United States
Verified- Region:
- North America
- Time zones:
- America/New_York, America/Chicago, America/Denver, America/Los_Angeles
- Last verified:
Overview
Travellers admitted to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program may stay for up to 90 days per admission. Unlike the Schengen rule, this is not a rolling allowance shared across a group of countries: it is a fixed period attached to a single admission, and the clock starts again on each new entry.
Two things make this route stricter than it first appears. A stay under the Visa Waiver Program cannot be extended beyond the period granted at entry. And an approved ESTA is not an admission decision - a Customs and Border Protection officer determines admissibility on arrival, and the date recorded on the admission stamp governs regardless of what any calculator says.
Stay rules
Visa Waiver Program (ESTA)
- Permitted stay
- 90 days
- How it is calculated
- Travellers admitted under the Visa Waiver Program may stay for up to 90 days per admission. The admission period is fixed at entry and cannot be extended.
- Effective from
- Notes
- The Visa Waiver Program is open to citizens of a defined list of participating countries; DAYOZA does not determine eligibility. An ESTA authorisation is not an admission decision — a CBP officer determines admissibility on arrival, and the date on the admission stamp governs. A stay under the VWP cannot be extended beyond the initial admission period.
Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection — Visa Waiver Program(opens in a new tab)
Last verified:
Passport validity
Information requires verification
DAYOZA has not yet confirmed this rule against an official source, so no result is shown. Check directly with the relevant official authority.
Check your stay
Enter when you arrived and the permission you are travelling on, and DAYOZA works out the last day you may still be present. Allowances written in months are treated as calendar periods, not as a fixed number of days.
Where you are travelling to.
What you are travelling on.
Optional. Add it to check your plan against the deadline.
A stamped date always wins
Where a border officer has stamped or written a specific date in your passport or on an entry record, that date is the one that counts, not this calculation.
Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection — Visa Waiver Program(opens in a new tab)
Last verified:
Notes
The Visa Waiver Program is open to citizens of a defined list of participating countries; DAYOZA does not determine eligibility. An ESTA authorisation is not an admission decision — a CBP officer determines admissibility on arrival, and the date on the admission stamp governs. A stay under the VWP cannot be extended beyond the initial admission period.
Common questions
Is the 90 days a rolling allowance like the Schengen rule?
No. The Visa Waiver Program grants up to 90 days per admission rather than 90 days within a rolling window. That said, CBP expects a reasonable amount of time between visits, and repeated back-to-back entries can lead an officer to refuse admission.
Can I extend a Visa Waiver Program stay?
No. CBP states that a traveller entering under the Visa Waiver Program cannot extend their stay beyond the initial admission period, and must depart on or before the date on the admission stamp.
Does an approved ESTA guarantee entry?
No. An ESTA authorises travel to the United States under the programme; it does not determine admissibility. That decision is made by a CBP officer at the port of entry.
How long must my passport be valid?
DAYOZA has not verified the United States passport validity requirement against an official source, so it publishes no figure. Check with the U.S. Department of State or your nearest U.S. embassy or consulate before relying on any number you find elsewhere.
Sources
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection — Visa Waiver Program — Last verified:
Report incorrect information
Calculators for United States
Each one uses the rules published on this page.
- Visa Stay CalculatorWork out the exact date your permission to stay runs out, from the allowance your visa or entry actually grants.
- Visa Overstay CalculatorCount exactly how many days a stay runs past its permitted departure date, and how many are left if it has not.
- Passport Expiry CalculatorCheck your passport against a destination's actual validity requirement — not a one-size-fits-all six-month rule.
- Travel Days CalculatorCount the days of a trip the way border authorities do, with both the arrival and departure days included.
Nearby countries
Other verified pages in North America.