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• Transportation Security
• Visa Waiver Program
• Electronic System for Travel Authorization
• Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)

Visa Waiver Program travelers are required to apply for and receive an approved travel authorization via ESTA to board a plane or vessel bound for the United States. (A travel authorization via ESTA is not a guarantee of admission into the United States. Travelers must establish their eligibility for the program during inspection by an officer at a port of entry.)

In most instances, ESTA applicants will receive real-time notification on the status of their application to travel to the United States. Applicants denied an ESTA will be advised to apply for a visa at the nearest U.S. consulate or embassy.

For more information, and to apply for a travel authorization, see ESTA .

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Having a nightmare trying to get an ESTA for the US. The last time I got an ESTA was in 2018 and that was straight forward. This time when applying I get the message 'Unable to process application. Another application with this passport information already exists.' If I try to retrieve an application I get the message 'No applications exist.'

Have spoke with border control several times at length and they are beyond useless. One agent said that someone applied for an esta using my passport number, how is that even possible?

Was wondering if anyone has had a similar experience or could offer any help?

11 replies to this topic

Hello, I am French and I am going to the United States in April 2023. I tried to apply for ESTA but I received the same message as you, Even though I did not apply for ESTA before.

I don't know what to do... Did you get any answers ?

For those of you in the same situation, I finally found the solution!

I called the international number of Travel Communication Center (1-202-325-8000) using a Skype subscription for 4€ to call internationally without paying( because i'm french). I explained my situation to the agent and she asked for my email address so they could contact me and process my request. I had to email my passport and a few days later they processed my problem and I was able to apply for an ESTA. My ESTA was validated in less than 2 hours.

Hopefully smooth immigration for you, but theres a long history and tons of unbelievable failed online ESTA attempts, but this is what others usually experience from other part of the world, seems poor admin and unbelievable immigration are from same school.

Whoever handles the US State Department's web services does a pretty poor job. Recently renewed my US passport, and when I periodically tried using their website to check on the status of the renewal, it rarely worked. Maybe 20% of the time.

Olympe how much did they charge you to do this ?

I suspect that, if every traveller trying to get an ESTA right now was suffering the same issues, we'd be seeing more of this type of posts on this forum, so I don't think that many applicants are suffering - but that doesn't help those who are.

I shall need a new ESTA later this year so will be watching developments, as there have been ongoing issues ever since the change to scan passports became mandatory.

Olympe - I think many here might appreciate a follow up once you have successfully got your ESTA of exactly what you did with more details.

That issue seems to be sorted, I did Mrs V’s no problem the other week.

Just take photo and upload it from your desktop or file. You might need to edit the details afterwards onscreen as some of it was gibberish from upload!

If you are using a tablet can do it on one device, but a smartphone is a PITA trying to fill in the ESTA. The App Canada had for ArriveCAN was great at capturing your passport details, CBP could Lateran a few things from their near neighbors tbh!

Should read ‘learn’ a few things.

('neighbors' - really? Have you gone over to the dark side, V?)

Sorry to be off topic.

Sorry for my late reply. It didn't cost me anything, except the price of the call but I had taken an international subscription on Skype so I only paid 4€.

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Knowledge Article

Traveler Compliance Check - FAQs

What is the traveler compliance check.

The I-94 website and CBP One™ mobile application allows certain travelers to check the status of their admission in the United States under the View Compliance tab. This check will inform travelers of how many days are remaining on their admission or how many days they have remained past their admit until date. The time periods are calculated from the period of admission granted to each traveler upon arrival in the United States. The timeframes vary for every traveler depending on class of admission and/or visa type. The Traveler Compliance Check will also provide information regarding next steps and courses of action. Why did I receive an e-mail from U.S Customs and Border Protection (CBP) asking me to check my status on the I-94 website or CBP One mobile application?

CBP is taking proactive steps to ensure travelers comply with their terms of admission by sending reminders about time left in the United States and notifications to travelers who have potentially overstayed their period of admission. To facilitate notification, CBP has added a traveler compliance check to the I-94 website or CBP One™ mobile application. You can find the traveler compliance check under the ‘View Compliance’ tab. While the email notification is new, there is no change in CBP's policies or enforcement actions. This proactive approach only changes how visible CBP's work is to the travelling public. Currently only some individuals will receive this email. It is still the responsibility of the individual traveler to ensure that they are complying with the terms of their admission. Travelers may receive an email indicating they have 10 days remaining on their admission into the United States or an email regarding a potential violation. If you receive an email, you may check your admission status at  https://I94.cbp.dhs.gov  or through the CBP One™ mobile application. The email notification will come from [email protected].  If your notification email did not come from this address, it may be a phishing scam or other fraudulent email. What is the source of information used in the Traveler Compliance Check?

The traveler compliance check dates are calculated by using the authorized period of admission date designated by a CBP officer when a traveler arrives in the country. The status indicator calculates primarily on the authorized period of stay date in addition to any new changes or updates to a person's immigration status while in the United States.  If the traveler has extended or adjusted their status through the United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) while in the United States, this may not be reflected on the Traveler Compliance Check page. If I have received an e-mail and/or the Traveler Compliance Check shows that I have overstayed my admission is this a legally binding determination?

No. The Traveler Compliance Check is a tool t assist travelers in determining if they have violated their terms of admission. It is not a legally binding determination of inadmissibility. A legally binding determinations will be made after review by an authorized official within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (including Customs and Border Protection) or the U.S. Department of State. For more information visit the  frequently asked questions   or contact the Traveler Communications Center at (202) 325-8000  

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Additional Information

How to Contact – ESTA Application

How to contact.

The ESTA Online Center is limited to responding to inquiries from customers in order to accurately understand and promptly respond to customer inquiries. Input information varies depending on the content of the inquiry. Please check the procedure for each “inquiry type” below.

1-1. Fill out inquiry form

(Inquiry type: Application method, application status, expiry date, registration information, receipt, etc.)

If you have selected the inquiry type “About application”, “About application status”, “Want to know the expiration date”, “Want to change my registration information”, “About receipt”, or “Other”, enter your name and email address. Please describe the details of your inquiry in as much detail as possible. The application ID is listed in the email sent when you received the ESTA application. If you do not know, you can leave it blank. Enter the necessary information and click “Confirm”.

1-2. Confirmation and transmission of inquiries

A confirmation screen for inquiries will be displayed. Please confirm that there are no mistakes in the input details and click “Send inquiry”.

1-3. Inquiry complete

When the inquiry has been sent, an E-mail will be sent to the E-mail address you entered to notify you that the inquiry has been completed. If you do not receive the email notification of the completion of transmission, it is expected that you will not receive the response email of the inquiry as well. In that case, we recommend that you contact us again using a different email address. If you use free mail or your mobile device email address, it may be sorted into a spam mail folder, etc. Please check.

2-1. Fill out inquiry form

(Inquiry type: Cancellation policy)

If you select “Cancellation Policy” for the inquiry type, please enter your name, email address, passport number registered at the time of application, passport issuance date, passport expiration date, and phone number. The application ID is listed in the email sent when you received the ESTA application. If you do not know, you can leave it blank. Enter the necessary information and click “Confirm”.

※If you are inquiring about the cancellation policy, you will need to enter all the items except the application ID in order to check the application status from the registered applicant data. Details on our cancellation policy .

2-2. Confirmation of inquiries

Confirmation of inquiries and ESTA application status are displayed. We will guide you through the procedure according to the status, so please proceed according to the description.

List of other inquiries

Cbp(united states customs and border protection).

If your ESTA application question is not answered correctly and your travel is refused, please contact CBP (United States Customs and Border Protection) yourself. Correction may be possible depending on the question that was answered incorrectly.

Contact information

• Traveler Communications Center Call:1-202-325-8000
• Inquiry form CBP INFO center

UPDATE : 2023/12/20

ESTA and Visa Waiver Program mechanism, rules and conditions are explained in an easy-to-understand manner.

UPDATE : 2024/04/19

Applying for ESTA/Sample

Explains in detail how to apply for ESTA with examples and illustrations.

Applying for ESTA from your smartphone

Explains points to note when applying for an ESTA on a smartphone.

UPDATE : 2021/07/14

ESTA Visa Waiver Programme and U.S. Visitor Visa

Explains the differences, features, and expiration date of ESTA and visa in an easy-to-understand manner.

UPDATE : 2023/02/13

About the visa waiver program (VWP)

Learn more about the countries and conditions that exempt visas when traveling to the United States.

UPDATE : 2024/01/17

Group application/family application

Explanation of points to note when applying for an ESTA in a group with photos and Q & A.

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Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock A locked padlock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

This page was published more than five years ago. Information on the page may be out of date.

How will CBP inform travelers their ESTAs were revoked? What email/contact information will CBP use?

Travelers who have their ESTAs revoked will be contacted via the email address they provided as part of the ESTA application.  Any traveler who receives notification that they are no longer eligible to participate in the VWP may still travel to the United States with a valid nonimmigrant visa issued by a U.S. Embassy or Consulate.  The new law does not ban travel or admission to the United States with a valid visa.

Regional consular center Moscow

Switzerland and Russia

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• Representations
• Embassy of Switzerland in Russia
• Regional Consular Center Moscow

Additional information

Visa center – TLS Russia TLScontact call center Phone +7 495 9958512 Website

Emergencies outside the office hours Follow the answering machine instructions Or contact Helpline FDFA Tel: +41 800 24 73 65 Fax: +41 (0) 31 322 78 66 Skype

• Public holidays

Social Media

@SwissEmbassyMoscow

Consular activities and Visa

Start of page Last update 22.02.2021

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