About the US Visa Waiver Program

The U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows travelers from 36 approved countries to enter the U.S. without a visa as long as certain conditions are met.  Generally, participants in our short-term group and individual homestay programs, who are citizens of one of these approved countries, may come to the U.S. without a visa on the VWP.

In addition to being a citizen of one of the VWP-approved countries, travelers must comply with the following requirements in order to be eligible for entry in the U.S. under the VWP:

1. Possess a valid machine-readable passport from one of the VWP-approved countries with an expiration date no sooner than six months after the applicant’s scheduled departure from U.S.  (For IFF program participants, your passport should be valid for at least six months after last scheduled day of the program).

2. Travel to the U.S. for business or pleasure with a planned stay of no more than 90 days (IFF short-term group and individual homestay programs generally meet this requirement).

3. Demonstrate an intent to stay in the U.S. for no more than 90 days and the ability to support his or herself during the visit (documentation will be provided by IFF or our overseas partner for this purpose).

4. Arrive in the U.S. on an approved carrier (if coming by air or sea; please see http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/87163.pdf for a list of approved carriers; this will not be a concern for the vast majority of our program participants whose travel is arranged by IFF or one of our overseas partners).

5. Apply for and receive an authorization to travel under the VWP through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Electronic System for Travel Authorization (program participants should complete the online application as early as practicable after confirming registration to ensure eligibility and guarantee appropriate authorization the scheduled program arrival date).

*As of June 24, 2010 Adopted from the United States Department of State

For an up-to-date list of Visa Waiver Countries and current requirements, please visit the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Visa Waiver Program Site.