Firms charge for free USA visa service
By Michael Lavery
Thursday January 08 2009
Some online travel companies are charging travellers to make a free application to the US government on their behalf, it was claimed today.
Read the whole article here.
Snippet(s):
"From next Monday, all travellers entering the US with passports from Visa Waiver Programme countries, such as Ireland, will have to obtain authorisation in advance of travel.
Passengers simply need to log onto the Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) website before they embark on their journey and answer some questions online, a spokesperson for Holiday Homes Direct.ie said.
Until now, passengers who travelled to the US filled in the form during the flight or at immigration in Dublin or Shannon airports. The online ESTA system asks for the same information, but now it must be received in advance of the trip."
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""The US Dept of Homeland Security said that all international travellers seeking to travel to the US under the Visa Waiver Programme "are now subject to enhanced security arrangements"."
