Do I even need a visa?

Most New Zealand citizens, as well as citizens of 33 other countries, can travel to the U.S. temporarily for business or pleasure without a visa, under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). 

You may use VWP if you meet the following criteria:

• Plan to travel to the U.S. for 90 days or less;
• Starting January 12, 2009*, have an approved electronic travel authorization;
• Are traveling for tourism or business (pdf document; 85kb);
• Carry a machine-readable passport which, in most cases, must be valid for at least six months after your expected departure from the U.S.;
• Have a return ticket or onward ticket to most non U.S. destinations;

You will need a visa, and may not use VWP, if you any of these criteria apply to you:

• Want to remain in the United States for longer than 90 days;
• Have a criminal record;
• Intend to travel by private/charter aircraft or sea carriers;
• Want to work or study in the United States, including working as a foreign journalist.  This includes attending secondary or tertiary school, and paid or unpaid employment (including au-pairs, interns, working journalists, and government representatives on official business.) For more on the appropriate visa classifications for these activities, please see travel.state.gov;
• Have been deported or refused admission to the U.S. before, or failed to comply with a previous VWP admission or visa. This includes overstaying a previous admission by even one day.

Travelers With Criminal Records

Convictions for certain crimes may make you ineligible to travel to the U.S. The only way to know for sure if your criminal record makes you ineligible is to apply for a visa.  Only a consular officer can determine your visa eligibility. Please note that New Zealand’s Clean Slate Act does not apply to U.S. visa law. If you have a criminal record and attempt to travel without a visa, you may be refused entry into the United States.

You need to bring a copy of your Criminal History Report with you to the visa interview. The administration of criminal records is the responsibility of the New Zealand Ministry of Justice. You should use the "Priv/F1 - Request by Individual" form found on the Ministry of Justice website and follow the instructions listed there. Be sure to tick the box for your full record of convictions.

Even if your conviction makes you ineligible to travel to the U.S., you may be able to obtain a temporary waiver of this ineligibility. You should discuss this with the consular officer at the time of the interview. Waiver processing can take a couple of weeks, so if you think you may require a waiver, please apply early. We always recommend you do not make any financial commitments for travel until you have received a visa.

A special note about applicants with DRINK DRIVING convictions: Applicants with any drink driving charges are advised to apply for a visa and not use the Visa Waiver program.  Applicants must present their Criminal History Report at the time of interview and may be referred to the Consulate panel physician for evaluation by a Consular Officer.

If you have had any minor traffic offenses which did not result in an arrest or conviction, you may use the VWP, provided you are otherwise qualified. If the traffic offense occurred while you were in the United States, and you have an outstanding fine against you or you did not attend your court hearing, it is possible there may be a warrant out for your arrest. You should resolve these issues before traveling by contacting the court where you were to appear. If you do not know the address of the court, information is available from the Internet at www.uscourts.gov/links.html.

VWP Expansion: November 17, 2008 DHS has announced that nationals of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Hungary, Republic of Korea and the Slovak Republic are now able to travel without a visa for tourist and business travel of 90 days or less provided they possess a biometric passport and register on-line through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).  Please review the Visa Waiver Program expansion quick reference handout (pdf document, 206kb), as well as the travel.state.gov VWP web page to learn more about VWP travel.