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Comment by Capt-RogerOver | Hacker News Reader

He seems to have tried to enter USA using ESTA. ESTA is not a visa, it's a visa-waiver program. It's specifically created as an easier method of entering a country, but as a trade-off, it says in the terms that they can deny it for any reason with no questions. This does not mean that the person cannot enter the country per se, it just means they need to apply for a real visa.

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> it says in the terms that they can deny it for any reason with no questions

Same goes for any visa.

But in the case of a normal Visa, a certain amount of vetting is done beforehand, although you can still be denied entry.

To get a J1 I had to deliver quite a few documents and go the local US embassy to do an interview there.

An ESTA you can do literally 10 minutes before checking in (I did it once), I doubt anything else than a few basic automatic checks are done.

I believe the border control personnel act as if that vetting hasn't been done at all. All in all, I think this path is worse, since you get denied to entry after a long flight, and you have to flight back...

It's frustrating they couldn't warn him prior to the hour of travel? I find it difficult to believe they'll have rejected him for something they couldn't have contacted him about days or weeks ago. With ESTA they've got perfect contact details too?

I assume he's lost the price of the flight? Travel insurance wouldn't repay it?

At least they told him before he flew over. They could have done that when he actually landed, and he would have been denied entry there, then shuffled back onto a flight.

I do not get your point. The ESTA is the only way to get to the country if you're going to a conference or on holidays or to visit someone.

If you're looking for better, you need to find a job to sponsor you and you need to go through the lottery (H1B). Or you need to work for a US company abroad for more than a year (L1). Or you need to get married with an american person.

There are regular tourism/business visitor visa's I'm sure.

But those are more of a hassle compare to ESTA. Nobody from an ESTA country will do those if they're not immediately denied.

> There are regular tourism/business visitor visa's I'm sure.

Nope.

Where are you getting the information? There absolutely are other visas. The ESTA is just an easier way to do it, and as such, can sometimes be more limited. You can also get normal visa and get other vetting procedures and likely other outcomes.

You can absolutely get a B-1 or B-2 visa. Only VWP-eligible country citizens are even eligible to get an ESTA in the first place.

https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/visit/visitor.html

You fill out a DS-160 and go through the process, but you don't have to get an ESTA. You are always allowed to apply for a full visa instead.

More succinctly, click the "May I apply for a visa instead of using the VWP?" question on this page: https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/visit/visa-waiver-...

You can get a B-1 or B-2 visa if you're not on the list of countries eligible for an ESTA.

It's one thing to be denied for it upon application, the other one to have the authorization revoked after it was given in the first place

> but as a trade-off, it says in the terms that they can deny it for any reason with no questions

Notably, the Customs and Border Patrol officer at your point of entry can do this [1], on the spot.

[1] https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/application.html?execution=e1s...

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