HalconBCN

Hi people,

I'm considering visiting friends in Iran this July; it seems to be a good time to visit the country.

But I also will ve visiting the U.S. in August, and I am concerned that my ESTA will no longer be valid and I would need to apply for a U.S visa.
I am an EU citizen and have visited the U.S. multiple times.

Has anyone recently been through this process and were there any issues with getting the U.S. tourist visa after having visited Iran? And practically speaking, was the wait at the U.S. point of entry longer than it would have been with ESTA?

muscat

I have visited Iraq and therefore had to get a USA visa. Got mine in Abu Dhabi and process at US embassy took about an hour. Visited the USA with my wife on her ESTA and we went through the same immigration queue.

GUWonder

The US will be further slowing down US visa issuing processes/times. You'd likely still eventually end up being accepted or denied a visa as at this time last year, but the time involved is slated to increase and increase materially. Just a heads up. And I say that as someone who finds Iran fascinating as a tourist too and wasn't a fan of the US VWP being blocked to those who visited Iran on US VWP country passports.

If you're willing to tolerate a wait of a few more days or weeks to get your passport back from the US embassy/consulate, then I'd still go ahead with plans as desired.

HalconBCN

Hi,
Thanks for the tips everybody. Indeed Iran is a fascinating country and especially as I have friends who have moved back to live there, I feel the time is right to visit.
About the U.S. tourist visa - when you arrive at the major airports in the U.S. are you allowed into the line for the machines? Or does the visa have to be verified manually? How bad could the wait time be?

muscat

Arriving in Washington D.C. we waited 5mins at passport control.

HalconBCN

That's quick!
Were you able to use the machines with your passport?
I wonder if you would would have been able to use that line had you been traveling alone without your ESTA-holding wife?

HalconBCN

Can it take days/weeks?

Prospero

As this topic concerns entry into the United States, this thread has been moved into the USA forum.

Prospero
Senior Moderator

reclusive46

You can still use the kiosks with a visa.

You can also still use the ESTA program if your a member of the global entry program.

fizzydp

A UK citizen business colleague arrived in May at LAX holding UK passport that had a recently entered Iranian visa. SInce he did not disclose that he had Iranian visa when he applied for ESTA (which he obtained prior to getting the Iranian visa) he as detained in Passport Control for 6 hours. They took away his phone and computer and went through them. After 4 hours they said he would be released (others in the group holding room were not so lucky and were sent back/denied entry), and then it took 2 more hours to get his passport back. He now has to re-apply for ESTA and it has taken 3 weeks with no reply. Now hiring an immigration attorney in US to assist. So if you have recently added a visa from any of the countries on Trump travel ban list, don't expect a warm welcome in the USA.

HalconBCN

At least your colleagues got in, but thanks for sharing. Such a story sends a shiver down my spine. The unfortunate thing about this policy is that it hurts tourism to Iran and the U.S. European citizens who have visited Iran won't want to go through the hassle of getting the U.S. visa. European citizens who want to visit the U.S. won't want to go through the hassle of visiting Iran. Valuable opportunities for cultural exchange are being wasted.
However I am willing to go through the hassle as I love the US
I understand anyone who gets the tourist visa will be accepted, as this is the correct procedure:
- EU citizen visits U.S. with ESTA...
- Visits Iran for tourism
- Applies for U.S. tourist visa at local consulate
- Enters U.S. for tourism with tourist visa

Often1

As noted above in #10 , the US is one of those countries where having the proper documents does not guarantee anything.

Unlike the UK, as an example, where a properly documented traveler would only be denied entry for fraud in connection with obtaining the documents, this is not the case in the US.

There are no guarantees and US policy regarding Iran could shift at any time.

toph3r

You cannot be something that does not exist. The EU does not issue passports. It is not a nation state. Only nation states can issue passports.

toph3r

Why would he apply for something he is clearly intelligible for? That is both a complete waste of time and money.

Said immigration lawyer should be making the simple recommendation to apply for a B1/B2 visa for future US travel. If they haven't, I'd suggest they find another - actually competent - lawyer.

GUWonder

EU citizenship exists, as do EU citizens. But the US admissibility requirements applicable to EU citizens in the main, whether using the US VWP or not, are generally based on state-to-state agreements rather than EU-US agreements.

Nation-states are not the only issuers of passports. Also, ordinary passports aren't the only acceptable international travel doc for a non-US national to be potentially admissible into the US. The EU issues laissez-passers.