# Do I need a visa to visit the US ? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 8, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413 "2013-03-08T19:04:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2013, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/21 "2013-03-10T07:04:16Z")
I’ll just say this. Do not presume ANYTHING with immigratoon officials and their actual or lack of knowledge. Its very likely that Botswana known (or could find out in about 30 seconds) what colour shirt you were wearing last time you came through Heathrow. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2013, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/22 "2013-03-10T07:27:45Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > Remember, your prominent passport infomation is name (and maiden name) date of birth, and place of birth -citizenship too, but of course you can have multiple citizenships. My educated guess is that all their information is tied to that data; if you match someone else of interest, and all that data matches (how often does that happen?) then they will take a closer look.. According to the last customs agent who processed me in the US and who got a horrible case of the LOLs seeing my file, the US Government has a list of more than 20 aliases for yours truly. Most of them are either different spellings and shortenings of my name, several are horrid bastardizations of my name, one is María García (I once got a phone call asking if I’d used that name to buy a washing machine - it certainly isn’t a name I’ve _used_). I’m still wondering whether every single Hispanic woman who’s ever set foot in the US has María García listed as an alias. ---
**Author:** ![sweat209](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/23 "2013-03-17T04:45:05Z")
You have to talk to immigration person and say y\*\*ou want to go US for year or two years and work \*\*and fill out the paper work they give you so you can get green card.Base on you eduction and job you may or may not get green card.If you are doctor , nurse ,police officer or skilled it be easier to get green card. To visit the US you need visa this only allows you to enter US for x amount of time you cannot work in US or stay for too long. And they may or may not give you green card or visa base on where you coming from and your eduction. Also other thing if you want to move to the US to work for year or two years \*\*make sure you have money \*\*.The more eduction you have , more money you have ,more skills the easier it is to get green card. And last note doctors , nurse ,police officer or any skilled worker coming from the UK or Canada to the US is going to be easier than say Africa or the Middle East because the eduction is so different there. The US has alot and I say again alot of people out of work looking for jobs almost 10% can’t find jobs :eek::eek:the economy is mess a big mess so unless you have money ,eduction and skill they are not going to ALLOW YOU green card of feel you will not find work and be on street and if they do enough of this that 10% will go to 20% really fast. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2013, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/24 "2013-03-18T17:13:44Z")
I have no idea about the OP’s case, but some 20 years ago when I left the USA the girl at the check-in desk didn’t remove some paper that was stapled to my passport and that should have been turned in, which means that I officially never left the country. Last year I used the visa waiver and I had no problems whatsoever with getting permission to enter the country again. ---
**Author:** ![Busy\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/25 "2013-03-19T14:13:47Z")
> [@Bones\_Daley](#): > > Ok..condensed history …I first went to the US in 1998 …overstayed my 90 day limit…got married to a US citizen (within the US ) ..returned to UK in early 2K …been here ever since. > > I want to visit the States later this year for a week or so. > > Thing is, my passport has expired so I will have a new one, and I am assuming that on the new passport there will be no record of my previous visits to the US. > > So …do I really have to go through the hassle of applying for a visa , or is the better bet just to lie about my previous overstay, sign the visa exemption form when I am aboard the aircraft, and hope that immigration don’t have any means of tracking my previous visits when I land at Newark ? > > I have no moral scruples whatsoever about telling a little white lie if it’s going to save me the hassle of getting a visa, it’s not like I am planning the downfall of the American government ( and that actually\*\*\* is\*\*\* one of the questions on the visa exemption form …I kid you not). There’s no signing the visa exemption form on the aircraft anymore, not sure if you are aware of this? You need to apply for the visa waiver online prior to travelling - deadline of 48 hrs prior to I think. Online procedure, and will cost you a tenner for the privilege. ---
**Author:** ![sweat209](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2013, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/26 "2013-03-22T02:43:55Z")
> [@Floater](#): > > I have no idea about the OP’s case, but some 20 years ago when I left the USA the girl at the check-in desk didn’t remove some paper that was stapled to my passport and that should have been turned in, which means that I officially never left the country. Last year I used the visa waiver and I had no problems whatsoever with getting permission to enter the country again. If you where born in the US it does matter if you left the US you are a US citizen and same for people who apply for US citizenship and get US citizenship. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/27 "2013-03-23T21:41:47Z")
> [@sweat209](#): > > You have to talk to immigration person and say y\*\*ou want to go US for year or two years and work \*\*and fill out the paper work they give you so you can get green card.Base on you eduction and job you may or may not get green card.If you are doctor , nurse ,police officer or skilled it be easier to get green card. > > To visit the US you need visa this only allows you to enter US for x amount of time you cannot work in US or stay for too long. > > And they may or may not give you green card or visa base on where you coming from and your eduction. > > Also other thing if you want to move to the US to work for year or two years \*\*make sure you have money \*\*.The more eduction you have , more money you have ,more skills the easier it is to get green card. > > And last note doctors , nurse ,police officer or any skilled worker coming from the UK or Canada to the US is going to be easier than say Africa or the Middle East because the eduction is so different there. > > The US has alot and I say again alot of people out of work looking for jobs almost 10% can’t find jobs :eek::eek:the economy is mess a big mess so unless you have money ,eduction and skill they are not going to ALLOW YOU green card of feel you will not find work and be on street and if they do enough of this that 10% will go to 20% really fast. Is this posted in the wrong thread? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/28 "2013-03-23T23:15:21Z")
He seems to be a non-native English speaker who is a just a bit confused about what the thread and some posts are about. (See his post just above yours.) ---
**Author:** ![imran\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@imran\_j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/imran_j)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2013, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413/29 "2013-03-29T13:06:42Z")
What about UK criminal convictions being visible to US authorities ? It seems there are many myths about people with live/spent criminal convictions in the UK who have been able to dodge the checks and have gotten through security into the US, without the ESTA. Is there any truth to this, as surely in the security conscious world we live in, and the inevitable exchange of information between countries, surely this is not possible ? In theory, could someone with a UK criminal record successfully apply for the electronic ESTA and avoid further checks upon entering the US ? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-a-visa-to-visit-the-us/652413.md?page=1)