Visa and other formalities The United States Of America

For travellers to the United States or in transit, the ESTA is a mandatory form to be completed on the website before departure. The obtaining is done in 24h to 72h, but, to avoid unpleasant surprises and not to compromise his trip, it is strongly advised to make this request from 1 to 3 weeks before his departure. This form replaces the more restrictive visa application procedure for the 38 countries benefiting from the "Visa Waiver Pilot" programme, including France.

Adults and children (regardless of age) are subject to this procedure. In most cases, homeland security officers will give their agreement online almost immediately by returning the mention "approved authorization". The authorization is valid for a period of 2 years or until the passport expires. The authorization does not need to be presented at check-in at the airport but will be verified electronically upon your arrival in the USA. Without it, there would be no admission to the United States. For security, make a printout of the agreement sent to you over the Internet before you leave. Some fraudulent sites exist, please log in to the site given above.