Irish passport - 1st time travelling to US - ESTA & business trip

greep

Irish passport - 1st time travelling to US - ESTA & business trip

1) I assume I can go for a short business trip with no visa required.
That's what I read here, but wanted to double check.
https://www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/usa/our-services/visas/us-visas-for-irish-citizens/

2) Is there a requirement to submit ESTA online application 3 days before departure at the latest?

3) What is the official ESTA application website?
I initially found this one: https://www.esta.ie/ but it looks like a 3rd party company & probably would charge more/takes more time?
I then found this site, which I believe is an official one: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/

Thanks in advance for confirming the above.
I don't want to be rejected entry for missing something obvious.
Any other tips welcome

Reati

You only need the esta which covers you for 90 days and will be filling out a customs form on landing and tick business. They will ask what and why you are there etc thne stamp you and into the land of the free, home of the brave and all that excitement.

You use this site: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/. It's pretty foolproof and take 5 mins.

You should do the ESTA as soon as you know you are going. I've had people in work get rejected from ESTA for random reasons and then need to go get a VISA.

muttnjeff

I would go for official esta page-14 dollars is charge. As regards the visa it does appear that you are covered under the visa waiver programme but the states have their own interpretation of everything. A few fellas on Joe Duffy recently were stopped at customs in shannon/Dublin who had previously traveled without any problems. The fact that you are travelling on business may cause complications. I would definitely email the embassy to be sure. Print out a copy of their reply if it says you dont need a visa. Best of luck

Reati

muttnjeff wrote: »

I would go for official esta page-14 dollars is charge. As regards the visa it does appear that you are covered under the visa waiver programme but the states have their own interpretation of everything. A few fellas on Joe Duffy recently were stopped at customs in shannon/Dublin who had previously traveled without any problems. The fact that you are travelling on business may cause complications. I would definitely email the embassy to be sure. Print out a copy of their reply if it says you dont need a visa. Best of luck

Ah now, don't be worrying the OP unnecessarily. I've been to the US on business more times that I can count. I've never had an issues either on the Irish side or the US side and always declare my trip purpose.

CBP only care that you are not working and getting paid by a US person while you are there and that you have a ticket home and leave when you say you will.

OP - mail the embassy if you are worried, but I wouldn't stress about it.

muttnjeff

Reati wrote: »

Ah now, don't be worrying the OP unnecessarily. I've been to the US on business more times that I can count. I've never had an issues either on the Irish side or the US side and always declare my trip purpose.

CBP only care that you are not working and getting paid by a US person while you are there and that you have a ticket home and leave when you say you will.

OP - mail the embassy if you are worried, but I wouldn't stress about it.

just answering the query-didn't intend to be worrying OP unnecessarily:eek:

greep

Thank you guys,
One last clarification: Will I get some answer from ESTA after a couple of days (i.e. Travel Approved or Rejected)?

n!ghtmancometh

All mine have been approved instantly once I completed the form and paid the $14.

coylemj

greep wrote: »

Thank you guys,
One last clarification: Will I get some answer from ESTA after a couple of days (i.e. Travel Approved or Rejected)?

As it's your first trip, the only risk for you is that someone with the same name is on a 'no fly' list which could delay your ESTA approval by a day or so, meaning that you could apply as late as two days before you intend to travel.

And as advised above, as long as nobody in the US is paying you, the ESTA will cover you fort a business trip. Just be sure to have that fact ready for the immigration agent - your Irish employer (even if it's a US multinational) is paying your salary while you are in the US.

And don't bother printing anything, the approval will be on their system linked to your Irish passport number.

whomitconcerns

coylemj wrote: »

And don't bother printing anything, the approval will be on their system linked to your Irish passport number.

Seconded..A CBP agent wont care if you have a letter from Donald Trump himself printed. They and they only make the determination at the point of entry.

wacotaco

Hi,

I applied for a new passport yesterday 7th. I travel to the US on 19th of this month. I'm confident I'll have the passport by then but just realised my ESTA is out of date.
I read you need 72hrs before applying for the ESTA....if this is the case I may not have the passport in time to complete the form.

The passport office is closed on the weekends. I'm thinking of ringing up first thing Monday morning and cancelling my new passport? My original passport would still be valid for this trip.

Any help appreciated.

gerard2210

wacotaco wrote: »

Hi,

I applied for a new passport yesterday 7th. I travel to the US on 19th of this month. I'm confident I'll have the passport by then but just realised my ESTA is out of date.
I read you need 72hrs before applying for the ESTA....if this is the case I may not have the passport in time to complete the form.

The passport office is closed on the weekends. I'm thinking of ringing up first thing Monday morning and cancelling my new passport? My original passport would still be valid for this trip.

Any help appreciated.

Did you apply for the passport online? If you applied online you should have the new passport by Wednesday or Thursday.

wacotaco

Yes I submitted it yesterday online. My application is currently processing according to the tracker. It might not be until Monday that it's looked at again if they close on the weekends however.

The tracker also states :The estimated* issue date for your Passport is: 20/02/2020

coylemj

wacotaco wrote: »

Yes I submitted it yesterday online. My application is currently processing according to the tracker. It might not be until Monday that it's looked at again if they close on the weekends however.

The tracker also states :The estimated* issue date for your Passport is: 20/02/2020

That estmated date for your passport and the 72 hours for ESTA approval are both probably erring on the side of caution. You should get the ETSA sorted in 24 hours but it won't be instantaneous as before, that's guaranteed.

Having started the passport renewal process, I doubt if you can cancel it and carry on as if you never applied. It could lead to the situation that you show up at US Immigration with an Irish passport that has been cancelled so ESTA or no ESTA, you get refused.

You should have started a new thread.

wacotaco

gerard2210 wrote: »

Did you apply for the passport online? If you applied online you should have the new passport by Wednesday or Thursday.

I heard it takes 6 days usually. Does this include weekends or after processing stage?

circular flexing

wacotaco wrote: »

I heard it takes 6 days usually. Does this include weekends or after processing stage?

Wouldn’t be surprising if the passport was printed and sent on Monday. Online renewal is very quick assuming it’s a straight forward renewal.

AtomicHorror

I applied via ESTA there on Wednesday and got approval by the next morning, so that part can be pretty quick.

Out of interest, does anyone know if they stamp your passport? I like stamps.

endofrainbow

yes they do . On an ESTA it's stamped with your entry date to the US.

coylemj

AtomicHorror wrote: »

Out of interest, does anyone know if they stamp your passport? I like stamps.

They definitely will. When the immigration official approves you to enter the US, they stamp a 90 day travel permit in your passport.

Moon Dice

So I got an ESTA last year for Work. I'm going to a completely new city now. Do I need a new ESTA?

endofrainbow

Moon Dice wrote: »

So I got an ESTA last year for Work. I'm going to a completely new city now. Do I need a new ESTA?

No - unless you've gotten a new passport.