It is important to begin considering travel requirements early. There are different requirements for travel to the United States depending on the country in which a person lives. People planning to travel to the United States should be in contact with their consulates and should allocate as much time as needed to secure the proper documentation to enter the U.S. IAAPA will provide updates on any major changes in policy that could affect travel to the United States.

Visa Waiver Program
It is important to bear in mind that not everyone entering the United States needs a visa. The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) remains in effect. The VWP enables citizens of participating countries to travel to the U.S. for tourism or business for 90 days or less without obtaining a U.S. visa.

The program is administered by the attorney general in consultation with the secretary of state. The VWP was created by an act of Congress as a pilot program in 1986 and implemented in 1988. Congress passed legislation to make the program permanent in October 2000, and the president signed the legislation on October 30, 2000.

There are currently 28 participating countries in the VWP: Andorra, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay.

Know Your Forms
Have on hand proof of financial solvency and a completed and signed visa waiver arrival/departure form (I-94W), on which you have waived the right to a hearing of exclusion or deportation. These forms are available from participating carriers and travel agents, and at land-border ports of entry. (Travelers should consult carriers to verify which ones are participating before making travel arrangements.)

Individuals from countries not in the VWP need to obtain a visa to enter the United States. To date, the Department of State has taken a fairly decentralized approach to the issuance of visas, allowing the U.S. consulates in each country to more or less determine how many, and to whom, visas will be issued. Changes to this approach are likely to occur, and these may result in an increase in the time and effort required to obtain a visa.

It is also more than likely that an interview will be necessary for people seeking a visa. While this is not cause for concern, it will be important to apply for a visa as early as possible to complete the process in a timely manner.

It would be wise to stay in touch with the U.S. embassy in your country regarding anticipated delay times for getting visas. Special care should be taken in preparing your documentation appropriately so that the visa is approved the first time you submit it. With additional precautions being taken, you can anticipate that the consulates will be less willing to reevaluate visa applications expeditiously, thus increasing the importance of providing a complete and accurate application initially.

Several different consulates this past year urged us to advise those seeking visas that they must be prepared to demonstrate that they are legitimate businesses and have a genuine business need to travel. It would be helpful for each applicant to be prepared and able to provide that information if it is requested.

While there is every reason to anticipate success in traveling to the U.S., IAAPA members planning to do so should contact the U.S. consulate in their countries earlier than usual to obtain all necessary travel documentation.

To enter the U.S. on the Visa Waiver Program, travelers from participating countries must adhere to the following requirements:

• Have a valid passport that is issued by the participating country and be a citizen (not merely a resident) of that country. As of October 1, 2003, any passport presented at the U.S. port of entry must be a machine-readable passport.

• Be seeking entry for 90 days or less as a temporary visitor to the U.S.

• If entering by air or sea, have a round-trip transportation ticket issued by a carrier that has signed an agreement with the U.S. government to participate in the VWP, and arrive in the United States aboard such a carrier.