.50% 0.00% 0.00% 28.57% 0.00% 0.0% 25.0% 100.0% 0.0% 100.0% 60.0% 50.0%
Angola 48.94% 47.25% 58.52% 62.15% 58.26% 51.76% 36.01% 48.52% 26.77% 21.4% 24.8% 19.9% 17.2% 21.4% 17.7% 17.1%
Antigua and Barbuda 18.60% 14.09% 16.66% 23.44% 15.25% 19.07% 20.50% 22.11% 20.17% 20.8% 18.1% 24.1% 20.2% 19.7% 13.1% 21.7%
Argentina 8.21% 3.66% 2.31% 2.79% 2.07% 1.73% 1.79% 2.14% 2.14% 1.4% 1.7% 1.5% 2.5% 3.1% 3.3% 3.1%
Armenia 51.49% 37.87% 37.07% 56.47% 51.65% 53.83% 51.87% 45.88% 47.17% 43.8% 37.9% 38.5% 54.5% 51.4% 48.9% 53.3%
Australia 16.75% 12.55% 14.27% 18.74% 19.18% 17.99% 17.18% 15.38% 21.24% 20.1% 16.6% 16.6% 22.7% 23.7% 19.8% 16.5%
Austria 9.38% 6.97% 6.29% 8.91% 5.21% 5.39% 5.00% 5.93% 7.40% 7.8% 8.7% 11.1% 9.3% 11.5% 11.9% 20.3%
Azerbaijan 35.99% 23.54% 12.27% 26.41% 25.43% 28.45% 27.63% 14.83% 12.93% 13.5% 9.4% 11.4% 12.9% 13.5% 11.5% 14.0%
Bahamas 8.38% 8.30% 7.91% 12.59% 9.33% 12.51% 9.32% 9.35% 7.40% 9.20% 11.60% 12.90% 13.70% 8.20% 8.30% 5.90%
Bahrain 11.11% 28.41% 22.48% 9.04% 13.55% 6.96% 9.53% 6.26% 3.81% 4.7% 4.1% 7.7% 2.4% 4.1% 6.7% 6.6%
Bangladesh 43.66% 30.30% 29.91% 40.34% 39.78% 40.05% 60.88% 62.82% 59.96% 50.8% 43.5% 26.0% 42.4% 36.4% 34.1% 48.2%
Barbados 9.63% 6.55% 12.93% 10.79% 6.76% 7.07% 8.72% 11.24% 9.54% 9.8% 9.9% 12.4% 10.7% 10.2% 7.8% 10.1%
Belarus 32.80% 26.05% 16.81% 27.01% 21.93% 23.26% 21.69% 14.87% 12.53% 14.0% 20.7% 19.5% 19.4% 19.7% 15.5% 21.1%
Belgium 8.76% 8.73% 16.57% 16.47% 8.96% 9.77% 6.96% 7.33% 12.85% 11.7% 9.4% 7.1% 13.7% 13.2% 9.4% 13.4%
Belize 26.25% 26.45% 25.36% 23.31% 28.63% 34.55% 30.91% 35.21% 30.47% 16.4% 19.7% 22.7% 36.8% 33.4% 21.4% 25.4%
Benin 49.11% 40.57% 32.05% 45.27% 48.48% 47.74% 42.10% 38.01% 35.74% 31.4% 34.6% 33.0% 48.2% 39.7% 37.0% 39.1%
Bhutan 45.03% 34.55% 43.33% 53.56% 57.13% 59.63% 52.43% 69.78% 54.55% 43.6% 42.0% 52.2% 60.7% 64.1% 68.1% 48.3%
Bolivia 22.15% 17.15% 11.30% 20.36% 24.17% 22.19% 18.08% 14.36% 13.56% 13.6% 15.4% 16.3% 24.0% 23.8% 17.4% 23.6%
Bosnia and Herzegovina 18.49% 19.91% 21.84% 16.01% 25.27% 23.50% 16.37% 19.70% 20.38% 16.1% 26.5% 14.4% 10.1% 9.7% 13.9% 21.3%
Botswana 23.81% 11.19% 0.00% 19.26% 17.54% 18.67% 17.94% 18.97% 16.67% 16.9% 17.3% 12.5% 11.0% 13.9% 16.8% 15.6%
Brazil 11.94% 14.48% 14.25% 23.16% 18.48% 12.73% 12.34% 16.70% 5.36% 3.2% 3.5% 3.2% 3.8% 5.2% 7.0% 5.5%
Brunei 10.71% 5.41% 0.00% 0.00% 4.76% 4.35% 3.70% 13.51% 6.82% 11.1% 20.7% 25.5% 8.0% 3.5% 5.6% 3.3%
Bulgaria 11.61% 10.00% 18.40% 12.52% 9.75% 11.32% 14.97% 16.86% 17.26% 15.2% 19.9% 18.0% 15.7% 17.2% 17.8% 13.3%
Burkina Faso 45.20% 39.25% 24.55% 62.86% 62.32% 71.16% 75.74% 65.35% 50.37% 37.4% 31.7% 35.3% 37.9% 45.8% 48.9% 44.4%
Burundi 66.29% 69.52% 53.23% 77.72% 73.16% 74.39% 75.55% 61.33% 58.35% 50.0% 52.7% 46.1% 45.5% 36.4% 52.2% 58.8%
Cambodia 25.95% 24.50% 35.62% 26.50% 33.65% 32.63% 41.05% 35.62% 48.41% 39.9% 28.9% 33.9% 44.0% 42.9% 47.2% 44.3%
Cameroon 58.62% 52.22% 39.93% 57.12% 57.97% 52.27% 47.29% 36.84% 29.89% 28.2% 37.3% 41.1% 40.6% 40.5% 48.3% 46.7%
Canada 52.04% 58.33% 51.81% 52.67% 43.76% 38.98% 41.14% 47.93% 49.13% 48.70% 43.10% 44.30% 52.20% 57.10% 52.80% 39.00%
Cape Verde 41.55% 33.68% 25.32% 42.74% 52.66% 54.22% 50.70% 45.89% 36.05% 28.7% 36.4% 36.6% 38.3% 46.3% 45.3% 42.7%
Central African Republic 56.67% 36.70% 36.36% 48.67% 37.45% 36.03% 44.24% 35.12% 32.43% 46.6% 46.4% 32.2% 47.4% 48.3% 45.0% 39.6%
Chad 42.50% 69.39% 72.77% 70.60% 70.16% 60.80% 51.65% 42.53% 33.87% 32.4% 36.3% 43.8% 42.7% 58.5% 37.6% 41.4%
Chile 16.12% 13.75% 13.42% 11.54% 15.32% 11.34% 13.87% 11.43% 13.66% 2.4% 1.6% 2.8% 3.4% 5.0% 5.9% 8.9%
China 26.63% 30.39% 79.09% 22.12% 18.22% 17.00% 14.57% 12.35% 10.03% 9.0% 8.5% 8.5% 12.0% 13.3% 15.6% 18.2%
Colombia 20.59% 32.86% 27.75% 46.82% 41.93% 35.11% 21.93% 17.79% 15.52% 12.3% 10.4% 11.2% 21.7% 30.7% 27.3% 25.6%
Comoros 33.33% 43.48% 73.68% 86.15% 53.02% 69.46% 48.45% 53.73% 54.44% 17.0% 32.6% 22.1% 29.6% 43.6% 24.5% 14.0%
Congo 49.65% 37.19% 63.82% 59.34% 60.49% 52.23% 48.47% 46.55% 40.77% 35.4% 27.5% 30.7% 25.2% 34.4% 33.0% 33.2%
Costa Rica 16.09% 12.71% 7.97% 24.77% 18.66% 9.91% 6.49% 8.39% 9.83% 11.4% 13.7% 11.3% 13.7% 17.7% 16.6% 21.2%
Croatia 9.32% 5.56% 4.65% 2.69% 4.02% 5.92% 5.10% 6.78% 5.29% 6.1% 5.9% 4.4% 6.3% 5.3% 5.3% 5.1%
Cuba 49.96% 56.51% 52.69% 60.15% 53.40% 50.97% 77.17% 81.85% 76.03% 66.2% 61.1% 38.7% 33.0% 20.5% 31.3% 45.2%
Cyprus 4.48% 6.22% 15.09% 6.21% 2.78% 2.38% 1.69% 2.03% 3.53% 3.5% 4.0% 1.9% 1.8% 1.7% 1.4% 1.7%
Czech Republic 8.05% 8.50% 16.24% 26.82% 12.41% 10.37% 6.81% 7.82% 6.33% 8.1% 5.8% 6.4% 6.4% 9.6% 6.9% 5.2%
Democratic Republic of the Congo 48.53% 43.93% 37.36% 58.03% 53.80% 50.56% 49.94% 45.63% 45.62% 39.1% 41.9% 37.4% 39.1% 40.8% 35.6% 36.2%
Denmark 10.66% 12.17% 31.11% 17.58% 14.26% 12.38% 13.18% 11.74% 20.73% 12.0% 11.0% 14.7% 17.0% 18.3% 13.6% 16.6%
Djibouti 68.37% 74.44% 88.34% 69.79% 85.35% 82.96% 74.80% 47.09% 52.00% 50.1% 62.6% 64.5% 58.0% 60.2% 42.1% 42.5%
Dominica 29.10% 25.00% 22.85% 30.38% 26.83% 37.13% 28.74% 31.63% 33.33% 29.0% 30.2% 31.7% 29.2% 27.5% 20.3% 29.5%
Dominican Republic 36.69% 15.75% 4.33% 39.18% 53.21% 49.54% 35.78% 31.88% 33.78% 35.9% 41.3% 32.0% 32.1% 31.2% 34.6% 45.6%
East Timor 8.51% 0.00% 0.00% 21.43% 4.23% 8.16% 7.02% 26.67% 12.68% 25.0% 5.6% 16.7% 25.5% 13.3% 17.5% 16.7%
Ecuador 26.67% 17.51% 15.68% 33.44% 34.05% 31.38% 27.95% 29.18% 31.34% 20.8% 16.9% 18.5% 23.0% 27.1% 36.0% 40.0%
Egypt 26.11% 23.11% 23.81% 35.16% 31.83% 32.15% 34.24% 28.61% 33.57% 34.0% 39.5% 32.4% 24.0% 31.3% 29.7% 35.3%
El Salvador 57.91% 45.46% 20.63% 62.95% 58.18% 51.49% 52.97% 57.12% 45.72% 36.3% 45.1% 41.4% 47.1% 47.4% 52.1% 45.7%
Equatorial Guinea 40.35% 48.32% 74.13% 59.18% 27.79% 21.29% 18.21% 17.75% 19.30% 17.8% 16.2% 10.0% 6.6% 12.2% 8.2% 11.1%
Eritrea 61.97% 47.04% 55.96% 63.62% 65.39% 69.54% 71.69% 50.49% 55.67% 41.7% 40.5% 39.2% 46.2% 52.6% 48.2% 51.1%
Estonia 16.22% 21.43% 9.09% 32.65% 24.81% 26.73% 21.16% 20.74% 13.53% 16.4% 13.6% 14.9% 21.9% 29.3% 6.2% 3.9%
Eswatini 7.84% 9.30% 8.89% 5.52% 5.73% 8.49% 12.59% 8.03% 12.95% 10.0% 4.5% 4.9% 10.4% 9.0% 10.4% 13.0%
Ethiopia 41.20% 25.32% 7.52% 39.73% 45.46% 41.74% 50.30% 38.13% 48.32% 44.9% 35.6% 39.7% 41.7% 49.1% 50.6% 46.7%
Fiji 41.88% 45.36% 56.64% 44.44% 38.96% 41.74% 26.59% 20.23% 14.92% 14.0% 27.2% 26.9% 31.4% 33.8% 40.0% 38.0%
Finland 22.82% 13.07% 16.51% 14.03% 11.00% 15.05% 11.78% 7.72% 11.86% 14.5% 15.0% 7.6% 19.4% 15.4% 23.6% 17.1%
France 10.11% 12.55% 22.21% 21.58% 13.67% 10.11% 7.43% 7.30% 16.28% 18.8% 13.0% 13.4% 23.9% 14.5% 12.0% 8.7%
Gabon 29.62% 21.65% 31.25% 37.61% 45.41% 40.00% 26.10% 21.29% 15.74% 13.5% 20.3% 24.1% 30.3% 27.3% 23.8% 23.0%
Gambia 60.40% 50.64% 40.30% 66.84% 72.30% 64.22% 70.27% 69.87% 75.64% 69.3% 74.5% 73.5% 67.2% 56.2% 51.9% 55.7%
Georgia 49.23% 42.01% 63.04% 66.91% 63.85% 62.35% 61.09% 62.82% 50.58% 48.2% 38.3% 31.8% 40.2% 43.6% 49.7% 46.6%
Germany 10.84% 11.69% 24.82% 12.69% 9.30% 7.40% 5.91% 7.25% 10.87% 12.8% 12.8% 16.4% 18.6% 15.4% 16.0% 13.8%
Ghana 37.56% 27.66% 17.49% 57.01% 55.60% 49.35% 56.18% 65.70% 63.28% 59.8% 61.8% 61.7% 59.3% 58.0% 54.3% 50.1%
Greece 15.57% 14.95% 10.86% 18.58% 14.99% 16.93% 13.14% 16.37% 21.89% 27.1% 26.0% 26.1% 14.8% 2.6% 2.0% 1.5%
Grenada 20.37% 16.58% 19.63% 24.76% 19.49% 26.44% 26.94% 35.71% 32.00% 29.5% 25.8% 32.5% 26.6% 29.6% 19.5% 29.9%
Guatemala 21.55% 5.45% 7.26% 52.36% 58.64% 53.62% 47.14% 48.68% 45.37% 35.9% 37.7% 30.9% 30.2% 28.0% 29.7% 33.8%
Guinea 61.37% 53.56% 61.26% 63.79% 73.29% 66.16% 64.59% 63.53% 59.81% 47.8% 52.5% 54.2% 60.6% 66.0% 67.8% 63.8%
Guinea-Bissau 48.15% 60.91% 62.50% 66.36% 65.33% 76.09% 71.61% 71.88% 65.18% 56.5% 43.6% 50.0% 55.0% 46.6% 61.9% 63.4%
Guyana 39.22% 28.42% 36.76% 62.20% 62.96% 70.62% 37.92% 25.76% 37.28% 40.2% 52.7% 46.5% 51.5% 63.5% 55.9% 56.6%
Haiti 47.94% 47.12% 45.87% 50.16% 60.81% 67.59% 71.44% 64.52% 60.45% 58.2% 47.1% 54.0% 58.2% 49.0% 61.4% 54.4%
Honduras 33.79% 30.47% 12.38% 52.10% 61.71% 60.32% 40.35% 42.76% 39.73% 36.8% 37.0% 29.8% 27.6% 29.2% 29.2% 33.6%
Hong Kong (BNO) — — — — — — — — — — 2.4% 2.6% 3.6% 5.0% 5.0% 3.3%
Hong Kong (SAR) 5.49% 4.88% 5.28% 4.50% 3.23% 4.25% 3.45% 4.61% 4.36% 3.1% 1.8% 1.7% 3.9% 5.4% 6.9% 4.4%
Hungary 7.29% 8.44% 16.67% 16.36% 8.85% 10.53% 13.04% 15.48% 31.31% 35.5% 31.6% 17.0% 31.1% 34.5% 21.1% 7.8%
Iceland 4.54% 3.24% 25.00% 18.98% 9.44% 7.14% 7.46% 7.69% 8.11% 10.2% 7.1% 5.6% 8.6% 9.8% 6.3% 5.1%
India 10.99% 6.54% 12.25% 27.26% 27.75% 26.07% 23.29% 26.02% 23.78% 19.8% 18.7% 24.1% 30.1% 26.8% 28.7% 24.7%
Indonesia 10.95% 12.23% 5.83% 12.19% 12.46% 12.81% 10.99% 11.19% 8.71% 8.3% 8.0% 12.1% 14.2% 16.4% 25.0% 37.0%
Iran 53.26% 54.09% 66.81% 85.88% 86.58% 87.66% 58.66% 45.02% 38.55% 41.8% 48.2% 37.6% 31.0% 38.9% 40.1% 42.5%
Iraq 37.09% 44.63% 36.48% 45.24% 49.94% 56.95% 60.71% 51.71% 52.82% 41.4% 39.2% 32.8% 27.3% 42.2% 31.8% 46.3%
Ireland 19.41% 21.32% 40.00% 26.07% 22.69% 21.77% 17.89% 15.48% 18.34% 19.6% 16.9% 21.1% 23.3% 25.1% 24.2% 20.0%
Israel 3.30% 2.27% 4.92% 6.52% 5.33% 5.10% 4.88% 4.09% 3.85% 8.2% 8.6% 5.4% 6.9% 6.4% 5.1% 3.0%
Italy 10.62% 9.75% 15.86% 20.82% 15.03% 14.83% 12.54% 10.86% 22.10% 22.9% 15.2% 13.3% 18.3% 16.1% 11.1% 9.3%
Ivory Coast 24.85% 23.08% 25.33% 40.66% 35.73% 33.81% 33.72% 37.38% 28.59% 29.8% 30.3% 27.7% 39.6% 47.0% 36.5% 40.9%
Jamaica 40.29% 30.04% 19.13% 57.07% 56.59% 54.46% 46.78% 35.64% 37.62% 32.3% 35.3% 41.6% 45.7% 47.4% 46.4% 35.5%
Japan 6.05% 5.79% 4.69% 10.43% 10.48% 9.76% 8.47% 8.12% 12.22% 9.3% 10.9% 10.2% 18.7% 15.0% 16.0% 14.8%
Jordan 28.51% 27.90% 38.09% 44.44% 45.26% 42.62% 40.06% 40.34% 37.59% 26.9% 32.6% 30.8% 34.5% 40.1% 31.4% 43.2%
Kazakhstan 41.93% 44.02% 43.29% 47.34% 42.58% 39.38% 32.81% 27.55% 12.70% 9.9% 8.0% 7.5% 8.3% 9.4% 12.2% 11.7%
Kenya 51.68% 42.02% 34.86% 50.26% 49.86% 41.59% 33.17% 26.60% 27.34% 27.3% 28.3% 33.6% 39.3% 40.2% 35.8% 35.6%
Kiribati 20.55% 30.43% 50.00% 55.56% 11.69% 25.33% 5.13% 5.81% 16.05% 15.4% 27.3% 22.9% 20.7% 20.9% 10.2% 26.2%
Kosovo 29.79% 17.93% 12.51% 39.47% 36.76% 35.97% 37.92% 41.48% 44.03% 38.1% 40.0% 31.7% 29.0% 25.4% 29.0% 47.9%
Kuwait 3.96% 16.04% 18.18% 5.01% 3.27% 2.71% 8.32% 4.56% 5.73% 5.7% 10.3% 4.8% 2.8% 3.6% -2.2% 6.5%
Kyrgyzstan 41.54% 37.85% 44.00% 65.60% 67.75% 58.90% 55.58% 51.68% 55.75% 43.2% 24.9% 26.4% 18.0% 17.5% 32.8% 32.1%
Laos 72.79% 56.20% 89.86% 70.57% 65.60% 64.06% 63.66% 62.37% 66.68% 61.1% 61.4% 60.1% 74.8% 74.4% 72.4% 73.4%
Latvia 9.28% 9.95% 15.91% 23.01% 18.98% 15.24% 12.83% 13.45% 18.40% 23.3% 20.4% 23.4% 29.7% 33.9% 19.5% 8.3%
Lebanon 38.78% 39.40% 52.21% 28.44% 23.85% 25.22% 31.75% 25.41% 27.10% 16.1% 15.1% 18.1% 20.9% 22.4% 18.6% 27.9%
Lesotho 25.82% 22.22% 50.00% 26.74% 28.24% 21.94% 35.97% 21.20% 13.95% 16.7% 19.4% 11.2% 18.6% 21.1% 17.7% 32.1%
Liberia 78.19% 62.73% 54.17% 67.62% 73.93% 64.36% 64.98% 70.23% 62.45% 49.4% 59.0% 45.5% 56.1% 57.6% 66.0% 70.7%
Libya 19.41% 22.78% 24.26% 80.90% 89.05% 73.73% 45.50% 40.58% 43.02% 33.9% 33.8% 38.9% 30.8% 14.3% 19.2% 27.1%
Liechtenstein 0.00% 12.50% 25.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 11.1% 10.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5.9% 12.5% 0.0%
Lithuania 13.40% 14.81% 15.91% 21.96% 18.67% 17.29% 22.54% 22.36% 33.49% 37.7% 33.1% 34.0% 34.7% 31.9% 17.6% 9.0%
Luxembourg 4.22% 7.84% 0.00% 7.41% 10.22% 5.19% 5.74% 7.69% 5.88% 12.2% 8.3% 4.7% 5.5% 7.0% 10.0% 7.8%
Macau 11.57% 20.17% 12.50% 7.12% 5.03% 7.79% 5.38% 7.71% 9.30% — 3.1% 2.3% 8.9% 12.0% 16.4% 14.2%
Madagascar 12.07% 13.24% 21.82% 14.36% 7.69% 11.77% 11.00% 12.12% 11.01% 11.6% 9.3% 17.5% 15.0% 15.7% 18.2% 11.9%
Malawi 39.25% 38.54% 12.12% 42.67% 37.05% 28.20% 26.49% 14.52% 10.23% 12.3% 13.8% 16.5% 26.9% 26.9% 27.1% 28.9%
Malaysia 4.43% 9.41% 7.21% 6.97% 4.91% 4.94% 3.93% 3.65% 3.34% 4.6% 5.0% 5.4% 4.7% 5.9% 6.6% 5.6%
Maldives 14.66% 23.65% 66.67% 22.88% 33.65% 39.88% 27.74% 47.56% 15.49% 6.7% 22.9% 42.2% 0.9% 12.2% 19.7% 4.7%
Mali 60.16% 64.08% 62.96% 55.99% 55.89% 50.60% 59.43% 57.58% 52.77% 54.0% 47.7% 54.7% 51.0% 55.7% 52.8% 48.1%
Malta 10.56% 10.78% 16.67% 28.38% 17.76% 9.59% 4.81% 8.38% 7.87% 11.1% 6.6% 17.6% 11.9% 12.5% 3.8% 2.5%
Marshall Islands 31.58% 0.00% 0.00% 45.45% 30.77% 17.39% 5.88% 29.41% 26.67% 4.80% 22.70% 15.60% 8.30% 10.40% 7.30% 14.00%
Mauritania 76.43% 89.72% 83.14% 80.15% 67.79% 61.58% 67.30% 71.45% 61.45% 52.2% 50.0% 54.7% 61.5% 49.7% 54.1% 51.0%
Mauritius 6.90% 7.77% 9.92% 6.22% 6.59% 6.49% 8.29% 5.53% 5.71% 2.2% 4.7% 5.0% 7.5% 6.0% 7.2% 11.6%
Mexico 10.57% 5.91% 4.23% 23.16% 26.66% 24.93% 22.50% 23.49% 20.17% 15.6% 12.1% 10.6% 12.8% 11.1% 10.9% 11.4%
Micronesia 100.00% 100.00% 0.00% 0.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 25.00% 85.71% 80.00% 100.00% 50.00% 33.30% 0.00% 100.00% 50.00%
Moldova 42.42% 43.57% 66.37% 51.00% 58.03% 61.10% 49.12% 36.35% 41.83% 40.1% 33.6% 31.0% 34.7% 38.5% 41.3% 36.7%
Monaco 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 50.00% 22.22% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 12.50% 0.0% 33.3% 57.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 25.0%
Mongolia 37.34% 38.32% 39.57% 45.47% 54.60% 56.51% 53.62% 43.63% 34.76% 27.9% 30.6% 37.0% 44.5% 37.1% 34.9% 53.6%
Montenegro 43.59% 34.03% 9.30% 58.53% 39.10% 35.35% 26.41% 28.69% 31.26% 28.0% 32.6% 31.4% 39.0% 36.6% 27.5% 25.6%
Morocco 15.92% 21.90% 20.85% 23.35% 28.48% 42.88% 36.99% 26.77% 20.60% 21.9% 23.3% 21.3% 15.1% 15.5% 19.6% 24.0%
Mozambique 22.23% 20.48% 32.75% 18.64% 14.24% 10.22% 26.18% 10.29% 4.03% 4.0% 2.2% 3.2% 2.6% 6.7% 11.4% 13.8%
Myanmar 43.67% 46.15% 39.40% 40.68% 30.91% 23.12% 17.88% 13.02% 16.32% 15.5% 23.5% 31.0% 33.2% 32.0% 34.2% 41.9%
Namibia 22.40% 12.05% 10.71% 5.20% 6.60% 8.40% 6.31% 5.56% 7.43% 7.6% 6.2% 8.8% 8.9% 14.9% 10.8% 6.8%
Nauru 10.00% 66.67% 0.00% 25.00% 20.83% 21.43% 20.97% 13.33% 5.26% 42.9% 0.0% 18.2% 16.7% 41.7% 60.0% 66.7%
Nepal 31.03% 19.85% 18.72% 48.11% 50.70% 51.53% 46.42% 49.54% 42.19% 38.2% 46.4% 49.4% 59.9% 58.3% 59.1% 51.2%
Netherlands 16.81% 16.97% 25.28% 12.89% 11.82% 9.56% 9.65% 16.62% 13.01% 14.4% 11.2% 23.1% 21.1% 19.2% 18.0% 13.7%
New Zealand 13.28% 12.52% 12.74% 14.47% 16.32% 19.97% 22.02% 15.45% 16.94% 15.1% 14.0% 13.3% 19.3% 19.0% 16.1% 14.0%
Nicaragua 65.60% 50.81% 12.72% 63.17% 63.52% 46.75% 43.28% 44.54% 41.19% 35.8% 26.7% 27.6% 30.1% 33.8% 35.1% 41.8%
Niger 30.76% 43.67% 61.39% 53.50% 42.76% 43.33% 30.65% 31.14% 31.10% 36.4% 27.5% 35.9% 41.3% 41.3% 44.1% 55.7%
Nigeria 29.23% 25.80% 43.78% 64.83% 67.20% 57.47% 44.95% 41.44% 32.56% 33.2% 35.1% 33.6% 38.0% 33.7% 37.3% 36.0%
North Korea 100.00% 0.00% 100.00% 0.00% 100.00% 100.00% 54.55% 15.00% 47.67% 55.6% 28.6% 36.0% 8.3% 23.3% 4.0% 16.3%
North Macedonia 29.13% 26.29% 12.31% 29.62% 36.19% 31.29% 28.69% 33.84% 36.08% 29.8% 27.0% 20.7% 19.6% 20.0% 21.5% 33.5%
Norway 17.96% 16.53% 8.65% 17.07% 17.35% 12.40% 17.36% 21.96% 25.12% 21.4% 19.1% 17.8% 18.1% 17.2% 15.2% 11.9%
Oman 4.76% 18.45% 16.45% 6.32% 5.13% 4.87% 3.46% 1.93% 2.00% 2.1% 2.3% 4.5% 5.7% 8.7% 2.8% 2.2%
Pakistan 40.82% 31.43% 32.53% 45.62% 48.26% 47.89% 49.40% 46.43% 40.40% 38.0% 38.5% 37.3% 40.0% 41.6% 40.7% 46.3%
Palau 100.00% 66.67% 0.00% 40.00% 100.00% 71.43% 83.33% 53.33% 96.00% 84.20% 29.20% 35.70% 57.10% 54.50% 0.00% 20.00%
Palestine 34.77% 33.96% 50.80% 58.27% 52.92% 53.87% 50.98% 40.64% 42.68% 36.7% 37.6% 38.9% 34.2% 36.2% 45.2% 55.6%
Panama 23.95% 13.54% 8.29% 15.33% 18.93% 11.71% 11.61% 12.05% 11.36% 10.0% 8.0% 8.4% 11.3% 11.2% 13.1% 19.2%
Papua New Guinea 6.15% 4.93% 3.45% 6.64% 1.74% 6.84% 9.34% 10.56% 5.14% 7.4% 3.1% 2.95% 5.0% 3.7% 5.7% 3.4%
Paraguay 16.00% 17.95% 13.33% 16.80% 12.41% 8.02% 6.83% 7.47% 6.15% 6.1% 4.4% 4.6% 7.6% 9.3% 9.8% 14.4%
Peru 24.23% 27.61% 4.11% 24.13% 25.39% 28.53% 25.97% 28.61% 14.46% 13.8% 16.1% 20.1% 22.7% 26.0% 29.1% 37.7%
Philippines 23.93% 11.59% 10.20% 32.49% 24.40% 27.07% 25.54% 27.29% 27.96% 24.6% 24.1% 23.8% 33.8% 37.9% 35.9% 31.0%
Poland 16.47% 14.74% 18.48% 8.91% 2.76% 3.99% 5.92% 5.37% 6.37% 6.4% 10.8% 9.3% 10.2% 9.8% 13.5% 13.8%
Portugal 10.52% 9.41% 17.86% 9.75% 6.52% 7.28% 11.06% 8.97% 8.41% 4.7% 9.9% 10.3% 16.2% 17.7% 17.4% 10.7%
Qatar 2.53% 12.86% 11.69% 8.28% 10.33% 8.34% 7.48% 3.50% 2.97% 2.1% 1.8% 1.2% 0.6% 3.2% 3.4% 4.9%
Romania 8.79% 12.61% 17.03% 10.14% 9.11% 10.44% 11.76% 11.43% 11.16% 9.8% 11.5% 17.0% 22.4% 24.8% 26.3% 25.0%
Russia 39.49% 26.18% 29.42% 17.79% 15.19% 14.89% 11.61% 9.29% 10.24% 7.8% 10.2% 9.6% 10.3% 10.1% 4.9% 7.5%
Rwanda 71.09% 62.92% 34.96% 63.93% 53.76% 44.51% 52.17% 43.79% 49.17% 51.1% 44.9% 30.9% 40.6% 48.1% 53.2% 50.3%
Saint Kitts and Nevis 20.95% 17.14% 19.35% 23.28% 21.87% 24.98% 26.66% 28.31% 26.60% 27.5% 30.7% 27.2% 23.3% 22.7% 16.1% 25.0%
Saint Lucia 16.60% 16.72% 17.47% 23.31% 16.75% 21.90% 22.34% 27.16% 26.90% 27.6% 22.5% 28.2% 25.4% 23.8% 17.2% 26.6%
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 16.99% 14.12% 15.08% 21.10% 14.55% 19.77% 20.38% 27.46% 27.15% 24.1% 22.5% 27.2% 25.8% 27.2% 17.1% 26.4%
Samoa 34.37% 29.52% 32.58% 36.87% 27.02% 26.26% 40.32% 28.44% 29.99% 27.2% 22.1% 29.5% 41.7% 37.0% 22.4% 32.4%
San Marino 33.33% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 50.00% 25.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 100.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 50.0%
São Tomé and Príncipe 46.67% 21.43% 20.00% 36.36% 34.78% 26.09% 14.81% 24.14% 5.71% 10.7% 22.2% 18.0% 31.7% 16.7% 33.3% 28.6%
Saudi Arabia 5.01% 14.29% 13.43% 10.01% 6.82% 7.47% 5.26% 4.04% 3.24% 3.3% 7.8% 7.6% 6.3% 6.0% 3.8% 6.6%
Senegal 70.47% 66.48% 34.95% 65.28% 55.88% 59.18% 56.85% 52.46% 54.37% 57.5% 53.2% 67.0% 62.8% 59.6% 60.2% 55.2%
Serbia 16.53% 19.45% 13.27% 25.01% 30.33% 25.93% 22.33% 18.77% 16.54% 16.0% 14.7% 13.7% 15.7% 14.5% 11.0% 11.7%
Serbia and Montenegro — — — — — — — — — 100.0% 100.0% 39.7% 16.2% 14.7% 12.0% 17.1%
Seychelles 4.55% 10.26% 0.00% 6.38% 10.60% 11.64% 13.14% 9.66% 7.26% 6.8% 4.3% 4.8% 15.9% 8.5% 21.3% 18.0%
Sierra Leone 49.02% 45.16% 35.70% 59.35% 57.99% 60.56% 47.30% 61.25% 53.02% 51.9% 46.5% 50.3% 48.0% 45.7% 52.6% 50.1%
Singapore 15.22% 10.10% 9.72% 10.17% 18.07% 14.29% 13.74% 15.10% 17.82% 16.6% 25.0% 24.6% 22.7% 16.6% 16.0% 11.7%
Slovakia 11.49% 15.86% 10.87% 28.08% 11.99% 16.21% 13.30% 12.28% 11.14% 17.3% 15.3% 13.5% 16.6% 11.8% 8.3% 5.3%
Slovenia 13.86% 13.47% 15.19% 17.11% 12.33% 12.33% 19.22% 10.43% 10.56% 7.0% 12.1% 23.4% 14.4% 28.5% 7.8% 6.7%
Solomon Islands 4.35% 7.69% 0.00% 9.09% 2.20% 3.57% 16.79% 4.28% 7.26% 5.4% 12.7% 5.4% 13.1% 10.7% 17.0% 6.5%
Somalia 69.89% 73.97% 66.67% 71.76% 80.77% 90.16% 75.50% 63.89% 64.60% 52.0% 65.8% 61.7% 66.8% 69.6% 73.4% 54.0%
South Africa 11.27% 9.68% 17.67% 7.80% 6.92% 7.31% 6.44% 6.83% 5.08% 2.6% 2.6% 2.9% 4.6% 4.1% 3.8% 4.6%
South Korea 14.44% 17.38% 18.03% 8.46% 7.69% 7.96% 9.05% 8.65% 13.21% 21.2% 18.1% 13.0% 7.5% 9.4% 5.5% 3.8%
South Sudan 48.94% 49.04% 45.71% 53.36% 52.32% 41.29% 47.52% 43.89% 41.77% 43.8% 41.9% 37.7% 23.8% — — —
Spain 15.66% 10.75% 18.29% 20.17% 16.53% 14.04% 17.26% 15.09% 17.76% 15.8% 16.0% 10.2% 6.6% 6.5% 7.7% 9.9%
Sri Lanka 26.61% 22.13% 25.34% 36.00% 35.12% 33.61% 26.19% 21.69% 22.07% 19.5% 20.6% 34.7% 25.2% 28.6% 40.8% 31.4%
Sudan 49.34% 38.83% 40.90% 50.25% 57.44% 59.83% 51.37% 36.59% 40.45% 42.4% 47.9% 45.4% 40.6% 32.5% 62.2% 38.6%
Suriname 14.44% 11.91% 6.42% 10.83% 7.44% 8.57% 11.44% 10.86% 7.78% 13.6% 9.6% 11.6% 18.0% 18.6% 15.5% 9.6%
Sweden 20.68% 17.07% 39.46% 18.35% 13.32% 15.20% 13.92% 12.78% 23.19% 15.4% 21.0% 16.3% 22.3% 20.5% 19.3% 15.2%
Switzerland 5.36% 3.05% 18.92% 10.92% 7.20% 5.50% 5.89% 5.20% 4.62% 7.2% 4.4% 3.6% 4.2% 3.3% 2.8% 3.4%
Syria 47.42% 42.87% 44.04% 66.68% 74.83% 77.31% 59.11% 59.77% 63.43% 60.0% 46.1% 42.0% 32.8% 28.4% 23.6% 33.1%
Taiwan 4.92% 4.56% 12.65% 5.02% 4.62% 6.80% 5.42% 5.36% 8.81% 12.3% 6.9% 1.4% 1.9% 2.2% 4.4% 5.9%
Tajikistan 54.96% 57.93% 57.24% 59.55% 60.97% 53.39% 51.84% 55.24% 44.44% 49.0% 53.7% 42.6% 30.3% 31.4% 23.8% 32.4%
Tanzania 34.13% 29.37% 7.27% 31.04% 23.90% 19.87% 18.36% 23.05% 12.02% 21.3% 25.7% 15.8% 27.5% 24.2% 28.3% 26.2%
Thailand 24.34% 24.36% 31.82% 24.44% 23.41% 22.17% 20.15% 17.82% 12.35% 10.2% 11.1% 10.2% 11.4% 13.5% 16.4% 19.8%
Togo 55.13% 43.87% 16.98% 62.32% 59.78% 59.61% 59.88% 54.39% 43.42% 35.6% 44.0% 37.7% 35.8% 42.1% 42.6% 51.7%
Tonga 50.61% 51.27% 46.67% 48.15% 45.85% 51.33% 32.85% 31.58% 28.09% 25.4% 42.1% 41.5% 46.5% 42.8% 47.8% 48.7%
Trinidad and Tobago 16.62% 13.64% 7.05% 14.10% 13.05% 19.28% 22.46% 22.70% 25.16% 21.2% 20.6% 18.7% 19.3% 32.0% 33.1% 23.8%
Tunisia 26.14% 21.06% 24.92% 19.11% 24.17% 27.67% 19.53% 15.92% 19.69% 17.5% 17.0% 16.8% 17.2% 15.6% 18.5% 23.9%
Turkey 20.59% 19.96% 13.70% 17.46% 19.19% 17.49% 17.86% 13.62% 13.88% 7.1% 10.3% 8.1% 7.0% 9.1% 9.0% 11.2%
Turkmenistan 51.10% 35.69% 32.00% 58.55% 56.26% 52.93% 40.60% 32.95% 25.41% 18.6% 16.3% 17.7% 24.3% 20.6% 19.8% 45.4%
Tuvalu 22.22% 27.27% 0.00% 33.33% 25.81% 34.78% 15.38% 20.00% 21.05% 27.3% 71.4% 21.4% 32.0% 38.1% 28.6% 17.6%
Uganda 47.13% 42.15% 38.70% 49.82% 51.65% 42.29% 42.38% 41.53% 30.63% 37.2% 32.7% 33.2% 37.3% 36.3% 38.8% 34.4%
Ukraine 34.29% 41.27% 15.15% 43.14% 45.06% 40.97% 34.54% 40.83% 34.03% 27.7% 26.7% 26.9% 29.0% 31.8% 36.8% 30.9%
United Arab Emirates 4.18% 10.06% 8.93% 8.44% 5.56% 3.75% 5.80% 4.02% 7.10% 4.8% 8.0% 9.0% 5.7% 9.7% 9.6% 10.4%
United Kingdom 14.69% 15.55% 11.97% 23.58% 21.05% 20.29% 20.15% 20.42% 20.41% 19.4% 16.9% 20.6% 27.3% 25.5% 27.8% 25.5%
Uruguay 3.21% 5.70% 8.82% 9.77% 5.91% 4.11% 3.19% 3.14% 2.70% 1.8% 2.8% 2.7% 3.8% 5.6% 5.4% 9.5%
Uzbekistan 59.56% 47.04% 45.98% 74.14% 68.06% 61.76% 50.29% 57.09% 49.59% 52.1% 44.3% 40.4% 50.2% 46.8% 41.1% 61.1%
Vanuatu 38.84% 36.09% 33.33% 46.34% 41.05% 38.30% 13.51% 16.67% 10.53% 20.0% 14.9% 12.5% 15.0% 13.3% 20.0% 16.7%
Vatican City 14.29% 14.29% 0.00% 0.00% 8.33% 0.00% 36.36% 0.00% 25.00% 7.7% 33.3% 0.0% 11.8% 14.3% 7.1% 16.7%
Venezuela 34.88% 34.01% 27.22% 52.30% 59.53% 74.28% 42.87% 40.25% 15.57% 15.2% 13.8% 12.0% 16.1% 17.6% 18.3% 25.4%
Vietnam 25.78% 14.98% 11.32% 18.78% 23.70% 26.20% 24.06% 29.49% 23.43% 14.3% 20.3% 22.2% 33.5% 36.1% 42.3% 38.8%
Western Sahara — — — 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 100.00% — — — — — — — — —
Yemen 57.16% 56.14% 54.30% 76.66% 78.45% 82.50% 60.76% 48.85% 54.01% 44.2% 44.0% 47.8% 48.4% 54.3% 47.3% 54.7%
Zambia 32.36% 33.22% 16.54% 44.78% 40.64% 22.45% 21.72% 22.26% 20.98% 22.2% 26.2% 22.9% 22.1% 23.1% 38.9% 53.3%
Zimbabwe 34.55% 26.76% 9.31% 29.41% 26.92% 26.60% 26.32% 22.88% 21.03% 13.2% 19.7% 19.2% 21.8% 28.1% 31.3% 30.3%
Unknown or stateless 43.95% 45.44% 49.74% 46.06% 43.16% 40.27% 35.61% 28.92% 32.62% 32.3% 27.0% 31.6% 39.2% 42.4% 50.2% 51.6%

Overstay rate

The table below shows the overstay rate, which is the portion of visitors arriving under the Visa Waiver Program who remained in the United States longer than the maximum allowed stay of 90 days. Some of these visitors later left the United States or legalized their immigration status.[117]

Overstay rate by country and fiscal year[117]
Country 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015
Andorra 0.43% 0.63% 0.19% 0.44% 0.69% 0.41%
Australia 0.48% 0.37% 0.28% 0.39% 0.56% 0.37%
Austria 0.70% 0.38% 0.34% 0.41% 1.37% 1.33%
Belgium 0.53% 0.36% 0.31% 0.55% 0.54% 0.56%
Brunei 2.14% 0.99% 0.78% 1.29% 0.98% 0.96%
Chile 1.76% 1.34% 1.49% 1.33% 1.71% 2.33%
Czech Republic 0.77% 0.51% 0.63% 0.80% 1.11% 1.65%
Denmark 0.43% 0.29% 0.23% 0.40% 0.50% 0.60%
Estonia 0.67% 0.61% 0.47% 0.72% 0.84% 1.16%
Finland 0.53% 0.35% 0.23% 0.45% 0.46% 0.55%
France 0.79% 0.55% 0.60% 0.91% 0.68% 0.76%
Germany 0.47% 0.39% 0.32% 0.51% 0.98% 1.07%
Greece 1.71% 1.27% 1.26% 1.71% 2.19% 2.31%
Hungary 1.24% 1.03% 1.26% 2.04% 2.75% 2.92%
Iceland 0.33% 0.28% 0.21% 0.33% 0.33% 0.46%
Ireland 0.42% 0.29% 0.31% 0.50% 0.53% 0.47%
Italy 0.86% 0.63% 0.54% 0.83% 1.36% 1.60%
Japan 0.27% 0.15% 0.16% 0.22% 0.16% 0.20%
Latvia 1.28% 0.96% 1.03% 1.34% 1.75% 1.92%
Liechtenstein 0.44% 0.96% 0.21% 0.60% 0.82% 0.68%
Lithuania 1.44% 1.18% 1.32% 1.44% 1.99% 2.20%
Luxembourg 0.50% 0.38% 0.35% 0.51% 0.78% 0.57%
Malta 0.59% 0.48% 0.35% 0.59% 1.01% 0.85%
Monaco 0.45% 0.32% 0.40% 0.19% 0.55% 0.44%
Netherlands 0.51% 0.34% 0.40% 0.53% 0.64% 1.15%
New Zealand 0.53% 0.36% 0.32% 0.52% 0.58% 0.49%
Norway 0.39% 0.25% 0.23% 0.31% 0.41% 0.46%
Poland 0.95% — — — — —
Portugal 2.19% 1.80% 1.80% 2.08% 2.42% 2.31%
San Marino 0.74% 0.14% 0.41% 0.42% 2.01% 2.28%
Singapore 0.28% 0.29% 0.22% 0.29% 0.49% 0.38%
Slovakia 1.17% 0.70% 0.93% 1.07% 1.85% 2.36%
Slovenia 0.59% 0.41% 0.39% 0.59% 1.03% 1.17%
South Korea 0.35% 0.27% 0.29% 0.37% 0.46% 0.76%
Spain 1.68% 1.31% 1.12% 1.38% 1.46% 1.40%
Sweden 0.43% 0.29% 0.26% 0.44% 0.53% 0.48%
Switzerland 0.51% 0.45% 0.30% 0.39% 0.59% 0.55%
Taiwan 0.60% 0.52% 0.41% 0.59% 0.57% 0.53%
United Kingdom 0.64% 0.33% 0.30% 0.54% 0.50% 0.43%
Total 0.64% 0.44% 0.41% 0.58% 0.68% 0.73%

Other visa waivers

Nationals of neighboring jurisdictions

Separate from the Visa Waiver Program, 8 U.S.C. § 1182(d)(4)(B) permits the Attorney General and the Secretary of State (acting jointly) to waive visa requirements for admission to the United States in nonimmigrant status for nationals of foreign contiguous territories or adjacent islands or for residents of those territories or islands who have a common nationality with those nationals. The regulations relating to such admissions can be found at 8 CFR 212.1.[118]

Under this provision, nationals of the following jurisdictions may travel to the United States without a visa:

  •  Bahamas – Nationals of the Bahamas do not need a visa to travel to the United States if they apply for admission at a U.S. preclearance facility located in the Bahamas. Applicants 14 years of age or older must present a certificate issued by the Royal Bahamas Police Force indicating no criminal record.[84][119]
  •  Bermuda – British Overseas Territories citizens of Bermuda do not need a visa to visit the United States under most circumstances for up to 180 days.[120]
  •  British Virgin Islands – British Overseas Territories citizens of the British Virgin Islands may travel without a visa to the U.S. Virgin Islands. They may also continue travel to other parts of the United States if they present a certificate issued by the Royal Virgin Islands Police Department indicating no criminal record.[84]
  •  Canada – Nationals of Canada do not need a visa to visit the United States under most circumstances.[120] In addition, under the USMCA (and earlier NAFTA), they may work under a simplified procedure.
  •  Cayman Islands – British Overseas Territories citizens of the Cayman Islands do not need a visa if they travel directly from the territory to the United States and present a police certificate indicating no criminal record.[84]
  •  Mexico – Some nationals of Mexico do not need a visa to travel to the United States: government officials not permanently assigned to the United States and their accompanying family members, holding diplomatic or official passports, for stays of up to six months; members of the Kickapoo tribes of Texas or Oklahoma, holding Form I-872, American Indian Card; and crew members of Mexican airlines operating in the United States.[84] Other nationals of Mexico may travel to the United States with a Border Crossing Card, which functions as a visa and has similar requirements.[121] Under the USMCA (and earlier NAFTA), they may also work under a simplified procedure.
  •  Turks and Caicos Islands – British Overseas Territories citizens of the Turks and Caicos Islands do not need a visa if they travel directly from the territory to the United States and present a police certificate indicating no criminal record.[84]

Restrictions on the use of the Visa Waiver Program do not affect this class of travelers unless separately provided for by statute or regulation. For example, a Canadian citizen who has briefly overstayed a previous visit to the United States (by less than 180 days) will still not require a visa for future visits, while a VWP national who overstays will become ineligible for the VWP for life and will need a visa for future visits. ESTA is not required from British Overseas Territories citizens using one of the above waivers with the respective territory's passport, but it is required if they use the VWP with a British citizen passport.

Until 2003, this visa waiver was granted not only to nationals of those countries and territories, but also to permanent residents of Bermuda and Canada who were nationals of countries in the Commonwealth of Nations or Ireland.[118]

Citizens of freely associated states

Under Compacts of Free Association, citizens of the following countries may enter, reside, study and work in the United States indefinitely without a visa. These benefits are granted to citizens from birth or independence, and to naturalized citizens who have resided in the respective country for at least five years, excluding those who acquired citizenship by investment.[122][123]

See also

  • flagUnited States portal

Notes

  1. ^ ESTA is not available for nationals of Hungary born outside Hungary.[3]
  2. ^ Only holders of passports with a national identification number.
  3. ^ a b Only British citizens are eligible for the visa waiver.[4]
  4. ^ For nationals of Brunei applying from July 6, 2023, ESTA is valid for one year. For nationals of Hungary applying from August 1, 2023, ESTA is valid for one year and for a single entry to the United States.[9]
  5. ^ There is an exemption in some cases for a single offense committed before age 18 and the crime was committed (and the person released from any confinement to a prison or correctional institution imposed for the crime) more than five years before the date of application for a visa, and also for a single instance if the maximum possible sentence in the United States is one year or less in jail, and less than six months was served. However, these exceptions cannot be applied by the individual as the question on ESTA is specific.
  6. ^ Included in the VWP from 1996 to 2002.[26]
  7. ^ Included in the VWP from 1999 to 2003.[68]
  8. ^ Up to 14 days, for the Northern Mariana Islands only, under a separate parole policy.
  9. ^ Holders of a British National (Overseas) passport or Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport, in conjunction with a Hong Kong identity card. On July 14, 2020, Executive Order 13936 ended the treatment of Hong Kong separately from China under U.S. immigration law, thus removing Hong Kong from the visa waiver for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.[86][87] On July 9, 2021, the governor of the Northern Mariana Islands announced that the federal government had approved his request to reinclude Hong Kong in the visa waiver for the Northern Mariana Islands.[88] It is unclear whether Hong Kong was reincluded in the visa waiver on its own, for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, for stays of up to 45 days, or under a parole policy as part of China, for the Northern Mariana Islands only, for stays of up to 14 days, or under some other arrangement.
  10. ^ Must travel on a nonstop flight from Taiwan and hold a valid Taiwanese passport and national identification card.
  11. ^ a b c d Visa waiver only for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.
  12. ^ Refusal rates lower than the VWP requirement (10% for fiscal year 2008, or 3% for other years), for nationalities without visa waivers, are highlighted in green in the table. Refusal rates for nationalities with visa waivers are highlighted in yellow.

References

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External links

  • Visa Waiver Program, Bureau of Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State.
  • Visa Waiver Program, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
  • Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)
  • Visa Waiver Program: Passport Requirements Timeline, Department of Homeland Security.
  • VWP Signatory Carriers list as of 1 June 2016, US Customs & Border Protections.
  • Visa Waiver Program, Congressional Research Service.
  • v
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Visa policy by country
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1 British Overseas Territories. 2 These countries span the conventional boundary between Europe and Asia. 3 Partially recognized. 4 Unincorporated territory of the United States. 5 Part of the Kingdom of Denmark. 6 Egypt spans the boundary between Africa and Asia.

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1 British Overseas Territories. 2 Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Russia and the partially recognised republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia each span the conventional boundary between Europe and Asia. 3 Cyprus, Armenia, and the partially recognised republic of Northern Cyprus are entirely in Western Asia but have socio-political connections with Europe. 4 Egypt spans the boundary between Africa and Asia. 5 Partially recognized.

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  • Barton v. Barr (2020)
  • DHS v. Regents of the Univ. of Cal. / Wolf v. Vidal (2020)
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