Visit to US from UK - (really stupid question ahead...)

Hi All,

First off, I would like to say that this board is amazing and you all are so kind.

I know NOTHING of Int'l travel and apologize for the simple nature of my questions...

Here goes:   

Does a UK citizen  (with valid passport) need a Visa to visit the US for perhaps 10 days?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Does a UK citizen  (with valid passport) need a Visa to visit the US for perhaps 10 days?

Nope. No visa is needed.

You'll be issued a visitor's visa without a prob. Come on over.

Just to add that the UKC travelling to the USA should have a "machine readable" passport in order to travel to the US under the Visa Waiver Programme (VWP) - ie: without a visa.

Here's a link for further detail to establish if their passport is machine readable (basically, all the text & chevron detail at the bottom of the identification page)
http://www.usembassy.org.uk/cons_new/visa/niv/mrp_bio.html

There has been some give & take on this on entry to the U.S, the period was extended to participating countries, however now they expect everyone to be clear on it and have the appropriate passport.

Hope this helps

Yoy'll need a machine-readable passport, also a I-94W( Nonimmigrant VISA WAIVER Arrival-Departure Record) which you give to U.S. officials at the port of entry. I-94W forms are supplied to you  by the airline carrying you and you fill it out prior to landing.

My own experience married to a foreigner in the USA. A German.

We were already married and the papers went through fairly smooth. Don't send him back to the UK. Marry, even if you have to pull a civil marriage.

DH and I were married on a beach under a sungod. A pagan ceremony. Yes, the town mayor made it legal.

Forget the engagement stuff and just get married. They will not toss you out of the states if it's real.

 

 

My own experience married to a foreigner in the USA. A German.
.

Forget the engagement stuff and just get married. They will not toss you out of the states if it's real.

 

 

Probably true......... but you'll have to sit through an interview with a seasoned and WELL schooled Immigration officer and convince him or her that it was SPONTANEOUS and not planned.......ya gotta be careful what you say , and they KNOW all the right questions to ask....

Probably true......... but you'll have to sit through an interview with a seasoned and WELL schooled Immigration officer and convince him or her that it was SPONTANEOUS and not planned.......ya gotta be careful what you say , and they KNOW all the right questions to ask....

Yeah...yes! 

She asked all the right questions. We were married as hell and she knew it. A really lovely woman. She knew I was just trying to get my husband a res-visa. I looked at her and she looked at me. I was saying to her in so many words...we are married for years now..

She said, "Okay." She smiled. She knew that it wasn't a green card bad-trip. You just have to look at my husband looking at me. He fawns. He melts. Worships?

So, getting through it is fairly easy. These immigration peeps know. They are very astute.








 
 

So just get your a$s married.

The US immigration officers respects this. They know what's up. They look at the man.

Don't know how this thread went this way because all that was asked was does one need a visa to visit the U.S for 10 days or so but........just a little advice based on past experience. If one enters the U.S on the Visa Waiver Program and gets married while there, they CAN and SHOULD expect scrutiny from the I.N.S because the rule is that the marraige has to be "unplanned and spontaneous", otherwise they'll assume it was a ploy to circumvent the regular channels (Fiancee Visa, Spousal Visa, etc) and believe me, they DO know the difference AND the questions to ask to determine if that was the case.......it's not as you're implying....a "slam-dunk" 100% certainty that the person will be allowed to stay...get a savvy I.N.S officer at the interview and one could find themselves given 2 weeks to leave the U.S, told to go home and apply through the regular process.....it happens. Rules are what matter to them, not" respect for the man"...giving that type of advice is a bit "uneducated" shall we say?

So just get your a$s married.

The US immigration officers respects this. They know what's up. They look at the man.

Seagoddess, things have seriously changed since the days when you and I got married and immigration was almost a formality.  So, there's no point of us giving advise, espeicially if it's the type that will get people in trouble.

And I think she was just asking about a holiday, not moving. 

Seagoddess, things have seriously changed since the days when you and I got married and immigration was almost a formality.  So, there's no point of us giving advise, espeicially if it's the type that will get people in trouble.

And I think she was just asking about a holiday, not moving. 

Excellent point, Mindy.... this is why i dont offer my opinions on visas/immigration... because it has all changed so much since i did it, my experience is pretty much obsolete.

It is not always cut and dry with a UK citizen having a passport....

The US government also says if anyone has been convicted of any offense (including a parking ticket, traffice offense, speeding and upwards)

Which means you have had to have been taken to court and found guilty on something....you must get a visa stamped in your passport from the nearest American Embassy.

And like everyone else said it has to be machine readable (the maroon passports) and you fill out the little green card on the plane..NOT all airlines are included in the visa waiver scheme (little green card), I think all the major airlines are tho.

As of 4th Oct 05 a new requirement passengers into the US must arrive at the airport with full details of their address whilst in the US, this must include the zip code. The only exemptions are in-transit passengers who will be in the US for less than 8 hours.

As of 4th Oct 05 a new requirement passengers into the US must arrive at the airport with full details of their address whilst in the US, this must include the zip code. The only exemptions are in-transit passengers who will be in the US for less than 8 hours.

That sounds kind of strict.  What if somebody is traveling and will have no idea of his address?   

When I did my grand tour around the South about 12 or 13 years ago I left the address part on the visa waiver form blank, and explained to the INS guy at Chicago that I was going to be traveling around, nothing planned specifically.   He just asked me roughly where I'd be staying that night and I told him I was going to find a motel somewhere around the Atlanta area, so that's all that went on the form: "Atlanta, GA." 

I guess they're not so free-&-easy now. 

I know... this is just the stuff we get thru from the Airlines and Tour operators, and they get this stuff from the USA government.

We have to pass it on.

If you were doing a fly/drive holiday..I booked one for someone recently and was told they HAVE to decide where their first hotel is going to be...they have to inform the airlines of the address and they pass it on to the immigration ppl.

Not long ago we were told it was just the first 24 hours they needed to be informed of.......soooo...