WHO IS THE ESTA FORM FOR?

If you are traveling to the USA by air or sea, you must apply for an ESTA. You must complete the form at least 72 hours before boarding, or you will be denied boarding. However, this authorization does not guarantee you admission to the U.S. once you reach the border.

Both the process and the ESTA certificate are available online, so you’ll need an Internet connection.

For those traveling or simply transiting via one of the two above-mentioned means (air or sea) who have not completed the ESTA form will be denied boarding. ESTA is mandatory for transit, tourist and business travel of less than 90 days. A similar security procedure will be introduced in Europe in 2025:ETIAS.

Thanks to the Visa Waiver Program, nationals of these countries no longer need to apply for a USA tourism VISA to stay in the USA for less than 90 days.

The following countries are members of this program:
Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Taiwan.

Completing the ESTA form has been compulsory for some years now for all passengers (adults and children of all ages):

• traveling to the USA by air or sea,
• French nationality or nationality of one of the countries listed above (not applicable to travelers with dual nationality from Iraq, Iran, Syria and Sudan),
• traveling to the USA for tourism or business for less than 90 days,
• transiting the U.S. as part of a trip to another country.

If you’d like to find out more, take a look at our frequently asked questions, ourhelp page for using our simplified platform.