People traveling to the US on a business trip or for pleasure do not need a visa if they intend to stay less than 90 days and are citizens of one of the 37 countries taking part in the Visa Waiver Program (WVP). The Visa Waiver Program means visa-free traveling, and nationals of these 37 participating countries are allowed to stay in the US for up to 90 days; they are not allowed to be in the US for more than 180 days a year and must not work while being there.
As of January 2009, everyone seeking to travel to the US under the Visa Waiver Program has to apply for an ESTA-Travel Authorization before entering the US. ESTA stands for Electronic System for Travel Authorization and is an electronic travel permit system as an enhanced security requirement for those traveling under the WVP and is valid for 2 years. It should be applied for at least 72 hours before entering the US and the charge of that security check amounts to $14, which has to be paid by credit card.
Internet scammers are taking advantage of this law and procedure to take advantage of unsuspecting.
Third parties have set up websites, which charge horrendous fees for passing on information about ESTA and the ESTA application, and which are doing the authorization application for travelers.
Examples of these scamming websites are: www.esta.us/ www.esta-america.org (lead to the same page) www.estanumber.com
These sites very much look like official government websites; however it is important to point out, that they are, under no circumstances, connected to, endorsed or commissioned by the US-Government or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). There is only one official ESTA-website where an application should be placed: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov.
These scamming websites charge a very high fee for their services, which excessively exceed the original costs of $14. After putting in all your details you get to read the following:
“By pressing the “Place Order” button below I acknowledge that I am utilizing a private company to submit the ESTA Travel Authorization on my behalf for USD $79.00 which includes the mandatory US Government Application fee.”
So, this site asks for $79. On the webpage itself they state (very small and hidden, of course) that the ‘mandatory US Government Application fee’ is $14 and that the $65 extra Dollars are their processing fee. $65 for taking all the personal information that you entered on their form, and entering it in the actual Department of Homeland Security application website and forward you the PDF that the DHS sent out (with the application number). That is all they do.
As mentioned before, the unofficial sites are the spitting image of the official DHS website and the fact, that they appear at the top of Google search (depending in the keywords entered), does not make the whole thing less confusing, especially as many people believe sites, that are shown on top of Google searches to be the official and most trustworthy sites. This is a fallacy. These companies pay Google Ads to appear at the first or second hit on Google and make them seem more credible.
So please always remember that the only official site is going to be a .gov website and that you do not have to pay more than $14 for your ESTA-Application.
UPDATE: By the end of 2015 there has been a legislative change in the U.S.. Visa-free entry under the VWP is no longer possible for those individuals who on 1st March 2011, or after that, have resided in the states of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Sudan. The entry then requires prior application for a visa at the US Embassy or the US consulates general.