Misschien goed om even helder te krijgen wat onze vrienden in de USA er nu zelf over berichten, in plaats van hier te steggelen of het nu wel of niet iets met elkaar te maken heeft. De US of A hebben een beveiligingssysteem dat is opgebouwd uit verschillende 'lagen". ESTA is een relatief nieuwe, laag die de veiligheid van het Visa Waiver Program zou moeten verhogen.
Op 19 januari 2010 zijn de meest recente Faq's over ESTA geformuleerd, waarvan onderstaand een uittreksel. Liefhebbers lezen hier de volledige tekst.
Opvallend is dat in de tekst staat dat het de bedoeling is dat 'binnen enkele maanden' het I-94 W formulier komt te vervallen. Eers zien, dan geloven, maar we zijn een stapje dichterbij een formulierloze reis. En dat vond ik goed nieuws!
Uittreksel FAQ's januari 2010
The "Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007" (9/11 Act) amended Section 217 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), requiring that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) implement an electronic travel authorization system and other measures to enhance the security of the VWP.
The Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is an automated system that assists in determining eligibility to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) and whether such travel poses any law enforcement or security risk. ESTA counterbalances vulnerabilities inherent in visa-free travel by establishing an additional layer of advance scrutiny that enables DHS frontline personnel to focus even more on the small population of potentially dangerous travelers.
All nationals or citizens of VWP countries who plan to travel to the United States for temporary business or pleasure under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) are required to receive an authorization through ESTA prior to boarding a U.S.-bound airplane or vessel. An ESTA approval only authorizes a traveler to board a carrier for travel to the United States under the VWP. In the same way that a valid visa does not constitute a determination of admissibility, an approved ESTA is not a guarantee of admissibility to the United States at a port of entry. In all cases, CBP officers make admissibility determinations at U.S. ports of entry or pre-clearance facilities.
The ESTA application is currently free. Congress is currently considering legislation entitled the "Travel Promotion Act" (TPA). This legislation, if enacted, calls for DHS to collect a fee from Visa Waiver Travelers to promote travel to the United States. This legislation has not yet been passed by the Congress.
The implementation of the ESTA program will allow DHS to eliminate the requirement that VWP travelers complete an I-94W prior to being admitted to the United States. We are currently in a transition period, but anticipate that the paper form will be completely replaced in the coming months. Until carriers are capable of receiving and validating messages pertaining to the traveler’s ESTA status as part of the traveler’s boarding status, travelers will still be required to complete the paper Form I-94W and present it to CBP.