Visa required for US if you've been to Cuba
Discussion
Been to Cuba in the last 11 years? Want to go to the US? You'll need a visa for that: https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/air/visas-required...
VisitUSA said:
The disclosure reported by The Independent was picked up in a message issued by the Visit USA Association.
The newspaper reported that former US president Donald Trump added Cuba to the American list of “state sponsors of terrorism” (SST) and Joe Biden has left the designation in place.
As a result, any British traveller who has been to Cuba in the past 11 years is disqualified from using the Esta visa waiver scheme used by most UK arrivals to US
They must instead pay £137 for a visa and wait months for an interview appointment.
Trump placed Cuba on the same list as Iran, North Korea and Syria in January 2021, just before he was replaced by Biden.
The US State Department told The Independent: “Any visit to an SST on or after March 1, 2011, even if the country was designated yesterday, renders the applicant ineligible for Esta.”
Instead, they must try to get a tourist visa – which requires payment of $160 and attend an appointment at the US embassy in London or the consulate-general in Belfast.
But there is a serious backlog of appointments due to delays incurred during pandemic.
The US embassy in London said: “Please note that due to an increasing backlog of visa appointment requests, you may experience a significant delay between paying your visa fee and scheduling an interview appointment.
“By paying the visa fee, you acknowledge that it may take several months to schedule an interview appointment.”
The newspaper reported that former US president Donald Trump added Cuba to the American list of “state sponsors of terrorism” (SST) and Joe Biden has left the designation in place.
As a result, any British traveller who has been to Cuba in the past 11 years is disqualified from using the Esta visa waiver scheme used by most UK arrivals to US
They must instead pay £137 for a visa and wait months for an interview appointment.
Trump placed Cuba on the same list as Iran, North Korea and Syria in January 2021, just before he was replaced by Biden.
The US State Department told The Independent: “Any visit to an SST on or after March 1, 2011, even if the country was designated yesterday, renders the applicant ineligible for Esta.”
Instead, they must try to get a tourist visa – which requires payment of $160 and attend an appointment at the US embassy in London or the consulate-general in Belfast.
But there is a serious backlog of appointments due to delays incurred during pandemic.
The US embassy in London said: “Please note that due to an increasing backlog of visa appointment requests, you may experience a significant delay between paying your visa fee and scheduling an interview appointment.
“By paying the visa fee, you acknowledge that it may take several months to schedule an interview appointment.”
Edited by Chucklehead on Wednesday 28th September 10:09
matt3001 said:
I've got a) ESTA and b) Been to the USA in the last 6 months after visiting Cuba in 2020 so i dont think this is quite right
The rest of the article from the Indie (snipped off, for some reason) says "Anyone who has been to Cuba and obtains Esta clearance for the US will be breaching the rules, and could in theory be turned away upon arrival. But some travellers have told The Independent that they have successfully visited the US using passports issued since their trips to Cuba."https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTopic-g147270-i9...
Seems to cover this in detail.
Appears that the issue is if you have been to Cuba since it was put on the list in January 2021...
Seems to cover this in detail.
Appears that the issue is if you have been to Cuba since it was put on the list in January 2021...
matt3001 said:
I've got a) ESTA and b) Been to the USA in the last 6 months after visiting Cuba in 2020 so i dont think this is quite right
It's there in black and white on the ESTA website. "If a traveler is found to have visited a country designated as State Sponsor of Terrorism, the traveler is no longer eligible to participate in the Visa Wavier Program and must apply for a visa to enter the United States." It doesn't say when..
Cuba wasn't named in the ESTA application process when I renewed mine in October '21, but I'm guessing it might explicitly ask now. I've also been to the US quite a few times in the last 12 months and visited Cuba in 2014.
I suspect when it comes time to renew my ESTA that I'll be asked about Cuba and then I'll have a decision to make! It was on my old passport, and I do have a Cuba stamp on there.
If Cuba don't stamp your passport then how would the US know whether you have been or not unless you self declare? Given countries on the SST list it's not as if they will share information with US Immigration.
If Cuba did stamp your Passport you are the relying on an Immigration official choosing to look through all your entry/exit stamps which deosn't happen for the average Joe
If Cuba did stamp your Passport you are the relying on an Immigration official choosing to look through all your entry/exit stamps which deosn't happen for the average Joe
Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff