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Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows citizens of certain countries to enter into the United States without a Visa for a short business or tourist trip of 90 days or less. There are certain criterias that need to be fulfilled in order to qualify for the VWP. Not all countries participate in the VWP, and not all citizens of participating countries qualify for the program.
The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables nationals of 36 participating countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business (visitor [B1-b2] visa purposes only) for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa.
VWP eligible travelers may apply for a visa, if they prefer to do so. Nationals of VWP countries must meet eligibility requirements to travel without a visa on VWP, and therefore, some travelers from VWP countries are not eligible to use the program. VWP travelers are required to have a valid authorization through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to travel, are screened at the port of entry into the United States, and are enrolled in the Department of Homeland Security’s US-VISIT program.
List of Counties Participating in VWP
Currently, 36 countries participate in the Visa Waiver Program, as shown below:
| Andorra |
Hungary |
New Zealand |
| Australia |
Iceland |
Norway |
| Austria |
Ireland |
Portugal |
| Belgium |
Italy |
San Marino |
| Brunei |
Japan |
Singapore |
| Czech Republic |
Latvia |
Slovakia |
| Denmark |
Liechtenstein |
Slovenia |
| Estonia |
Lithuania |
South Korea |
| Finland |
Luxembourg |
Spain |
| France |
Malta |
Sweden |
| Germany |
Monaco |
Switzerland |
| Greece |
the Netherlands |
United Kingdom |
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Visa Waiver Requirements
1. Applicant must hold a machine readable passports as of June 26th, 2005.
2. Passport must be valid at least 6 months from the expected day of departure from the United States.
3. Applicant has complied with the conditions of previous admissions under the Visa Waiver Program and has not been found ineligible for a U.S. visa.
4. Applicant arrives by an approved carrier (by sea or air).
Most major airlines and cruise ships are approved carriers.
5. The applicant has a return ticket to any foreign location besides any part of United States or any U.S. adjacent islands.
6. If arriving by land, the applicant must demonstrate the intent to stay 90 days or less in the United States and have sufficient funds to support themselves during his/her stay here.
7. VWP travelers who have been admitted under the Visa Waiver Program and who make a short trip to Canada, Mexico or an adjacent islands, generally can be readmitted to the U.S. under the VWP for the original admission period.
8. *New passports issued by Visa Waiver Program countries must include a digital photo, otherwise the traveler will be required to get a visa.
(A digital photo is one that is printed on the page, not a photo that is glued or laminated into the passport.)
*If a passport does not have this afore mentioned (point # 8) feature, you can still travel without a visa if:
* Were issued a valid passport before October 26, 2005, which is machine-readable, or
* You have "e-Passport," which includes an integrated computer chip capable of storing biographic information from the data page, a digitized photograph, and other biometric information. (All passports issued from Visa Waiver Program countries are required to be e-Passports as of October 26, 2006.)
 More details on passport requirements 
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Machine-Readable Passports
A machine-readable passport has certain biographical data entered on the data page in accordance with standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Doc 9303, Part 1 Machine-Readable Passports. These standards address issues such as the size of the passport and photograph, arrangement of data fields, and the two lines of printed machine-readable data that appear at the bottom of the page. Machine-readable passports can be read by scanning the two lines of printed data through special readers. Below is an example of how the biographical data page in a machine-readable passport might look:
Travelers should contact their country’s passport issuing agency or authority if they have any doubts related to whether their passport is machine-readable.
What is an e-Passport (or biometric passport)?
An e-Passport incorporates data related to an individual's identity; current ICAO guidelines call for e-Passports to include facial recognition data. The contours of individuals' faces are digitally mapped and stored on the chip so that a comparison of facial data for the bearer of the passport and the facial data of the person to whom the passport was issued can be made. You can readily identify an e-Passport, because it has a unique international symbol on the cover.
For more detailed information on Visa Waiver Program:
Dept of state website Untied States Bureau of Consular Affairs
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Form I-94W, Arrival/Departure Record for VWP Travelers
All travelers entering into the United States under the VWP program must complete and submit Form I-94W (green form) at Point of Entry (POE).
It is the applicant’s responsibility to make sure the transportation carriers collects the applicant’s departure portion of the Form I-94W on their departure.
Sample I-94W (Green Form)
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