We wanted to let you know of a change that will affect you regarding US visa waivers. The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) is administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and enables eligible citizens or nationals of designated countries including Canada to travel to the United States for tourism or business for stays of 90 days or less without first obtaining a visa.
Recently the U.S. government has made a further change to immigration processing at the airports. The airports are no longer processing U.S. visa waivers, and we now must apply online or go to an applicable land port of entry (POE) to apply. An airport port of entry (POE) is an airport withs customs and immigration services for foreign visitors arriving to the United States.
However, both online and POE are not doing waivers for non-essential travel until September 21, 2020. This may be extended again, and I will keep you posted. Applicants will also need to complete the biometrics appointment portion of the waiver process at the listed port of entry locations: https://e-safe.cbp.dhs.gov/resource/1593197900000/eSAFE_AvailablePortsOfEntry
If you choose to do the POE application, you would need to plan a trip to one of the processing POEs and make the application there.
Alternatively, if you would like to do an online application, we will set up the online submission. Please let us know if you would like to proceed with the online option, and we will need to re-draft the application to an online application. Please let us know if you would like to proceed.
USCIS Fee Increases
I also wanted to note that it is best to complete your visa waiver submission before October 2, 2020, because the USCIS fees will go up from $585 USD to $1400 USD.
Read More:
- NEXUS Trusted Traveller Program
- Why Flying to the U.S. May Take Even Longer
- Immigration and Tax Solutions for Canadians On Business Travel to the United States
Do You Need Help With Business Immigration?
If you have questions about your U.S. visa waiver, your ability to cross borders seamlessly for you or your team to cross the U.S. / Canada border on business, or other immigration issues during the coronavirus restrictions or for post-restriction business, contact Ackah Law today at (587) 602-0343 Ext. 100 or 1-800-932-1190 or email contact@ackahlaw.com.
