also called US Visa Waiver Program · VWP
The US scheme that lets citizens of certain countries visit for up to ninety days without a visa, using an ESTA authorization instead.
The US scheme that lets citizens of certain countries visit for a short stay without a full visa, using an online authorisation called an ESTA instead. The program is the rule; the ESTA is the actual permit you apply for under it, and people muddle the two names constantly. Entering this way also means giving up some rights to contest a refused entry, and it does not allow work.
Someone from an eligible country books a trip to the US and forgets that even without a visa they still need an approved ESTA before boarding. At the gate the airline will not let them fly until the authorisation comes through, because the waiver still requires that online permit.
The VWP is the program, the ESTA is the online permit you get under it, and the two names get used interchangeably even though one is the rule and the other is the document. Entering under the VWP also means waiving some rights to contest a refused entry. Know that it caps you at short visits and does not permit work.
The difference is the whole point, so here is each one in a line.
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